Francis Steffen (November 5, 1836 – December 15, 1879) was an American farmer from
Hortonville, Wisconsin
Hortonville is a village in Outagamie County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 2,711 at the 2010 census.
Hortonville is located in the Fox Cities region and the Appleton-Oshkosh-Neenah, WI CSA, the third largest metropolitan area in ...
who spent two terms as a member of the
Wisconsin State Assembly
The Wisconsin State Assembly is the lower house of the Wisconsin Legislature. Together with the smaller Wisconsin Senate, the two constitute the legislative branch of the U.S. state of Wisconsin.
Representatives are elected for two-year terms, ...
from
Outagamie County
Outagamie County is a county in the northeast region of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census, the population was 190,705. Its county seat is Appleton.
Outagamie County is included in the Appleton, WI Metropolitan Statistical Are ...
, being elected first as a
"Reform Democrat" and then re-elected as 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 ...
.
['Wisconsin Blue Book 1878,' Biographical Sketch of Francis Steffen, pg. 478]
Background
Steffen was born in
Orenhofen,
Rhenish Palatinate,
Prussia
Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an em ...
on November 5, 1836. He received a common school education, and became a farmer by occupation. With his family he emigrated to the United States in 1848, and settled for a while in
Schuylerville
Schuylerville () is a village in Saratoga County, New York, United States. The village is located in the northeastern part of the Town of Saratoga, east of Saratoga Springs. The Village of Victory is adjacent to Schuylerville to the southwest ...
,
New York
New York most commonly refers to:
* New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York
* New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States
New York may also refer to:
Film and television
* '' ...
, before coming to Wisconsin in 1852 with his parents, who settled in Hortonville.
Service in the
American Civil War
The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...
Steffen entered the
32nd Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry Regiment
The 32nd Wisconsin Infantry Regiment was a volunteer infantry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War.
Service
The 32nd Wisconsin Infantry was organized at Camp Bragg in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, and mustered into servic ...
in August, 1862; was with
Ulysses S Grant
Ulysses S. Grant (born Hiram Ulysses Grant ; April 27, 1822July 23, 1885) was an American military officer and politician who served as the 18th president of the United States from 1869 to 1877. As Commanding General, he led the Union Ar ...
in the
Vicksburg Campaign
The Vicksburg campaign was a series of maneuvers and battles in the Western Theater of the American Civil War directed against Vicksburg, Mississippi, a fortress city that dominated the last Confederate-controlled section of the Mississippi Riv ...
in 1862–63; marched with
William Tecumseh Sherman
William Tecumseh Sherman ( ; February 8, 1820February 14, 1891) was an American soldier, businessman, educator, and author. He served as a general in the Union Army during the American Civil War (1861–1865), achieving recognition for his com ...
on the
Meridian, Mississippi campaign in 1864: took part at the
Siege of Atlanta and the
Battle of Jonesborough
The Battle of Jonesborough (August 31–September 1, 1864) was fought between Union Army forces led by William Tecumseh Sherman and Confederate forces under William J. Hardee during the Atlanta Campaign in the American Civil War. On the first ...
; marched with Sherman to the sea and into South and North Carolina; took part in all the engagements with the command; marched through Washington, took part in the
Grand Review of the Armies
The Grand Review of the Armies was a military procession and celebration in the national capital city of Washington, D.C., on May 23–24, 1865, following the Union victory in the American Civil War (1861–1865). Elements of the Union Army in the ...
in May, 1865, and in June 1865 was mustered out.
After the war he married Isabella McMurdo Steffen (1845–1926), born in New Brunswick but raised in Hortonville. She was the widow of his youngest brother Jacob, who had fallen in action in
Vicksburg, Mississippi
Vicksburg is a historic city in Warren County, Mississippi, United States. It is the county seat, and the population at the 2010 census was 23,856.
Located on a high bluff on the east bank of the Mississippi River across from Louisiana, Vic ...
in 1864.
Public office
Steffen held various local offices, having been five times elected chairman of his town without opposition. In 1858 he was elected county
coroner
A coroner is a government or judicial official who is empowered to conduct or order an inquest into Manner of death, the manner or cause of death, and to investigate or confirm the identity of an unknown person who has been found dead within th ...
as a Democrat. He was elected
clerk
A clerk is a white-collar worker who conducts general office tasks, or a worker who performs similar sales-related tasks in a retail environment. The responsibilities of clerical workers commonly include record keeping, filing, staffing service ...
of the
circuit court in 1866, and chairman of the
county board of supervisors
A board of supervisors is a governmental body that oversees the operation of county (United States), county government in the U.S. states of Arizona, California, Iowa, Mississippi, Virginia, and Wisconsin, as well as 16 counties in New York (sta ...
in 1877. He was elected as a member of the assembly in 1877 as a "Reform Democrat", receiving 1,011 votes to 818 for
Greenbacker W. D. Jordan (Democratic incumbent
John James Knowlton
John James Knowlton was a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly.
Biography
Knowlton was born on July 17, 1841 in Wales, New York. During the American Civil War, he served with the 29th Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry Regiment of the Union Army. He ...
was not a candidate for re-election); and re-elected as a Democrat for 1878, receiving 1,256 votes against 297 for
Republican
Republican can refer to:
Political ideology
* An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law.
** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...
Dr. L. Tabor and 593 for the Greenback Jordan.
He was not a candidate for re-election in 1879, and was succeeded by his Republican brother-in-law
James McMurdo.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Steffen, Francis
1836 births
1879 deaths
Farmers from Wisconsin
County supervisors in Wisconsin
Democratic Party members of the Wisconsin State Assembly
People from Bitburg-Prüm
People from Hortonville, Wisconsin
People of Wisconsin in the American Civil War
Prussian emigrants to the United States
Union Army soldiers
Wisconsin Reformers (19th century)
19th-century American politicians