Joseph Very Quarles, Jr., (December 16, 1843October 7, 1911) was an American lawyer, politician, and

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 ...

pioneer. He served as a

United States senator The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and powe ...

from

and a

United States district judge The United States district courts are the trial courts of the U.S. federal judiciary. There is one district court for each federal judicial district, which each cover one U.S. state or, in some cases, a portion of a state. Each district cou ...

for the Eastern District of Wisconsin. Earlier in his career, he was the 20th mayor of

Kenosha, Wisconsin Kenosha () is a city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the seat of Kenosha County. Per the 2020 census, the population was 99,986 which made it the fourth-largest city in Wisconsin. Situated on the southwestern shore of Lake Michigan, Kenos ...

, and served as an officer in the

Union Army During the American Civil War, the Union Army, also known as the Federal Army and the Northern Army, referring to the United States Army, was the land force that fought to preserve the Union of the collective states. It proved essential to th ...

during 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 ...

Early life

Born on December 16, 1843, in

Kenosha Kenosha () is a city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the seat of Kenosha County. Per the 2020 census, the population was 99,986 which made it the fourth-largest city in Wisconsin. Situated on the southwestern shore of Lake Michigan, Kenosh ...

(then Southport),

Wisconsin Territory The Territory of Wisconsin was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from July 3, 1836, until May 29, 1848, when an eastern portion of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Wisconsin. Belmont was ...

(State of

from May 29, 1848). Quarles was the son of Joseph V. Quarles, Sr. and Caroline (' Bullen).daughter of John Bullen IV—commonly known as John Bullen, Sr. John Bullen IV had been a captain in the New York militia during the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States, United States of America and its Indigenous peoples of the Americas, indigenous allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom ...

and subsequently served as a brigadier general in the

militia. Caroline's older brothers,

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Secon ...

and

William William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Engl ...

, established the first settlement at what is now

. Quarles had one brother, Charles, who would become his law partner. Quarles attended the common schools, then received an Artium Baccalaureus degree in 1866 from the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

and a

Bachelor of Laws Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Ch ...

in 1867 from the

University of Michigan Law School The University of Michigan Law School (Michigan Law) is the law school of the University of Michigan, a public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Founded in 1859, the school offers Master of Laws (LLM), Master of Comparative Law (MCL ...

. During the

, Quarles served in the

in the Thirty-ninth Regiment, Wisconsin Volunteers, and was mustered out as first lieutenant.

Career

He was admitted to the bar and entered private practice in Kenosha from 1868 to 1882. He was the district attorney for Kenosha County, Wisconsin from 1870 to 1876. He was the Mayor of Kenosha in 1876. He was 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, ...

in 1879. He 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 ...

from 1880 to 1882. He resumed private practice in

Racine Jean-Baptiste Racine ( , ) (; 22 December 163921 April 1699) was a French dramatist, one of the three great playwrights of 17th-century France, along with Molière and Corneille as well as an important literary figure in the Western traditi ...

, Wisconsin from 1882 to 1888, and in

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 ...

, Wisconsin from 1888 to 1899.

Congressional service

Quarles was elected as 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 ...

to the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

and served from March 4, 1899, to March 3, 1905. He was not a candidate for reelection in 1905. He was Chairman of the Committee on Transportation Routes to the Seaboard for the

56th United States Congress The 56th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1899, ...

and Chairman of the Committee on the Census for the 57th and

58th United States Congress The 58th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, DC, from March 4, 1903, to ...

es.

Federal judicial service

Quarles was nominated by President

Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. ( ; October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), often referred to as Teddy or by his initials, T. R., was an American politician, statesman, soldier, conservationist, naturalist, historian, and writer who served as the 26t ...

on March 6, 1905, to a seat on the

United States District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin (in case citations, E.D. Wis.) is a federal trial court of limited jurisdiction. The court is under the auspices of the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit, ...

vacated by Judge William Henry Seaman.

U.S. Senate

He was confirmed by the

on March 6, 1905, and received his commission the same day. His service terminated on October 7, 1911, due to his death.

Personal life

Quarles died in Milwaukee. He was interred in the City Cemetery in Kenosha.

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Quarles, Joseph Very Republican Party Wisconsin state senators Republican Party members of the Wisconsin State Assembly Mayors of Kenosha, Wisconsin Judges of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin District attorneys in Wisconsin Union Army officers People of Wisconsin in the American Civil War University of Michigan Law School alumni 1843 births 1911 deaths United States district court judges appointed by Theodore Roosevelt 20th-century American judges Republican Party United States senators from Wisconsin 19th-century American politicians 19th-century American judges