Alvin Wiederspahn (January 18, 1949 – October 24, 2014) was an American politician and attorney who served as a member of the
Wyoming House of Representatives
The Wyoming House of Representatives is the lower house of the Wyoming State Legislature. There are 60 Representatives in the House, representing an equal number of single-member constituent districts across the state, each with a population of ...
(1979–1984) and
Wyoming Senate (1985–1988).
Early life and education
Wiederspahn was born in
Cheyenne, Wyoming
Cheyenne ( or ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Wyoming, as well as the county seat of Laramie County, with 65,132 residents, per the 2020 US Census. It is the principal city of the Cheyenne metropolitan statistical ...
on January 18, 1949. He graduated from
Cheyenne Central High School
Cheyenne Central High School is a public secondary school (grades 9-12) located in Cheyenne, Wyoming, United States. It serves Laramie County School District #1. The high school serves students who attended McCormick JHS, Clawson ES, Davis ES, ...
and later received a
Bachelor of Science
A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years.
The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University of ...
degree in
zoology
Zoology ()The pronunciation of zoology as is usually regarded as nonstandard, though it is not uncommon. is the branch of biology that studies the Animal, animal kingdom, including the anatomy, structure, embryology, evolution, Biological clas ...
from the
University of Wyoming
The University of Wyoming (UW) is a public land-grant research university in Laramie, Wyoming. It was founded in March 1886, four years before the territory was admitted as the 44th state, and opened in September 1887. The University of Wyoming ...
and
Juris Doctor
The Juris Doctor (J.D. or JD), also known as Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D., JD, D.Jur., or DJur), is a graduate-entry professional degree in law
and one of several Doctor of Law degrees. The J.D. is the standard degree obtained to practice law ...
from
Sturm College of Law at the
University of Denver
The University of Denver (DU) is a private university, private research university in Denver, Colorado. Founded in 1864, it is the oldest independent private university in the Mountain States, Rocky Mountain Region of the United States. It is ...
.
Career
After graduating from law school, Wiederspahn was admitted to the
Wyoming State Bar
The Wyoming State Bar is the integrated (mandatory) bar association of the U.S. state of Wyoming.
History
The Wyoming State Bar was organized in 1915 as a voluntary association, and integrated by the state legislature in 1939.
Structure
The B ...
and began practicing law in
Cheyenne, Wyoming
Cheyenne ( or ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Wyoming, as well as the county seat of Laramie County, with 65,132 residents, per the 2020 US Census. It is the principal city of the Cheyenne metropolitan statistical ...
. A member of the
Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to:
*Democratic Party (United States)
Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to:
Active parties Africa
*Botswana Democratic Party
*Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea
*Gabonese Democratic Party
*Demo ...
, he served in the
Wyoming House of Representatives
The Wyoming House of Representatives is the lower house of the Wyoming State Legislature. There are 60 Representatives in the House, representing an equal number of single-member constituent districts across the state, each with a population of ...
from 1979 to 1984 and
Wyoming Senate from 1985 until 1988.
Personal life
Wiederspahn was the husband of Wyoming Senator
Cynthia Lummis. They had one daughter, Annaliese.
Wiederspahn died of a heart attack in Cheyenne on October 24, 2014.
He was buried at Beth El Cemetery. After Wiederspahn's death, Lummis dropped her bid for the chairmanship of the
Republican Study Committee and opted not to seek a fifth term in Congress, retiring in 2017. Lummis went on to win the
2020 United States Senate election in Wyoming
The 2020 United States Senate election in Wyoming was held on November 3, 2020, to elect a member of the United States Senate to represent the State of Wyoming, concurrently with the 2020 U.S. presidential election, as well as other electio ...
to replace the retiring incumbent
Mike Enzi.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wiederspahn, Alvin
1949 births
2014 deaths
Cheyenne Central High School alumni
University of Wyoming alumni
Sturm College of Law alumni
Wyoming lawyers
Democratic Party members of the Wyoming House of Representatives
Democratic Party Wyoming state senators
Burials in Wyoming
People from Cheyenne, Wyoming
20th-century American lawyers