Joseph Turner (1793/1794February 1, 1874) was an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

farmer, Democratic politician, and Wisconsin pioneer. He represented Waukesha County in the Wisconsin State Senate during the

1st Wisconsin Legislature The First Wisconsin Legislature convened from June 5, 1848, to August 21, 1848, in regular session. Members of the Assembly and Senate were elected after an election on February 1, 1848, that ratified the proposed state constitution. Major event ...

(1848). Two of his sons were also Wisconsin legislators.

Background

Turner, born in Vermont, was an American soldier in the War of 1812. He married Mary Griswold, of the Griswold family which gave Connecticut two governors,

Matthew Matthew may refer to: * Matthew (given name) * Matthew (surname) * ''Matthew'' (ship), the replica of the ship sailed by John Cabot in 1497 * ''Matthew'' (album), a 2000 album by rapper Kool Keith * Matthew (elm cultivar), a cultivar of the Ch ...

and Roger (Turner's family also hailed from Connecticut) at

Sangerfield, New York Sangerfield is a town in Oneida County, New York, United States. The population was 2,561 at the 2010 census. The town is named after Jedediah Sanger, an early settler. The Town of Sangerfield is on the county's southern border. Geography Accord ...

, in 1816. On May 11, 1840, the Turners, with one daughter and four sons, landed in Milwaukee. Within the next three weeks, they had settled upon 320 acres of raw land, three miles west of Prairieville (now Waukesha), Wisconsin Territory where they built a

log cabin A log cabin is a small log house, especially a less finished or less architecturally sophisticated structure. Log cabins have an ancient history in Europe, and in America are often associated with first generation home building by settlers. Eur ...

and lived for two years, until a frame house could be built. Theirs was one of the three settlers' houses on the trail between their cabin and

Aztalan Aztalan State Park is a Wisconsin state park in the Town of Aztalan, Jefferson County. Established in 1952, it was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1964 and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1966. The park cover ...

on the

Rock River Rock River may refer to: Streams ;United States * Rock River (Mississippi River), a tributary of the Mississippi River in Wisconsin and Illinois * Rock River (Iowa), a tributary of the Big Sioux River in Minnesota and Iowa * Rock River (Lake Mich ...

, some thirty miles away.

Public office

Turner was a member of the first Waukesha County

Board of Supervisors A board of supervisors is a governmental body that oversees the operation of county government in the U.S. states of Arizona, California, Iowa, Mississippi, Virginia, and Wisconsin, as well as 16 counties in New York. There are equivalent agenc ...

after that county was split off from

Milwaukee County Milwaukee County is located in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. At the 2020 census, the population was 939,489, down from 947,735 in 2010. It is both the most populous and most densely populated county in Wisconsin, and the 45th most populous coun ...

, and was elected

county 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 ...

by that body after the incumbent was removed from office. He represented his county on the "Legislative Council" (equivalent to a state senate) in all three sessions of the fifth and final Wisconsin Territory Legislative Assembly in 1847-48. His son Harvey G. Turner was a delegate to the second Wisconsin

Constitutional Convention Constitutional convention may refer to: * Constitutional convention (political custom), an informal and uncodified procedural agreement *Constitutional convention (political meeting), a meeting of delegates to adopt a new constitution or revise an e ...

in 1847–48; and when statehood was achieved, Joseph Turner was the first Senator from the 13th District (Waukesha County) in 1848. He was succeeded the next year by fellow Democrat Frederick Sprague. In 1850, his son

Eugene S. Turner Eugene S. Turner (June 14, 1824 – July 15, 1915) was an American jurist and legislator. Born in East Oswego, New York to Joseph and Mary Turner, moved with his parents to Wisconsin Territory in 1840 and settled near present-day Waukesha ...

was elected to the Wisconsin State Assembly from Washington County; and in 1851 Harvey was elected to the Senate from

Ozaukee County Ozaukee County is a county in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census, the population was 91,503. Its county seat is Port Washington, making it one of three Wisconsin counties on Lake Michigan not to have a county seat with the same ...

. Their daughter Amanda Anna Louisa Turner married Harrison Reed, then editor of the '' Milwaukee Sentinel'', who would (after her 1862 death) later become Governor of Florida. In 1855, Joseph and Mary Turner moved to Winnebago County, Wisconsin, along with Amanda and her husband, where they were among the founders of the city of

Menasha Menasha () is a city in Calumet and Winnebago counties in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. The population was 18,268 at the 2020 census. Of this, 15,144 were in Winnebago County, and 2,209 were in Calumet County. The city is located mostly in Winne ...

.Watrous, Jerome. "William Joseph Turner" in, ''Memoirs of Milwaukee County: From the Earliest Historical Times Down to the Present, Including a Genealogical and Biographical Record of Representative Families in Milwaukee County'', Vol. II. Madison: Western Historical Association, 1909; pp. 790-791 Joseph served as a member of the Winnebago County Board of Supervisors of Winnebago County for many years and was a

Superintendent of the Poor A poorhouse or workhouse is a government-run (usually by a county or municipality) facility to support and provide housing for the dependent or needy. Workhouses In England, Wales and Ireland (but not in Scotland), ‘workhouse’ has been the ...

for some years. He died at his home in Menasha on February 1, 1874; Mary survived him, and died in Berlin, Wisconsin on August 1, 1884.

Relation to Peter H. Turner

There are unsourced claims on some websites that Joseph was the brother of

Peter H. Turner Peter Helmer Turner (April 11, 1813June 4, 1885) was an American pioneer and politician. Biography Born in Ilion, New York, Turner was in the merchandise business and was in the milling business while living in Ellisburg, New York. In 1840, he ...

, who also came to Wisconsin in 1840.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Turner, Joseph 1874 deaths Businesspeople from Wisconsin County supervisors in Wisconsin Farmers from Wisconsin Members of the Wisconsin Territorial Legislature 19th-century American legislators Politicians from Waukesha, Wisconsin People from Menasha, Wisconsin County clerks in Wisconsin Democratic Party Wisconsin state senators Year of birth missing Date of death missing American military personnel of the War of 1812