John Fox Potter nicknamed "Bowie Knife Potter" (May 11, 1817May 18, 1899) was a nineteenth-century politician, lawyer and judge from

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 ...

who served in 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, ...

and the

U.S. 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 chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

Early and family life

Born in Augusta in Massachusetts'

District of Maine The District of Maine was the governmental designation for what is now the U.S. state of Maine from October 25, 1780 to March 15, 1820, when it was admitted to the Union as the 23rd state. The district was a part of the Commonwealth of Massachuse ...

, Potter attended common schools and

Phillips Exeter Academy (not for oneself) la, Finis Origine Pendet (The End Depends Upon the Beginning) gr, Χάριτι Θεοῦ (By the Grace of God) , location = 20 Main Street , city = Exeter, New Hampshire , zipcode ...

. He married Frances Elizabeth Lewis Fox Potter (1818–1863) of

Portland, Maine Portland is the largest city in the U.S. state of Maine and the seat of Cumberland County. Portland's population was 68,408 in April 2020. The Greater Portland metropolitan area is home to over half a million people, the 104th-largest metropol ...

. Her father George Fox (1791–1864) and unmarried sisters would move to Wisconsin and farm alongside the Potters. Their son John Kendall Potter (1853–1864) barely survived his mother. However, their children Rebecca (1841–1908), Alfred (1843–1915) and Frances (1847–after 1900) did survive and have children.

Career

Admitted to the Wisconsin bar in 1837, Potter began his legal practice in

East Troy East Troy is a village in Walworth County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 4,687 at the 2020 census. The village is located southwest of the Town of East Troy. A small portion extends into the adjacent Town of Troy. Geography Eas ...

. He served as a judge in Walworth County from 1842 to 1846. A Whig, Potter was elected a member of the

, and served a term (1856–1857). He was a delegate to the

1852 Whig National Convention The 1852 Whig National Convention was a presidential nominating convention held from June 17 to June 20, in Baltimore, Maryland. It nominated the Whig Party's candidates for president and vice president in the 1852 election. The convention sel ...

and 1856 Whig National Convention. With the demise of the Whig party, Potter became a

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 ...

and became a delegate to the

Republican National Convention The Republican National Convention (RNC) is a series of presidential nominating conventions held every four years since 1856 by the United States Republican Party. They are administered by the Republican National Committee. The goal of the Repu ...

in 1860 and 1864.

Member of Congress

Wisconsin voters elected Potter 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 ...

in 1856 and he won re-election twice. Thus, Potter served in the

35th Military units *35th Fighter Wing, an air combat unit of the United States Air Force *35th Infantry Division (United States), a formation of the National Guard since World War I *35th Infantry Regiment (United States), a regiment created on 1 July 1 ...

through the 37th Congresses (1857 to 1863). Potter received his nickname in 1860, as a result of an aborted duel with Virginia Congressman

Roger A. Pryor Roger Atkinson Pryor (July 19, 1828 – March 14, 1919) was a Virginian newspaper editor and politician who became known for his fiery oratory in favor of secession; he was elected both to national and Confederate office, and served as a gen ...

after Illinois Congressman (and abolitionist)

Owen Lovejoy Owen Lovejoy (January 6, 1811 – March 25, 1864) was an American lawyer, Congregational minister, Abolitionism in the United States, abolitionist, and Republican United States Congress, congressman from Illinois. He was also a "conductor ...

's remarks concerning the 1837 murder of his brother

Elijah Lovejoy Elijah Parish Lovejoy (November 9, 1802 – November 7, 1837) was an American Presbyterian minister, journalist, newspaper editor, and abolitionist. Following his murder by a mob, he became a martyr to the abolitionist cause opposing slavery ...

. Pryor had edited Potter's follow-up remarks to eliminate a mention of the Republican Party, to which Potter had objected, then Pryor challenged Potter to a duel, but his seconds objected when Potter chose bowie knives as the prospective weapon, decrying his selection of weapon as "vulgar, barbarous, and inhuman." The incident received considerable press, and Potter's friends afterward often accompanied him when on Washington's streets, lest he be accosted again to test his mettle. Potter served as chairman of the Committee on Revolutionary Pensions from 1859 to 1861 and of the Committee on Public Lands from 1861 to 1863. In this latter role, his committee handled the

Homestead Act of 1862 The Homestead Acts were several laws in the United States by which an applicant could acquire ownership of government land or the public domain, typically called a homestead. In all, more than of public land, or nearly 10 percent of th ...

. He was condsidered one of the "

Radical Republicans The Radical Republicans (later also known as " Stalwarts") were a faction within the Republican Party, originating from the party's founding in 1854, some 6 years before the Civil War, until the Compromise of 1877, which effectively ended Reco ...

" due to his support for African-American civil rights and the belief that not only should slavery not be allowed to expand, but that it should be banned in states where it currently existed. In 1861, Potter was one of the participants in the

Peace Conference of 1861 The Peace Conference of 1861 was a meeting of 131 leading American politicians in February 1861, at the Willard's Hotel in Washington, D.C., on the eve of the American Civil War. The purpose of the conference was to avoid, if possible, the secess ...

, which failed to avert 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 ...

. He was defeated in his race for reelection in 1862 by fellow Maine-born lawyer

James S. Brown James Sproat Brown (February 1, 1824April 15, 1878) was an American lawyer and politician who became the first Attorney General of Wisconsin. He also served one term as mayor of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and represented Wisconsin's 1st congressional ...

, 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 ...

who had been

Milwaukee Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at the 2020 census, Milwaukee is ...

prosecutor and mayor, and who would be defeated the following year by a Republican general. During the campaign, his son Alfred C. Potter had enlisted in the

28th Wisconsin Infantry Regiment The 28th Wisconsin Infantry Regiment was a volunteer infantry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War. Service The 28th Wisconsin was organized at Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and mustered into Federal service October 14, 18 ...

in August 1862 as a sergeant, but would be mustered out the following April, and began receiving a pension in 1896.

Later career

After Potter's congressional term ended in early 1863, he declined appointment as governor of

Dakota Territory The Territory of Dakota was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 2, 1861, until November 2, 1889, when the final extent of the reduced territory was split and admitted to the Union as the states of No ...

, and his wife died in May 1863 in Washington, D.C., leaving Potter a widower with a ten year old son. The

Lincoln administration The presidency of Abraham Lincoln began on March 4, 1861, when Abraham Lincoln was United States presidential inauguration, inaugurated as the List of presidents of the United States, 16th president of the United States, and ended upon his Assass ...

then appointed Potter as

Consul General A consul is an official representative of the government of one state in the territory of another, normally acting to assist and protect the citizens of the consul's own country, as well as to facilitate trade and friendship between the people ...

of the United States in the British-controlled

Province of Canada The Province of Canada (or the United Province of Canada or the United Canadas) was a British North America, British colony in North America from 1841 to 1867. Its formation reflected recommendations made by John Lambton, 1st Earl of Durham ...

from 1863 to 1866. Thus Potter resided in what was then the Canadian capital of

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

Lower Canada The Province of Lower Canada (french: province du Bas-Canada) was a British colony on the lower Saint Lawrence River and the shores of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence (1791–1841). It covered the southern portion of the current Province of Quebec an ...

. In 1866, Potter returned to

East Troy, Wisconsin East Troy is a village in Walworth County, Wisconsin, Walworth County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 4,687 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. The village is located southwest of the East Troy (town), Wisconsin, Town of ...

, where he resumed his legal practice.

Death and legacy

Potter died at his home on May 18, 1899. He was interred beside his wife in the family plot at Oak Ridge Cemetery in East Troy. The Wisconsin Historical Society received his knife.Wisconsin's revised privacy law produces broken link at http://www.wisconsinhistory.org/museum/artifacts/archives/001252.asp The Monster Knife of John Fox Potter and minimal reference to ''Milwaukee Journal'' article at https://www.wisconsinhistory.org/Records/Name/NI78938

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Potter, John F. 1817 births 1899 deaths 19th-century American diplomats Republican Party members of the Wisconsin State Assembly Politicians from Augusta, Maine People of Wisconsin in the American Civil War Phillips Exeter Academy alumni Wisconsin lawyers Wisconsin state court judges Wisconsin Whigs Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Wisconsin 19th-century American politicians People from East Troy, Wisconsin 19th-century American judges 19th-century American lawyers