Rolandus Aurelian Watkins (1853-1929)

Portrait from Vol. 5. of Wisconsin, Its Story and Biography, 1913.

  Endowed with an impressive set of sidewhiskers and an even more impressive name, Rolandus Aurelian Watkins was a Wisconsin based attorney who attained local distinction in Grant County, where he served as city attorney for Lancaster. A candidate for both houses of the Wisconsin State Assembly, Watkins also served on the Wisconsin Democratic State Central Committee, taking his seat in 1898. Born in Grant County on January 15, 1853, Rolandus Aurelian "R.A." Watkins was the son of Stephen and Florinda (Hirst) Watkins.

  Watkins attended local schools as a child, and his higher education "came entirely of the result of his own efforts and utilization of opportunity." He decided on a career as an attorney and first read law in the Lancaster-based firm of Bushnell and Clark. He was admitted to the bar in 1876 and for three years clerked in the above-mentioned law office, working directly with Allen Ralph Bushnell (1833-1909). Bushnell, a future U.S. Representative from Wisconsin, invited Watkins to join his firm in the early 1880s, with the firm changing its name to Bushnell and Watkins in 1882. The firm added a third partner, Herbert Moses, in 1895.

  Rolandus A. Watkins married in Lancaster in 1881 to Ellen Clark (1858-1926), to who he was wed for over four decades. The couple's union produced five children, Charles Stephen (1883-1960), Ralph Bushnell (1884-1962), Margaret Louise (birthdate unknown), Ellen (1891-1968), and John Clark (1894-1963).

  Recorded in Wisconsin, Its Story and Biography, as an active Democratic party worker in his region, Watkins is erroneously noted as having never sought public office "at any time." In 1898 Watkins announced his candidacy for the Wisconsin State Assembly from Grant County. After garnering the Democratic nomination, he was opposed by incumbent Republican Thomas McDonald, also of Lancaster. In November 1898 Watkins polled 1,435 votes but was defeated by McDonald, who polled 2,110 votes.  Despite this loss, Watkins rebounded politically that same year when he was named to the Wisconsin Democratic State Central Committee, as a representative from the 3rd district. In this capacity Watkins also served as chairman of the Grant County Democratic Committee, continuing in that post until at least 1912.

  Following his defeat for the assembly Watkins returned to practicing law and continued activity in the local Congregational Church, where he and his wife were longtime parishioners. He served as its Sunday School superintendent and also was a church deacon, secretary, and treasurer. In 1901 Watkins visited the Oklahoma Territory, where he purchased a land claim which he later turned into a  "fine farm of considerable value". Watkins and his family would later permanently remove to Oklahoma, where he died in 1929.

From the Lancaster Teller, September 26, 1912.

  In 1912 Watkins launched his candidacy for the Wisconsin state senate, and that September defeated Rollo Oscar Bremmer for the Republican nomination, polling 1,000 votes. In addition to his victory, Watkins could boast of spending less than ten dollars on campaign expenses! That November he faced off against Republican Robert Glenn, and although he faired better than in his previous legislative run (polling 5,920 votes), it was Glenn who emerged victorious.

  Four years after his state senate run Rolandus Watkins began preparations to remove with his family to Oklahoma. Shortly before their move in December 1916 the family was feted with a reception by a number of prominent Lancaster citizens. Through early 1917 Watkins continued to "tie up the odds and ends" of his law practice in Lancaster before resettling in Lawton, where he engaged in farming. Watkins died at the home of his  daughter Nellie in Okemah, Oklahoma on October 10, 1929, aged 76. He was predeceased by his wife Ellen, and both were interred at the Highland Cemetery in Lawton. 

From the Madison Capital Times, October 25, 1929.

Jaynes Bailey Wheeler (1853-1910)

From the Men of Progress, Wisconsin, 1897.

  The Strangest Names In American Political History makes its first stop in Wisconsin for 2020 to highlight the life of Jaynes Bailey Wheeler. So far the only "Jaynes" discovered by this author, Wheeler was a transplant to Wisconsin from Vermont, and after being admitted to practice law established himself in Walworth County. He would win a term as District Attorney for Walworth County in the early 1880s and later served thirteen years as county judge. The son of Lyman Blandin (1825-1870) and Sally (Johnson) Wheeler (1826-1878), Jaynes Bailey Wheeler was born in Pawlet, Vermont on February 28, 1853.

  A student in schools local to Pawlet, Wheeler pursued a career in law at an early age, enrolling at the Albany Law School in late 1873. He graduated in 1875 and shortly thereafter relocated to Elkhorn, Wisconsin, where he was admitted to the state bar. In 1877 he formed a law practice with H.E. Smith, which extended nearly a decade, and on April 24, 1879, married Ella Shaw (1857-1899). The couple were wed until Ella's death and had two children, Margaret (1880-1948) and James Blaine (1883-1933).

   Active in several fraternal organizations in Walworth County, Wheeler was a member of the Ancient Order of United Workmen, the International Order of Oddfellows, the Knights of Pythias, and the Knights Templar Masons. In 1879 he entered politics with his successful run for district attorney of Walworth County, serving from 1880-1882. In 1885 he was elected as county judge on the non-partisan ticket, succeeding Peter Golder, who had served nearly thirty years in office. Wheeler took his seat on the bench in January 1886 and won a second term in 1889. In 1893 the voters returned him for a third term, and in 1897 won a fourth term, this win being "a most conclusive evidence of Judge Wheeler's efficiency in office, and of his personal popularity."

  Jaynes Wheeler resigned the judgeship in January 1899, and by February had removed back to Vermont. Settling in Rutland, Wheeler assumed the post of associate director of his family's fertilizer business, the M.E. Wheeler and Co. Headed by his brother Marcellus Edgar (1850-1927), the company was remarked as one of the largest fertilizer dealers in the United States, with "over five thousand agents" scattered throughout the country. 

  Several months following his return to Vermont Wheeler suffered the loss of his wife of twenty years, Ella. Two years after her death he remarried to Elizabeth J. Murray (1872-1958), with who he had one son, Murray Jaynes Bailey Wheeler (1902-1984). The couple was wed until Wheeler's death from pneumonia on April 14, 1910, aged 57. Following his death, he was entombed in the Wheeler family mausoleum at the Evergreen Cemetery in Rutland, Vermont.

From the Bennington Evening Banner, April 16, 1910.

McNary Beecher Frump (1853-1919)

From the Legislative and State Manual of Indiana, 1907.

   An obscure resident of Clay County, Indiana, McNary Beecher Frump served one term in the Indiana State House of Representatives during the early 20th century and was a farmer and schoolteacher. Born in Clay County on May 6, 1853, McNary B. Frump was the son of John (1822-1919) and Betsey Jane Matthews Frump (1826-1901). The Frump family consisted of eleven children, of which our subject was the third born. His early years were spent on the family farm in Washington Township and he received his education in schools local to his home county of Clay.

   Mentioned by the Legislative and State Manual of Indiana as being "a diligent student" during his school years, McNary Frump embarked upon a career as a school teacher while still a young man, and continued in this profession for a number of years. One can almost wonder if schoolchildren back in the late 1870s ever gave the humorously named "Mr. Frump" a difficult time while he was trying to teach!

   McNary Frump married in Clay County on December 28, 1880, to Ms. Artie M. Orman (1856-1926), and the couple later became the parents of seven children over eighteen years. The Frump children are listed as follows in order of their birth: Gladys (died aged two months in 1881), Clifford (died at birth in 1882), Kenneth Xychus (1883-1962), Iris C. (1885-1979), Deloris Alma Frump Hoffa (1887-1973), Oldys (1889-1984) and Aurel B. Frump Schopmeyer (1898-1966).

  In the late 19th century McNary Frump gave up school teaching and began a prosperous career as a farmer in Washington Township. Described as a "progressive and successful agriculturalist" by the State Manual of Indiana, Frump is also acknowledged as having "extensive land holdings" and was a two-term president of the Clay County Farmers Institute in the late 1890s. Before his election to the Indiana legislature, the only elective office Frump had occupied was that of Washington Township assessor, the dates he served being unknown at this time.

   Frump won election as a Democrat to the Indiana State House of Representatives in November 1906 from his home county of Clay, defeating Republican candidate William H. Guirl by a vote of 3,629 to 3,054. An electoral result from that contest is shown below.

   Taking his seat in January 1907, McNary B. Frump served one term in the legislature and during his brief service held a seat on the committees on Trust Funds, Fees and Salaries, Legislative Apportionment, and Mines and Mining. Frump is also recorded by the 1907 Indiana General Assembly Journal as introducing House Bill No. 257, which was an "act to require drivers of motor vehicles to hold a state license and providing penalties in connection therewith". This same journal notes that the bill was given to the committee on roads and was later "indefinitely postponed."

   After leaving the legislature in 1909 Frump continued to improve his farm and shortly before his death was named as a trustee for Washington Township in 1918. He died in Washington Township on July 18, 1919, at age 66 and was laid to rest at the Swalley Cemetery in Bowling Green, Indiana. He was survived by his wife Artie and five of his children. The portrait of M. Beecher Frump (as some sources list him) was located via the Legislative and State Manual of Indiana, published in 1907.

Publius Virgilius Lawson Jr. (1853-1920), Publius Virgilius Monroe (1814-1861), Publius Rutilius Rufus Pray (ca. 1793/1795-1839/1840)

Portrait from the Wisconsin Archaeologist, Vol. 20, 1921.

   Today's triple profile highlights the lives and political careers of three men with the unusual first name Publius. The first of these men is Publius Virgilius Lawson, a resident of Menasha, Wisconsin who gained further prominence as a manufacturer, author, lawyer, and historian in addition to his political career. Lawson received his unusual name from his father (also named Publius Virgilius) and both father and son were named in honor of the Roman poet and Aeneid author Publius Virgilius Maro (better known as Virgil).
   Publius V. Lawson was born in Corning, Steuben County, New York on November 1, 1853, being the son of Publius Virgilius Lawson Sr and the former Elizabeth Fleming. At a young age, Publius moved with his family to Menasha, Wisconsin, and was a student in the public school system of that city. In 1873 he entered the University of Wisconsin at Madison and later studied at its school of law beginning in 1876. Lawson graduated from this institution in 1878 with his Bachelor of Laws degree.
    P.V. Lawson began a law practice in the year of his graduation and in this same year was elected as a Winnebago County supervisor. On August 5, 1884, he married Florence Josephine Wright (1860-1945) in Neenah, Wisconsin, with whom he had eight children: Percy Vilas (1887-1939), Lillian Edith (1889-1942), Marion Florence (1891-1949), Kenneth Finney (1894-1968), Harold Kimberly (1895-1943), Helen Elizabeth (1896-1977), and James Wright (died in infancy in 1899). 
   Lawson continued in the practice of law until 1888 when he ventured into the manufacturing field. Soon after leaving his profession, Lawson set about developing an improved wood split pulley that could be used in power transmission. After obtaining a patent for his work, Lawson founded the Menasha Wood Split Pulley Company, and throughout the succeeding years, the company achieved substantial business, shipping its stock throughout North America and the world. In addition to his manufacturing business, Lawson was also the owner of a large flour mill located in nearby Clintonville, Wisconsin.
   As Lawson's business and family life continued to grow throughout the 1880s and 90s, his political career followed suit. In 1882-83 he served as a Menasha city alderman and in 1886 was elected as the Mayor of Menasha. In all, Lawson would serve a total of six terms as mayor (1886-1889, 1893, 1896) and in 1890 launched an unsuccessful campaign for a seat in the Wisconsin State Senate. Prior to his election as mayor Lawson served as a circuit court commissioner for Wisconsin's 6th circuit, holding office from 1880-1888. 
   The Who was Who in America, 1897-1942 edition relates that Lawson was elected to the Wisconsin State Assembly in 1918, where he served for one term. A Wisconsin legislative website also mentions this term but gives his year of service as 1927 (this is obviously incorrect, as he would have already been dead nearly a decade.)

                    This portrait of Publius V. Lawson appeared in a Wisconsin State Atlas in 1881.

  While Lawson had already ventured into several different vocations, his career as an author didn't begin until later in his life. Throughout the 1890s and early 1900s, Lawson authored several scholarly articles, many of which were published in newspapers, magazines, and journals of the time. In 1904 and 1906 he authored the respective works Bravest of the Brave and Rocks and Minerals of Wisconsin. Lawson's most prominent work would eventually be published in 1908, the two-volume History of Winnebago County. He would also go on to author a family genealogy centering on several notable Wisconsin families, including his own. 
  In addition to his already prolific life, Lawson was a well-known civic leader in Menasha, and the following list is but a brief snippet of some of the positions Lawson held at one point: Director of the Menasha Public Library Board (1895-1903), Menasha Park Commissioner (1895-1903), President of the Menasha Museum History and Art Association (1895-1903), Vice President of the Wisconsin State Archaeological Society, and President of the Wisconsin State Library Association, 1901-1903.
  Publius Virgilius Lawson remained active in the affairs of Menasha until shortly before his death, which occurred on December 1, 1920, at age 67. He was survived by his wife and seven children and was interred at the Oak Hill Cemetery in Neenah, Wisconsin. He was subsequently memorialized in the February 1921 edition of the Wisconsin Archeologist as:

"A man among men, a friend of truest type, whose kind acts and worthy deeds will live long in the memory of those who have been proud to know P.V. Lawson as a friend and fellow citizen. In the home a void has been left in which human power cannot fill."

From the 1898 Semi-centennial souvenir of the Menasha Press.

A Wisconsin legislative roster from 1851.

    Another Wisconsin "Publius" that ventured into politics is the obscure Publius Virgilius Monroe (1814-1861) of Waukesha County. A one-term member of the Wisconsin State Assembly from that county in the session of 1852, little is known of Monroe's life. A native of New York, Monroe was born in Chenango County on April 16, 1814, a son of William and Rebecca Monroe. 

  Migrating to Wisconsin in 1837, Monroe settled in New Berlin township and during his early residency aided in the laying of roadways. He would become a prominent figure in the early history of this township and was elected as its first town clerk, as well as donating land for the establishment of the town cemetery. In 1849 he went west to California, and after two years out west returned to New Berlin, where he resided until his death on November 5, 1861, at age 47. He had been preceded in death by his wife Cordelia in 1855 and was survived by two sons, Joseph and Alonzo. Monroe was later interred at the New Berlin Cemetery.

  Publius Rutilius Rufus Pray was a New Englander by birth, being born in Maine in either 1793 or 1795. Pray's obscure life has one or two inconsistencies, mainly centering on his dates of birth and death. Many sources list his birth year as 1793 but others give 1795 as the correct year. Even his year of death is of some confusion, occurring on January 11 in either 1839 or 1840. Pray is listed as marrying his cousin (Maria Learned) in 1820 in Maine. At some point in his short life, he moved from Maine to Mississippi, and in 1828 he was elected to the state legislature. Four years following his service in the legislature Pray was named as the President of the Convention that adopted a newly revised edition of the Mississippi State Constitution. 
  P.R.R. Pray's public profile continued to rise throughout the 1830s, and in 1837 was appointed to the Mississippi State Court of Appeals and Errors. He served on this court until his death, which occurred on January 11, 1840 (or is it 1839?) He was subsequently interred at the Belle Isle Cemetery in Pearlington, Mississippi.

You Can Help!

  I'm currently trying to locate more information (as well as a possible picture) of Publius R.R. Pray. As there is next to nothing available online about this wonderfully named man, maybe someone out there knows more than what is already stated in his article. If any reader, amateur historian, or possible descendant stumbles across his article here, please don't hesitate to comment below!

Mazzini Slusser (1853-1926)

   In keeping with the recent theme of oddly named Illinois judges, today's profile centers on Mazzini Slusser, yet another Ohio resident who became a prominent judicial figure in Illinois! Of the three judges profiled within the past few days, Mr. Slusser is arguably the most obscure, with only a few sources mentioning him at any great length. Born in Williams County, Ohio on October 3, 1853 (year also variously given as 1852 or 1854), Mazzini Slusser was the son of Jonas Peter and Mary Prettyman Slusser. It is unknown why Slusser was given the unusual first name of "Mazzini", but he was most likely named in honor of Italian activist, politician, and journalist Giuseppe Mazzini (1805-1872), one of the most prominent advocates for Italian unification during the 19th century.
    Slusser married in 1875 to Ms. Ina May Schaffer (a Williams County native) and five children were born to the couple: Carl (born 1880), Thomas Harry (born 1882) Jean Paul (born 1887), Horace Greeley (born 1889) and Herbert R. (date of birth uncertain). Shortly after his marriage, Slusser began law studies at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor and graduated with his degree in 1876. He would return to his home in Ohio to establish his practice and in 1885 was elected as Fulton County Prosecuting attorney. 
   Mazzini Slusser's time as prosecuting attorney extended two terms, resigning in 1891. The Slusser family left Ohio during the early 1890s and established roots in Du Page County, Illinois. Within a few years of his resettlement, Slusser was named to the position of prosecuting attorney for Du Page County, serving in this position until 1904. Three years after the conclusion of his term as prosecuting attorney Slusser was appointed to a vacancy on the Illinois Circuit Court's 16th district, the vacancy being occasioned by the death of Judge Linus C. Ruth a few days previously. Slusser's tenure on the Illinois Circuit Court extended three terms, the last of which concluded in 1921. The following year Slusser was an unsuccessful candidate for a seat on the Illinois State Supreme Court.
   Little else could be found concerning the rest of Slusser's life, although it is known that he died in Eureka Springs, Arkansas in January 1926 at age 73, "having been in failing health for over a year". His remains were later returned to Illinois for burial in Downer's Grove, an exact cemetery name being unknown at this time.

Slusser's obituary from the Illinois True Republican, January 30, 1926.

Sain Welty (1853-1920)

From the Notable Men of the West, 1902.

   Today's profile takes us to Bloomington, Illinois, and one of that city's more humorously named residents, Sain Welty. This curiously named man served as a Judge for the 11th District of the Illinois Circuit Court during the mid-1910s and was also a noted attorney in the Bloomington area for many decades. A native son of the Buckeye State, Sain Welty was born near Somerset, Ohio on January 19, 1853, a son of Emanuel and Sarah Ann Welty. The Welty family removed to Marshall County, Illinois when their son was quite young, and Sain Welty is recorded as engaging in farming pursuits during his youth. The 1916 work Courts and Lawyers of Illinois also lists Welty as "attending and teaching country schools" during this time. He married in 1879 to Ms. Gertrude Ball (1859-1934), a Marshall County native. The couple would remain childless for the entirety of their four-decade-long marriage. 
   In 1881 Welty graduated from the Illinois Wesleyan University and two years later received his law degree from the prestigious Yale Law School. During his tenure at the latter institution, Sain Welty received the Jewell Prize (named after former Postmaster General Marshall Jewell) for having the "highest marks in his annual examinations". During the latter part of his life, Welty served as a trustee of his old Alma mater (Illinois Wesleyan University) for over two decades.
   Shortly after returning to Bloomington, Welty established a law firm with another local attorney, John Allen Sterling (1857-1918). Sterling later went on to serve as a U.S. Representative from Illinois from 1903-1913 and their law practice continued on until Welty's elevation to the bench in 1915. The Courts and Lawyers of Illinois give note that in regards to the earlier mentioned law firm, Welty's name "stood high in legal circles." In addition to this law practice, Sain Welty was named to the post of City Attorney for Bloomington in 1889 and served two terms in that post. In 1897 Illinois Circuit Court judge Colostin DeKalb Myers appointed Welty as a Master in Chancery of the McLean County, Illinois circuit court, where he would serve until 1901. In 1908 Welty served as a Republican Presidential Elector for Illinois.

From the Atlanta, Illinois Argus, June 14, 1915.

    Several years following his service as a Presidential Elector, Welty won election to the Illinois Circuit Court's 11th district, taking his seat in June of 1915. His service on the bench was cut short by his death (as a result of an attack of angina) on April 14, 1920 at age 67. He was subsequently buried in the Park Hill Cemetery and Mausoleum in Bloomington, Illinois. In the years preceding his death, Judge Welty was praised as a "man of unostentation but sincerity of bearing, and the high esteem in which he is held by bench, bar and the public is generally most deserving." The portrait of him shown above was discovered in the book Notable Men of the West, originally published in 1902.