USA > Wisconsin > History of the bench and bar of Wisconsin, Vol. II > Part 14
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HISTORY OF THE BENCH AND BAR OF WISCONSIN.
tween 1871 and 1890, as city attorney of Manitowoc, previous to which, in 1870, he had for two years held the position of justice of the peace.
A stanch republican in his political opinions, he is a highly valued member of the party, and his views and opinions have at all times carried considerable weight. An old time member of the Odd Fellows, he be- longs also to the American Legion of Honor. In the business enter- prises of his'town he has ever taken a prominent part, and at the present time is a stockholder in the Manitowoc slating company and also in the Manitowoc elevator company. His religious affiliations are with the Episcopalians.
This record would be incomplete without some tribute to the high qualities of his estimable wife, formerly Esther A. Kress, to whom he was married at Manitowoc, December 18, 1871. Of a family of seven children there are four living -- James M., Harvey G., Josephine A. and Mamie A .- while Louise, Maud and Gustavus A. are deceased.
Faithful to every duty, a patient and indefatigable worker, punctil- ious and observant of the little things of his profession, upon which his sound good sense has taught him the truest success has its founda- tion, Mr. Forrest is unquestionably well deserving of the eminent place he has obtained in the profession he chose to make his life work.
NATHAN CLARK GIFFIN.
Nathan C. Giffin is a member of the law firm of Giffin & Sutherland and one of the prominent lawyers and able citizens who have so wisely guided the public affairs of Wisconsin. He traces his ancestry to Simon Giffin, who is believed to have come from the north of Ireland, previous to 1761, and settled in Halifax, Nova Scotia. He is said to have been a man of wealth and culture; at all events, his was a character which im- pressed itself upon the community, since one of the city's public parks bears his name. His son, Simon, Jr., and the great-grandfather of Nathan C. Giffin, was an officer in the revolutionary army and a resident of Connecticut, dying in that state at an advanced age.
Mr. Giffin's grandfather, David, during the war of 1812 rendered valuable service to his country as a captain of militia on the Canadian frontier. He was a native of Bennington, Vermont, but in 1800 had
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HISTORY OF THE BENCH AND BAR OF WISCONSIN.
settled at Oswegatchie, New York, and purchased a farm located six miles above Ogdensburg on the banks of the St. Lawrence river. There he had established his family and when hostilities with England began was in a geographical position to render good military service, and, as after events proved, possessed the ability to do so. He died in 1840.
Of the eight children comprising the family of David Giffin five brothers survive, and all but one are professional men. One of them, Dan S., is a lawyer who still lives upon the old homestead at Heuvelton, St. Lawrence county, New York, where, on October 10, 1833, was born the subject of this memoir. His father, Nathan Ford Giffin, was an enterprising merchant and a man of property, operating a general store, shoe and harness shops, an ash factory, a tannery, and saw, shingle and flouring mills. He died in his native town September 12th, 1891, at the advanced age of eighty-six years. Mary (Galloway) Giffin, his mother, a woman of strong character, was of Canadian birth.
As his parents were intelligent people in prosperous circumstances, their children enjoyed liberal educational advantages, Nathan himself entering the Wesleyan seminary, at Gouverneur, New York, when he was fifteen years of age. Here he prepared for Union college (Schenec- tady), from which institution he was graduated in 1859. In college he was a member of the Delta Kappa Epsilon fraternity. Soon after gradu- ating he entered the law office of Isaiah T. Williams, a leader of the New York city bar, and in 1860 was admitted to the practice of his profes- sion. He claimed that city as his residence for four years, although during the thirty-seventh Congress (1861-63) he resided in Washington, acting as clerk of the committee on revolutionary claims in the United States senate. During this time Preston King was chairman of that committee.
In the fall of 1863 Mr. Giffin moved to Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, where he has since resided, practicing alone during nearly this entire period of thirty-five years. From 1875 to 1880 O. T. Williams was his law partner and since January, 1896, he has been the senior mem- ber of the firm of Giffin & Sutherland. Except that he has avoided criminal cases, Mr. Giffin's practice has been general. It has steadily increased in bulk and importance, much of it now being devoted to
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HISTORY OF THE BENCH AND BAR OF WISCONSIN.
probate and commercial law. One of the most interesting and im- portant cases in probate with which he has been identified was that which grew out of the contest of the will of Walter C. Scarboro by his mother, two sisters and a brother. The sisters were subscribing wit- nesses to the will and the brother was named as one of the executors of the estate. The case was tried twice and at each trial the will was sus- tained. Mr. Giffin appeared for the legatees.
That Mr. Giffin's abilities are not confined to the mere practice of his profession is evident from the fact that his fellow-citizens have hon- ored him with several public offices. In 1865 he was chosen city attor- ney and re-elected in 1866, 1867, 1869 and 1870. He was alderman in 1868 and for a part of his term president of the city council. For sev- eral years he served as a member of the school board and held the posi- tion of county judge for a term of four years and a half, commencing in 1873. In 1876 he was made a director of the free public library and continued to serve in that position for a period of fifteen years, and was president of the board for three years. He was for nine years trustee of Rienzi cemetery and has been trustee of Lawrence university, Appleton, for the past sixteen years, being at the present time vice president of the board, ex-Senator Philetus Sawyer being the president.
Judge Giffin has for more than half a century been a prominent member of the Methodist Episcopal church, steward of the local church for thirty-four years, member of its board of trustees for more than a quarter of a century and for eight years trustee of the Wisconsin con- ference, being at this time president of that body. For a third of a cen- tury he has also been among the best known Masons of the state. In 1864 he became a Master Mason, in 1869 a Royal Arch Mason and in 1870 a Knight Templar, serving for several years as master of his lodge. He was grand lecturer of the grand lodge in 1869, deputy grand master in 1876 and 1896, and grand master of the state in 1897. Since 1887 he has been trustee of the grand lodge, and since 1885 has been a permanent member of the grand commandery of Knights Temp- lar of Wisconsin.
On the 27th of August, 1862, Mr. Giffin was married to Jane C. Eddy, in Philadelphia, New York. They have four children living-
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HISTORY OF THE BENCH AND BAR OF WISCONSIN.
Anna, now Mrs. Waldo Sweet, of Fond du Lac; Emma, now Mrs. Dr. F. T. Stevens, of Mount Pleasant, Iowa, whose husband is identified with the Iowa hospital for the insane; Lucina M., who married Rev. R. O. Irish, a missionary to China, and Don E., a student at Lawrence university. Myra E. Giffin died in 1876.
As to noticeable traits of character, it should be added that Mr. Giffin is domestic, a great reader and a lover of art.
SIMON GILLEN.
The subject of this sketch is a native of Mitchell, Sheboygan county, Wisconsin, where he was born on May 1, 1855. He has always resided in the county, and it is a sufficient tribute to his excellent character to say that he is universally respected by those who have known him so long and so well. His parents, James and Nancy (Larken) Gillen, were natives of Ireland and became residents of Massachusetts in 1841. Being a farmer, the former was not greatly attracted by the soil of the east, and after an experience of eight years (in 1849) decided to remove to Wisconsin. The farm upon which he then located with his family was far more to his liking and he operated it for many years. At the advanced age of eighty-nine he still lives in Sheboygan county, well preserved both physically and mentally and taking a lively and intelli- gent interest in events of the day.
The boy was educated in the district schools of Sheboygan during his early years, but from the age of thirteen to eighteen gave most of his time to farming. For two years thereafter he was in the employ of the Chicago & Northwestern Railway company and during a period of about seven years previous to 1883 again engaged in agriculture.
Mr. Gillen had already become very popular among the democrats of the county, who admired him for his qualities of sociability, practical knowledge and talents for political organization. As early as 1881-82 he was selected as chairman of the board of supervisors of his native town, and in the fall of 1882 was elected to the legislature. During the fall of the succeeding year he became clerk of the circuit court, which position he retained for three terms, giving eminent satisfaction to both bench and bar. It was during this period that Mr. Gillen commenced
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HISTORY OF THE BENCH AND BAR OF WISCONSIN.
the reading of law with characteristic energy, absorbing the contents of all the books which he could purchase or borrow. In May, 1888, he was admitted to the bar by the state board of examiners and during the same year was elected district attorney of his county. He was re- elected for three successive terms, serving in that capacity for five years, and resigned the position to accept the county judgeship. To the latter post of honor he was elected in the fall of 1893, his term of office com- mencing in January, 1894, and ending in January, 1898.
Up to this time Judge Gillen had been alone, but he then formed a partnership with Martin Hughes, which still continues. His practice has necessarily been of rather a varied nature, his experience as district attorney taking him into the domain of both criminal and civil law. In either he seems equally at home and, although notably successful as a prosecuting attorney, his fitness for the judicial position was at once demonstrated.
In religious belief Judge Gillen is a Roman Catholic. It may also be stated that his social and domestic traits have been gratified by his marriage (in October, 1896) to Miss Amelia Stube.
PAUL T. KREZ.
General Conrad Krez, the father of Paul T., was one of the ablest and most widely known German Americans who ever resided in Wis- consin, and his life was a succession of more stirring events than often falls to the lot of one man. As a law student at the university of Heidel- berg, Germany, he joined the revolution of 1848 and fled to France, where he remained for two years. In 1850 he emigrated to the United States, first settling in New York, where he married Adolphine, the daughter of Judge Stemmler. Four years later he came to Sheboygan, Wis., where he remained until the outbreak of the civil war. He then raised a regiment, composed principally of his fellow-countrymen, which was mustered into the service as the twenty-seventh Wisconsin volunteer infantry. Of this organization he was appointed colonel and served gallantly throughout the war; at the time of the Mexican diffi- culties his regiment did guard duty upon the Rio Grande frontier. He was mustered out of the service as brigadier general of volunteers and
-
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HISTORY OF THE BENCH AND BAR OF WISCONSIN.
upon his return to Sheboygan resumed the practice of his profession.
General Krez was district attorney of Sheboygan county for eight years, serving as city attorney in 1880. During 1885 he removed to Milwaukee and became collector of the port, being appointed by Presi- dent Cleveland. With the change of national administrations and the appointment of his successor by President Harrison, General Krez re- turned to the practice of law. He was elected to the legislature in 1889, was city attorney of Milwaukee for two years, and died on March 10, 1897.
Paul T. Krez, the son, was born in Sheboygan, in August, 1860, and that city was the scene of his early education. He commenced his law studies, also, in his father's office and graduated from the legal depart- ment of the university of Wisconsin in 1880. He continued in partner- ship with his father until the removal of the latter to Milwaukee in 1885, since which time he has practiced alone in Sheboygan.
Mr. Krez has confined himself professionally to the civil law. One of the most important cases in which he has been engaged was that of Trester vs. Sheboygan, to prevent the city from paying for streets which had been legally acquired; also C. Riess Coal Company vs. Charles A. Born, mayor of Sheboygan, to compel the latter by mandamus to pay money for work on a verbal contract which was due. Outside of his private practice Mr. Krez has gained considerable prominence, both as a public official and in business circles. He was city attorney in 1883, and a member of the board of public works for about four years; he also organized and successfully conducted the South Side Land com- pany and is a prime mover in the formation of the Kade Hygienic Soda Fountain company, an organization designed to place a new fountain upon the market which shall compete with that manufactured by the trust.
It is evident from the foregoing facts that Mr. Krez is a tireless worker and it may be added that with his industry and ability is com- bined a courtesy and consideration which are bearing their legitimate fruits. He is a democrat, a Mason (now senior warden of his lodge), and has a membership in the Royal Arcanum and the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks.
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Mr. Krez was married in 1886 to Miss Minnie J. Schroeder, at Kenosha. They have one child, Conrad.
MAURICE McKENNA.
Maurice McKenna was born at Springfield, Massachusetts, on the 3Ist of May, 1846. The boy shortly afterward removed with his parents to Cambria, Niagara county, New York. He made Wiscon- sin his home in October, 1854, locating on a farm in the town of El- dorado, Fond du Lac county. He there received his primary education, subsequently attending the Fond du Lac high school and teaching in the district schools of the locality.
However commendable the career of a country pedagogue, Mr. Mc- Kenna's ambition took a broader turn at an early date, his final decision being that the legal profession offered him the best opportunities for general advancement. Like many other young men of earnestness and patriotism, however, the execution of Mr. McKenna's plans was re- tarded by the civil war. He entered service as a member of company I, thirty-ninth Wisconsin volunteer infantry, being mustered out in 1864. During the succeeding year he commenced his legal studies by entering the office of Blair & Coleman, of Fond du Lac, as a student, and in 1866 his studies and experience there were supplemented by a course of instruction under Henry F. Rose. Before progressing further, how- ever, it was necessary to secure employment, and in 1870 he was elected clerk of the county court-a result gratifying both to his pride and promise of future preferment. For the six years covering the period from 1870 to 1876 he served in this capacity and his record is one of faithfulness and efficiency.
In June, 1876, Mr. McKenna was admitted to the bar and has prac- ticed in Fond du Lac ever since. He is not only considered a good lawyer and a safe counselor, but a man of rare judgment in public affairs. He has been a member of the board of education for several terms and during a decade was a representative of the county board of supervisors, being for three years chairman of that body.
Finally, he is a gentleman of culture and originality, a marked evi- dence of his versatility being his poetic talents, which are of a high order
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and were in strong evidence even during his school days. His earlier poems were collected in a volume, which met with a flattering reception and which was entitled "Elva Lee and Other Pieces." His "Poems, Rhymes and Verses," published in 1890, contained his more mature pro- ductions, the book being warmly praised by critics, both personally and in the press.
LYMAN J. NASH.
The subject of this sketch was born on a farm near Millville, Orleans county, New York, January 18, 1845. His father, Francis Nash, was also born in that state; but his paternal grandfather was born in the state of Connecticut, where the family name was founded by Edward Nash, emigrant from England, in 1654. His mother, whose maiden name was Catharine Van Bergen Curtis, was born in Massachusetts and is a descendant of the old Dutch Van Bergen family known along the banks of the Hudson a hundred years before the revolutionary war.
Mr. Nash came to Wisconsin with his parents in 1851 and lived with them upon a farm in the town of La Prairie, Rock county, until twenty- one years of age. During the later years, however, of this period, he taught school, and by his private studies prepared himself for college, which he entered in 1866. In 1870 he graduated from Lawrence uni- versity, Appleton, Wisconsin. Immediately following his graduation he was principal for two years of the north side high school at Manito- woc, Wisconsin. He was admitted to the bar in December, 1872. From January, 1873, until May, 1874, he practiced law at Manitowoc in partnership with E. B. Treat; and from May until December, 1874, with O. F. A. Green. From December, 1874, until October, 1875, he practiced.law alone, and at the latter date he formed a law partnership with A. J. Schmitz, which was continued until January Ist, 1881. From the end of this period until the present time he has continued his practice in company with his brother, Edwin G. Nash, the firm name being Nash & Nash. He has been an alderman, a member of the school board, and is a trustee of Lawrence university, secretary of the Hamilton Manu- facturing company, of Two Rivers, Wisconsin, and a director of the national bank of Manitowoc:
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HISTORY OF THE BENCH AND BAR OF WISCONSIN.
1
ANSON C. PRESCOTT.
Anson C. Prescott was born in Fond du Lac county in the year 1852. His parents were Charles W. and Julia (Kenniff) Prescott; his father was a native of New York and removed to Wisconsin in 1844. He was educated in the public schools and the university of Wisconsin, graduating from the latter institution in 1877. After obtaining his collegiate degree he entered the law department of the university and after a two years' course therein was admitted to the practice of his pro- fession.
In 1879, directly after graduation, Mr. Prescott came to Sheboygan, where he opened an office and entered into partnership with Alex. Craven. This connection continued for one year, when he became as- sociated with L. D. Harvey. Since 1882 he has practiced alone.
Mr. Prescott is a republican and his party has honored him upon several occasions by bestowing offices upon him whose functions were in line with professional work. For several years he has served as city attorney and has been district attorney of Sheboygan county.
For many years he has been identified with the Masonic fraternity, but, as a rule, has had little connection with any but professional organ- izations. As to business enterprises in which he is financially interested, it may be stated that he is a stockholder in the Excelsior Wrapper company.
Mr. Prescott was married at Sheboygan Falls, in 1885, to Miss Alice Richardson. They have three children-Eleanor, Katherine and Oliver.
AUGUST E. RICHTER.
August E. Richter, county judge of Fond du Lac county, was born in Saxony, Germany, on the 8th day of February, 1853. His father, August Richter, and his mother, whose maiden name was Ernestine Sophia Klaebe, came to Wisconsin when their son was but two years of age, stopping for a time at Milwaukee, subsequently residing at Cedar- burg, and finally, in 1865, removing to Fond du Lac, where they have since resided, until the death of the mother, October 22d, 1892.
After receiving a liberal education in the Fond du Lac schools Mr.
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Richter entered the drug business, at which occupation he remained ten years, when the republican party placed him in nomination for clerk of the circuit court for Fond du Lac county, and although the county was at this time strongly democratic he was elected by a flattering majority.
The duties and associations of this position, together with a faithful application to the study of law, enabled him to make such rapid progress in it that in January, 1885, he passed his examination with credit and was admitted to the bar.
Commencing to practice at once, he soon began to build up an en- viable practice and rapidly gained the reputation of being reliable in counsel and successful and faithful in the conduct of cases.
In 1889 the republicans of the county singled him out as their can- didate for the office of county judge, and again he overcame the usual democratic majority and was elected. Since that time the people of Fond du Lac county have expressed their thorough appreciation of his ability, industry and integrity by twice re-electing him to the office with- out opposition.
In religious belief Judge Richter is a Lutheran. He is a member of the Masonic order and other societies in the city.
GEORGE G. SEDGWICK.
George Goodwin Sedgwick, of the firm of G. G. & C. H. Sedgwick, Manitowoc, Wisconsin, was born at Andover, Oneida county, New York, February 13, 1843. The same year his parents removed to Illi- nois and located at Bloomingdale, about twenty-four miles west of Chi- cago. His education was obtained at the latter place and in Wheaton college; the stay in college was shortened by reason of enlisting for service in the civil war in 1862, as a member of company D, one hun- dred and fifth Illinois; was mustered in as sergeant ; promoted to orderly ; discharged because of disability in the spring of 1863; in 1864 enlisted in the one hundred and thirty-second Illinois as a private; promoted to commissary sergeant. Mr. Sedgwick obtained his legal education by reading while he was teaching school in Illinois and in the office of G. W. Foster, at Port Washington, Wisconsin, where he was admitted to the bar in 1874. From the fall of 1874 until the Ist of January, 1880, he
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HISTORY OF THE BENCH AND BAR OF WISCONSIN.
practiced law at Kewaunee, in partnership with William H. Timlin, now of Milwaukee; in 1880 removed to Manitowoc and practiced there as a member of the firm of Sedgwick & Forrest. Mr. Sedgwick's present partner is his son, Clyde H.
In politics Mr. Sedgwick is and has been a republican; has been a delegate to several state conventions, and was such to the national con- vention of 1896. He has held a number of minor offices and is now city attorney and member of the school board.
NATHANIEL P. TALMADGE.
The greater portion of the career of Nathaniel P. Talmadge was lived before he became a resident of Wisconsin. He was born at Chat- ham, Columbia county, New York, February 8, 1795; was graduated from Union college; admitted to the bar in 1818; elected to the popular branch of the legislature of New York in 1828; served in the state senate from 1830 to 1833; in the United States senate for two terms; appointed governor of Wisconsin territory June 21, 1844, by President Tyler; served in that capacity from November 16, 1844, to May 13, 1845. Upon retiring from office he became a resident of Fond du Lac and entered upon the practice of his profession. He died at Battle Creek, Michigan, November 2, 1864.
CHARLES H. WALKER.
Charles H. Walker was born in Tully, Onondaga county, New York, September 5, 1828; in his youth he removed to Ohio, where he was graduated from the Western Reserve college. His practice in Wiscon- sin was begun at Kenosha, whence he removed to Manitowoc in 1854. He represented that county in the assembly in 1856 and 1857, and served it as county judge from 1857 until 1862, when he resigned to enter the military service. He raised a company, was elected and com- missioned captain and served with the twenty-first Wisconsin regiment. At the close of the war he held the rank of major. His death took place in the town of Manitowoc Rapids, December 14, 1877.
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JOHN WATTAWA.
John Wattawa was born in Milwaukee on April 3, 1860. His parents, Matthias and Josephine Wattawa, both of whom were natives of Bohemia, emigrated to the United States in 1855 and located at Mil- waukee, removing to Kewaunee in February, 1860. Here he attended the city school and at the age of ten commenced work in the saw mills, continuing to be thus employed for five years. At the age of sixteen he commenced to teach country schools in the county, and in 1881 was elected principal of the Ahnapee (now Algoma) high school, which po- sition he held for four years. In 1881 he was elected county superin- tendent of schools of Kewaunee county, which position he held for five years.
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