The Fourth Legislative Assembly of the

Wisconsin Territory The Territory of Wisconsin was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from July 3, 1836, until May 29, 1848, when an eastern portion of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Wisconsin. Belmont was ...

convened from , to , from , to , from , to , and from , to , in regular session. The first session of this Legislative Assembly was effected by a dispute with the Governor over whether or not the session was legally sanctioned by Congress. The session was adjourned twice, and finally came back into session on the governor's request in March 1843, when they finished their business. This Legislative Assembly was also unusually long, spanning four general elections (1843, 1844, 1845, & 1846).

Major events

* May 22, 1843: The first major wagon train departed from

Missouri Missouri is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee ...

with 1,000 settlers on the

Oregon Trail The Oregon Trail was a east–west, large-wheeled wagon route and Westward Expansion Trails, emigrant trail in the United States that connected the Missouri River to valleys in Oregon. The eastern part of the Oregon Trail spanned part of what ...

to the northwest. * May 24, 1844: The first

electrical telegram Electrical telegraphs were point-to-point text messaging systems, primarily used from the 1840s until the late 20th century. It was the first electrical telecommunications system and the most widely used of a number of early messaging systems ...

was sent by

Samuel Morse Samuel Finley Breese Morse (April 27, 1791 – April 2, 1872) was an American inventor and painter. After having established his reputation as a portrait painter, in his middle age Morse contributed to the invention of a single-wire telegraph ...

from the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., to the B&O Railroad "outer depot" in

Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

, saying "What hath God wrought". * June 21, 1844:

Nathaniel P. Tallmadge Nathaniel Pitcher Tallmadge (February 8, 1795November 2, 1864) was an American lawyer and politician. He served two terms as United States Senator from New York (1833–1844) and was the 3rd Governor of the Wisconsin Territory (1844– ...

appointed 3rd Governor of the Wisconsin Territory. * September 23, 1844:

Morgan Lewis Martin Morgan Lewis Martin (March 31, 1805December 10, 1887) was a delegate to the United States House of Representatives from Wisconsin Territory during the 29th United States Congress (1845–1847). He also served as a member of the Wisconsin State ...

elected delegate to the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the Lower house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being ...

from

Wisconsin Territory's at-large congressional district Wisconsin Territory had a non-voting delegate to the United States House of Representatives. List of delegates representing the district The district was eliminated with the creation of the Minnesota Territory on March 2, 1849. However, Henr ...

. * November 1December 4, 1844:

James K. Polk James Knox Polk (November 2, 1795 – June 15, 1849) was the 11th president of the United States, serving from 1845 to 1849. He previously was the 13th speaker of the House of Representatives (1835–1839) and ninth governor of Tennessee (183 ...

elected Elected may refer to: * "Elected" (song), by Alice Cooper, 1973 * ''Elected'' (EP), by Ayreon, 2008 *The Elected, an American indie rock band See also *Election An election is a formal group decision-making process by which a populatio ...

President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United Stat ...

. * January 23, 1845: The

United States Congress The United States Congress is the legislature of the federal government of the United States. It is bicameral, composed of a lower body, the House of Representatives, and an upper body, the Senate. It meets in the U.S. Capitol in Washing ...

established a uniform date for the holding of federal elections—the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November, on even-numbered years. * March 1, 1845: President John Tyler signed a bill approving the

annexation of Texas The Texas annexation was the 1845 annexation of the Republic of Texas into the United States. Texas was admitted to the Union as the 28th state on December 29, 1845. The Republic of Texas declared independence from the Republic of Mexico ...

. * March 4, 1845:

Inauguration In government and politics, inauguration is the process of swearing a person into office and thus making that person the incumbent. Such an inauguration commonly occurs through a formal ceremony or special event, which may also include an inaugu ...

of James K. Polk as the 11th President of the United States. * April 8, 1845:

Henry Dodge Moses Henry Dodge (October 12, 1782 – June 19, 1867) was a Democratic member to the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate, Territorial Governor of Wisconsin and a veteran of the Black Hawk War. His son, Augustus C. Dodge, served as a ...

appointed 4th Governor of the Wisconsin Territory. * December 2, 1845: President James K. Polk announced to Congress that the

Monroe Doctrine The Monroe Doctrine was a United States foreign policy position that opposed European colonialism in the Western Hemisphere. It held that any intervention in the political affairs of the Americas by foreign powers was a potentially hostile ac ...

should be strictly enforced, and that the United States should aggressively expand into the West. * December 29, 1845:

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

was admitted to the United States as the 28th

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...

. * April 25, 1846: The

Thornton Affair The Thornton Affair, also known as the Thornton Skirmish, Thornton's Defeat, or Rancho Carricitos was a battle in 1846 between the military forces of the United States and Mexico west upriver from Zachary Taylor's camp along the Rio Grande. ...

occurred on disputed land between Texas and Mexico, initiating the

Mexican–American War The Mexican–American War, also known in the United States as the Mexican War and in Mexico as the (''United States intervention in Mexico''), was an armed conflict between the United States and Mexico from 1846 to 1848. It followed the 1 ...

. * May 13, 1846: The United States officially declared war on Mexico. * June 10, 1846: The

California Republic The California Republic ( es, La República de California), or Bear Flag Republic, was an unrecognized breakaway state from Mexico, that for 25 days in 1846 militarily controlled an area north of San Francisco, in and around what is now Son ...

declared independence from Mexico. * August 3, 1846:

Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln ( ; February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation thro ...

was elected to the

from

Illinois's 7th congressional district The 7th congressional district of Illinois covers parts of Cook County, as of the 2011 redistricting that followed the 2010 census. All or parts of Bellwood, Chicago, Forest Park, Oak Park, Maywood, and Westchester are included. Democrat Dan ...

. * October 5December 16, 1846: The first Wisconsin constitutional convention was held in Madison, Wisconsin Territory.

Major legislation

* March 23, 1843: An Act fixing the time of holding the annual sessions of the Legislative Assembly, and for other purposes. * April 10, 1843: An Act to repeal an act incorporating the State Bank of Wisconsin. * April 17, 1843: An Act to abolish certain offices therein named. Abolished the offices of "district attorney" which were previously multi-county officials. County governments were instead empowered by this act to each appoint a prosecuting attorney. * April 17, 1843: An Act to provide for completing a new roof upon the capitol, and for other purposes. * April 17, 1843: An Act concerning removals from office. Required the Governor to make written notification when removing a person from office. The act was originally vetoed by the Governor, but the veto was overridden by the Assembly. * January 24, 1844: An Act prescribing the time of holding the annual session of the Legislative Assembly. Set the start of the legislative session as the first Monday of January. * January 26, 1844: An Act to submit to the people of Wisconsin the question of the expediency of forming a state government. * January 30, 1845: Resolution to declare the name of the Territory, "Wisconsin." * January 31, 1846: An Act in relation to the formation of a State Government in Wisconsin.

Sessions

* 1st session: December 5, 1842April 17, 1843 * 2nd session: December 4, 1843January 31, 1844 * 3rd session: January 6, 1845February 24, 1845 * 4th session: January 5, 1846February 3, 1846

Leadership

Council President

* Moses M. Strong ( D) – during the 1st & 3rd sessions *

Marshall Strong Marshall Mason Strong (September 3, 1813 – March 9, 1864) was an American lawyer, newspaper editor, businessman, and politician from Racine, Wisconsin who served on the Wisconsin Territorial Council (the predecessor of the Wisconsin State Senat ...

( D) – during the 2nd session *

Nelson Dewey Nelson Webster Dewey (December 19, 1813July 21, 1889) was an American pioneer, lawyer, and politician. He was the first Governor of Wisconsin. Early life Dewey was born in Lebanon, Connecticut, on December 19, 1813, to Ebenezer and Lucy (né ...

( D) – during the 4th session

Speaker of the House of Representatives

* Albert G. Ellis ( D) – during 1st session *

George H. Walker George H. Walker (October 22, 1811September 20, 1866) was an American trader and politician, and was one of three key founders of the city of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He served as the 5th and 7th Mayor of Milwaukee, and represented Milwaukee in the ...

( D) – during 2nd & 3rd sessions *

Mason C. Darling Mason Cook Darling (May 18, 1801March 12, 1866) was an American medical doctor, politician, and Wisconsin pioneer. He was a member of Wisconsin's first delegation to the United States House of Representatives after statehood (1848-1849), and was ...

( D) – during 4th session

Members

Members of the Council

Members of the House of Representatives

Members of the House of Representatives for the Fourth Wisconsin Territorial Assembly:

Employees

Council employees

* Secretary: ** John V. Ingersol, 1st session, resigned March 31, 1843 ** John P. Sheldon, 1st session, following Ingersol's resignation **

Ben C. Eastman Ben C. Eastman (October 24, 1812 – February 2, 1856) was an American lawyer and politician who represented Wisconsin's 2nd congressional district in the United States House of Representatives in the Thirty-second and Thirty-third Congres ...

, 2nd, 3rd & 4th sessions, resigned Jan. 19, 1846 **

William Rudolph Smith William Rudolph Smith (August 31, 1787August 22, 1868) was an American lawyer, politician, pioneer, and historian from Pennsylvania who served as the 5th Attorney General of Wisconsin and the first President of the Wisconsin Historical Society. ...

, 4th session, following Eastman's resignation * Sergeant-at-Arms: ** Charles C. Brown, 1st session ** G. C. S. Vail, 2nd session **

Charles H. Larkin Charles Henry Larkin Sr., (May 12, 1810August 16, 1894) was an American merchant, real estate developer, and Wisconsin pioneer. He was a member of the Wisconsin State Senate (1866–1870) and State Assembly (1872, 1874, 1875), representing ...

, 3rd session ** Joseph Brisbois, 4th session

House employees

* Chief Clerk: ** John Catlin, 1st & 2nd sessions ** La Fayette Kellogg, 3rd & 4th sessions * Sergeant-at-Arms: ** William S. Anderson, 1st session ** J. W. Trowbridge, 2nd session ** Chauncey Davis, 3rd session ** David Bonham, 4th session

Notes

References

External links

Wisconsin Legislature website
{{Wisconsin legislatures 1842 in Wisconsin Territory 1843 in Wisconsin Territory 1844 in Wisconsin Territory 1845 in Wisconsin Territory 1846 in Wisconsin Territory 1840s in Wisconsin

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

Wisconsin legislative sessions