William Millar
Member of the Wisconsin Senate
from the 30th district
In office
January 7, 1889 – January 2, 1893
Preceded byGeorge Clay Ginty
Succeeded byLevi F. Martin
Member of the Wisconsin State Assembly
from the Dunn district
In office
January 3, 1887 – January 7, 1889
Preceded byJohn M. Oddie
Succeeded byStewart J. Bailey
Personal details
Born(1839-10-05)October 5, 1839
County Dublin, Ireland, UK
DiedFebruary 5, 1913(1913-02-05) (aged 73)
Red Cedar, Wisconsin, U.S.
Resting placeWaneka Cemetery, Elk Mound, Wisconsin
Political partyRepublican
SpouseSarah Jane McCormick
Children
  • Mary A. (Rickard)
  • (b. 1867; died 1953)
  • James David Millar
  • (b. 1869; died 1948)
  • John H. Millar
  • (b. 1870; died 1872)
  • Mary "Maud" (Stoner)
  • (b. 1875; died 1902)
  • William Millar Jr.
  • (b. 1882; died 1956)
  • Marguerite (Jasperson)
  • (b. 1890; died 1965)
  • Alice J. "Nellie" (Dickson)
  • (b. 1880; died 1967)
OccupationLumberman, farmer

William Millar, Sr., (October 5, 1839 – February 5, 1913) was a Scotch-Irish American immigrant, farmer, and Wisconsin pioneer. He was a member of the Wisconsin State Senate (1889 & 1891) and Assembly (1887), representing Dunn County. His last name was spelled Miller in some historical sources.[note 1]

Biography

Millar was born near Dublin, Ireland, on October 5, 1839.[1] He attended a select school in Ireland before emigrating with his family to the United States in 1850. He was raised working with his father on a farm in Waukesha County, Wisconsin. In 1857, the family moved to their own farm in what is now the town of Red Cedar, Wisconsin, and William was sent to attend high school at the nearby village of La Crosse, Wisconsin.[1]

At age 19 went to work as a lumberman near Eau Claire, Wisconsin, for the Dole, Ingram & Kennedy company.[1] He worked 13 years in this profession and for the last seven years of that time, he was also a manager and investor in the logging company.[1] Over those years, he gradually accumulated land for his own estate in Red Cedar, eventually owning about 400 acres.[1]

He was one of the founders of the Dunn County Agricultural Society in 1885 and served as its first president.[1] The following year, he was elected to the Wisconsin State Assembly, running on the Republican Party ticket.[2] Rather than running for re-election in 1888, he ran for and won a four-year term in the Wisconsin State Senate.[3] He did not run for re-election in 1892.

His health declined gradually over the subsequent years, and he died on his farm in Red Cedar on February 5, 1913.[4]

Personal life and family

Millar was born to a Scottish father and Irish mother. He was the second of eight children born to David Millar and his wife Margaret (née Riley).[1] Two of his younger brothers, James and Robert, fought for the Union Army in the American Civil War—James was killed at Spotsylvania Court House.

William Millar married Sarah Jane McCormick, the daughter of another Dunn County pioneer. They had seven children together, though one son died in infancy. Their eldest son, James David Millar, also went on to serve in the Wisconsin State Assembly.

Electoral history

Wisconsin Assembly (1886)

Wisconsin Assembly, Dunn District Election, 1886[2]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
General Election, November 2, 1886
Republican William Millar 1,740 57.50% -8.31%
Democratic H. W. Nelson 741 24.49% -9.70%
Labor F. T. Vasey 545 18.01%
Plurality 999 33.01% +1.39%
Total votes 3,026 100.0% -21.44%
Republican hold

Wisconsin Senate (1888)

Wisconsin Senate, 30th District Election, 1888[3]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
General Election, November 6, 1888
Republican William Millar 4,914 51.36%
Democratic William H. Smith 4,092 42.77%
Prohibition D. D. McPherson 561 5.86%
Plurality 822 8.59%
Total votes 9,567 100.0%
Republican hold

Notes

  1. ↑ The 1887, 1889, and 1891 Wisconsin Blue Books spelled his name "Miller", and so later volumes that relied on that data to compile historical lists of legislators also spelled it that way. His obituary, his son, and his grave, however, spell it "Millar".

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Forrester, George, ed. (1892). Historical and Biographical Album of the Chippewa Valley, Wisconsin. A. Warner. pp. 488–489. Retrieved March 21, 2022.
  2. 1 2 Timme, Ernst G., ed. (1887). "Biographical Sketches" (PDF). The Blue Book of the State of Wisconsin (Report). State of Wisconsin. p. 497. Retrieved March 21, 2022.
  3. 1 2 Timme, Ernst G., ed. (1889). "Biographical Sketches" (PDF). The Blue Book of the State of Wisconsin (Report). State of Wisconsin. p. 500. Retrieved March 21, 2022.
  4. ↑ "Senator Millar Dies Wednesday". The Dunn County News. February 7, 1913. p. 1. Retrieved March 21, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
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