Ezra Miller (May 12, 1812 – July 9, 1885) was a member of the

Wisconsin State Senate The Wisconsin Senate is the upper house of the Wisconsin State Legislature. Together with the larger Wisconsin State Assembly they constitute the legislative branch of the state of Wisconsin. The powers of the Wisconsin Senate are modeled after t ...

and the New Jersey Senate. Miller was born in Bergen County, New Jersey. In 1833, he joined the 2nd New York Militia. Miller married his wife, Amanda, in May 1841. They had three children and moved to Magnolia, Wisconsin. In 1851, he was commissioned a

colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge o ...

in the 8th

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 ...

Militia. In 1863, he was granted the first in a series of patents for railroad couplers which came to be known as the

Miller Platform The Miller Platform was an innovative railroad passenger car platform of the 19th century designed to prevent the hazard of telescoping in railroad collisions. It was named for its U.S. inventor, Ezra L. Miller, who was issued a patent for it ...

. Miller died on July 9, 1885, in

Mahwah, New Jersey Mahwah is the northernmost and largest municipality by geographic area () in Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the population of the township was 25,487, a decline of 403 from the 25,890 counted in the ...

Political career

Miller was a member of the Wisconsin State Senate from the 17th district from 1853 to 1854. Additionally, he was a justice of the peace in Magnolia and Postmaster of

Janesville, Wisconsin Janesville is a city in Rock County, Wisconsin, United States. It is the county seat and largest city in the county. It is a principal municipality of the Janesville, Wisconsin, Metropolitan Statistical Area and is included in the Madison–Jan ...

. Miller joined the New Jersey Senate in 1884. He was a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

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* {{DEFAULTSORT:Miller, Ezra Politicians from Bergen County, New Jersey Politicians from Janesville, Wisconsin Democratic Party Wisconsin state senators Democratic Party New Jersey state senators Wisconsin postmasters American justices of the peace Military personnel from Wisconsin 1812 births 1885 deaths 19th-century American politicians 19th-century American judges