Glenn Miller Wise (born July 14, 1896,

Wyocena, Wisconsin Wyocena is a village in Columbia County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 768 at the 2010 census. The village is located within the Town of Wyocena. It is part of the Madison Metropolitan Statistical Area. History A tornado struck ...

– died September 24, 1991,

Madison, Wisconsin Madison is the county seat of Dane County and the capital city of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census the population was 269,840, making it the second-largest city in Wisconsin by population, after Milwaukee, and the 80th-lar ...

) was a

secretary A secretary, administrative professional, administrative assistant, executive assistant, administrative officer, administrative support specialist, clerk, military assistant, management assistant, office secretary, or personal assistant is a w ...

statistician A statistician is a person who works with theoretical or applied statistics. The profession exists in both the private and public sectors. It is common to combine statistical knowledge with expertise in other subjects, and statisticians may wor ...

, and

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 ...

politician, who served as

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 ...

's first female Secretary of State from 1955 to 1957.

Background

She was born Glenn Miller on July 14, 1896, in Wyocena, and grew up in La Valle in

Sauk County Sauk County is a county in Wisconsin. It is named after a large village of the Sauk people. As of the 2020 census, the population was 65,763. Its county seat and largest city is Baraboo. The county was created in 1840 from Wisconsin Territory a ...

, daughter of country doctor W. J. Miller. She graduated from Reedsburg Area High School, then earned a

B.A. Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

Milwaukee-Downer College Milwaukee-Downer College was a women's college in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in operation from 1895 to 1964. History Milwaukee-Downer College was established in 1895 with the merger of two institutions: Milwaukee College and Downer College of Fox Lak ...

in 1917, and an M.A. in

economics Economics () is the social science that studies the Production (economics), production, distribution (economics), distribution, and Consumption (economics), consumption of goods and services. Economics focuses on the behaviour and intera ...

at the

University of Wisconsin A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, t ...

in 1919.

Career

She was employed as a secretary in the Department of Economics of UW for two years, then went into business as the organizer and director of the Employment Exchange of the Washington School for Secretaries in

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

, before taking employment as a statistician at the University of Wisconsin. She was active in the Republican Party, being a particularly avid supporter of

Wendell Willkie Wendell Lewis Willkie (born Lewis Wendell Willkie; February 18, 1892 – October 8, 1944) was an American lawyer, corporate executive and the 1940 Republican nominee for President. Willkie appealed to many convention delegates as the Republican ...

Office

Miller was appointed

Secretary of State of Wisconsin The Secretary of State of Wisconsin is a constitutional officer in the executive branch of the government of the U.S. state of Wisconsin, and is second (behind the Lieutenant Governor) in the line of succession to the office of Governor of Wiscon ...

by Governor Kohler on Jan. 3, 1955 to fill the vacancy caused by the death in office of Secretary of State

Fred R. Zimmerman Frederick Robert Zimmerman (November 20, 1880December 14, 1954) was a German American politician from Milwaukee, who served as the 25th Governor of Wisconsin. He served before and after his governorship as Wisconsin Secretary of State—for ...

, becoming Wisconsin's first woman Secretary of State. Zimmerman's son, Robert C. Zimmerman defeated her in the 1956 Republican

primary Primary or primaries may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music Groups and labels * Primary (band), from Australia * Primary (musician), hip hop musician and record producer from South Korea * Primary Music, Israeli record label Works * ...

. Wise remained an active and steadfast Republican.

After office

She had married John E. Wise Sr. in 1924; he later became chief

electrical engineer Electrical engineering is an engineering discipline concerned with the study, design, and application of equipment, devices, and systems which use electricity, electronics, and electromagnetism. It emerged as an identifiable occupation in the l ...

for the

State of 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 Mich ...

, and died in 1968. Glenn Wise was active in the

Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their nam ...

church and civic activities; when she died at the age of 95, she left behind one son (John Jr.), five grandchildren and six great-grandchildren.''Journal'' Madison Bureau. "Wise, 1st woman in state office, dies" ''

Milwaukee Journal The ''Milwaukee Journal Sentinel'' is a daily morning broadsheet printed in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where it is the primary newspaper. It is also the largest newspaper in the state of Wisconsin, where it is widely distributed. It is currently o ...

Sep. 27, 1991, p.B6

References

External links

* 1896 births 1991 deaths Lawrence University alumni People from Wyocena, Wisconsin Politicians from Madison, Wisconsin People from Sauk County, Wisconsin Secretaries of State of Wisconsin University of Wisconsin–Madison alumni Women in Wisconsin politics Milwaukee-Downer College alumni 20th-century American politicians 20th-century American women politicians {{Wisconsin-politician-stub