Paul Oscar Adolph Husting (April 25, 1866October 21, 1917) was an American

lawyer A lawyer is a person who practices law. The role of a lawyer varies greatly across different legal jurisdictions. A lawyer can be classified as an advocate, attorney, barrister, canon lawyer, civil law notary, counsel, counselor, solic ...

and Democratic politician from

Mayville, Wisconsin Mayville is a city in Dodge County, Wisconsin, United States, located along the Rock River and the Horicon Marsh. The population was 5,154 at the 2010 census. Geography Mayville is located at (43.497044, -88.547871). According to the Unite ...

. He was the first popularly-elected

United States senator The United States Senate is the Upper house, upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States House of Representatives, House of Representatives being the Lower house, lower chamber. Together they compose the national Bica ...

from Wisconsin, serving from 1915 until his death in 1917. He previously served eight years in the

Wisconsin 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 ...

, representing Dodge County, and was

district attorney In the United States, a district attorney (DA), county attorney, state's attorney, prosecuting attorney, commonwealth's attorney, or state attorney is the chief prosecutor and/or chief law enforcement officer representing a U.S. state in a l ...

for four years. He was a grandson of Solomon Juneau, the founder of

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 ...

Background and early career

Husting was born April 25, 1866, in

Fond du Lac, Wisconsin Fond du Lac () is a city in Fond du Lac County, Wisconsin, Fond du Lac County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 44,678 at the 2020 census. The city forms the core of the United States Census Bureau's Fond du Lac United States metrop ...

. Husting moved with his parents to

, in 1876, where he received a common school education. From the age of 17 years, he became successively a

retail clerk A retail clerk, also known as a salesclerk, shop clerk, retail associate or (in the United Kingdom) shop assistant or customer service assistant, is a service role in a retail business. A retail clerk obtains or receives merchandise, totals bil ...

in a general store, a

railway Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...

postal clerk A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting letters and parcels, providing post office boxes, and selling postage stamps, packaging, and stationery. Post offices may offer additional servi ...

, a mailing clerk in the Wisconsin State Prison at Waupun, and assistant bookkeeper in the office of the Secretary of State of Wisconsin under Thomas J. Cunningham. Husting entered the

University of Wisconsin Law School The University of Wisconsin Law School is the professional graduate law school of the University of Wisconsin–Madison. Located in Madison, Wisconsin, the school was founded in 1868. The University of Wisconsin Law School is guided by a "law in ...

, passed the state

bar examination A bar examination is an examination administered by the bar association of a jurisdiction that a lawyer must pass in order to be admitted to the bar of that jurisdiction. Australia Administering bar exams is the responsibility of the bar associ ...

, and was admitted to the bar in 1895. He initially practiced law in Mayville by himself, but in 1897 associated himself with C. W. Lamoreux until the latter was elected judge, upon which the firm of Husting & Brother was formed.

Public office

Husting was elected

of Dodge County in 1902 and reelected in 1904. He was elected to the state senate in 1906, and reelected in 1910. In the state senate, he advocated

conservation Conservation is the preservation or efficient use of resources, or the conservation of various quantities under physical laws. Conservation may also refer to: Environment and natural resources * Nature conservation, the protection and managem ...

of the state's

natural resources Natural resources are resources that are drawn from nature and used with few modifications. This includes the sources of valued characteristics such as commercial and industrial use, aesthetic value, scientific interest and cultural value. ...

, the

income tax An income tax is a tax imposed on individuals or entities (taxpayers) in respect of the income or profits earned by them (commonly called taxable income). Income tax generally is computed as the product of a tax rate times the taxable income. Tax ...

, the "Husting bill" establishing a maximum passenger railroad fare of two cents per mile,

initiative In political science, an initiative (also known as a popular initiative or citizens' initiative) is a means by which a petition signed by a certain number of registered voters can force a government to choose either to enact a law or hold a pu ...

and

referendum A referendum (plural: referendums or less commonly referenda) is a direct vote by the electorate on a proposal, law, or political issue. This is in contrast to an issue being voted on by a representative. This may result in the adoption of a ...

, and direct election of United States senators. He offered the original resolution to investigate, and assisted in the investigation of, the Wisconsin primary and election of 1908, which resulted in the enactment of the state's Corrupt Practices Act. Husting was the first United States senator from Wisconsin to be elected by a

direct vote Direct election is a system of choosing political officeholders in which the voters directly cast ballots for the persons or political party that they desire to see elected. The method by which the winner or winners of a direct election are cho ...

of the people, defeating the incumbent Governor, Francis E. McGovern, at the November 1914 election by 967 votes. He succeeded

Isaac Stephenson Isaac Stephenson (June 18, 1829March 15, 1918) was an American politician of the Republican Party who represented Wisconsin as both a United States representative and a United States senator. He was born in the community of Yorkton, near Fr ...

as the United States senator on March 4, 1915, and served in the Senate from 1915 until his death. During his time in the U.S. Senate, he was chairman of the Committee on

Fisheries Fishery can mean either the enterprise of raising or harvesting fish and other aquatic life; or more commonly, the site where such enterprise takes place ( a.k.a. fishing ground). Commercial fisheries include wild fisheries and fish farms, both ...

during 1917 and chairman of a

special committee A committee or commission is a body of one or more persons subordinate to a deliberative assembly. A committee is not itself considered to be a form of assembly. Usually, the assembly sends matters into a committee as a way to explore them more ...

investigating

trespass Trespass is an area of tort law broadly divided into three groups: trespass to the person, trespass to chattels, and trespass to land. Trespass to the person historically involved six separate trespasses: threats, assault, battery, woundi ...

es on Indian lands during his entire time in the Senate. Husting was the only Democrat to win a state-wide election in Wisconsin between 1892 and 1932.

Death and political consequences

Husting was killed in a

duck hunting Waterfowl hunting (also called wildfowling or waterfowl shooting in the UK) is the practice of hunting ducks, geese, or other waterfowl for food and sport. Many types of ducks and geese share the same habitat, have overlapping or identical hunt ...

accident on Rush Lake near Pickett, Wisconsin. While rising in a row boat after telling his brother Gustav to fire, Gustav accidentally shot his brother in the back. Husting fell into a coma, and died later that same day. The ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'' described him as "the most aggressive leader" of the "loyalist" (i.e., supportive of

Woodrow Wilson Thomas Woodrow Wilson (December 28, 1856February 3, 1924) was an American politician and academic who served as the 28th president of the United States from 1913 to 1921. A member of the Democratic Party, Wilson served as the president of ...

's pro-

Allied An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...

policies) forces in Wisconsin, and contrasted him with " Senator La Follette and the pro-German constituency behind him". He is interred on the Husting family plot at Graceland Cemetery in Mayville. Husting's death was of political importance. In 1919 the Senate would have been under Democratic control had he not been succeeded by Republican

Irvine Lenroot Irvine Luther Lenroot (January 31, 1869 – January 26, 1949) was a United States representative and United States senator from Wisconsin and an associate judge of the United States Court of Customs and Patent Appeals. Education and career ...

, as a consequence of which in 1919 the Senate had 49 Republicans and 47 Democrats (

Vice-President A vice president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vice president is on ...

Thomas R. Marshall Thomas Riley Marshall (March 14, 1854 – June 1, 1925) was an American politician who served as the 28th vice president of the United States from 1913 to 1921 under President Woodrow Wilson. A prominent lawyer in Indiana, he became an acti ...

was a Democrat, and had the power to break all ties).

Personal life and family

Paul Husting was the second of seven children born to John P. and Mary M. (' Juneau) Husting. John P. Husting had emigrated to Wisconsin from the

Grand Duchy of Luxemburg Luxembourg ( ; lb, Lëtzebuerg ; french: link=no, Luxembourg; german: link=no, Luxemburg), officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, ; french: link=no, Grand-Duché de Luxembourg ; german: link=no, Großherzogtum Luxemburg is a small land ...

in 1855. Mary M. Juneau was the twelfth of sixteen children born to Solomon Juneau—the co-founder and first mayor of

Milwaukee, Wisconsin 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, Wisconsin, Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at th ...

. Husting's younger brother, Berthold Juneau "Bert" Husting, had a brief career in professional baseball and was later

United States Attorney United States attorneys are officials of the U.S. Department of Justice who serve as the chief federal law enforcement officers in each of the 94 U.S. federal judicial districts. Each U.S. attorney serves as the United States' chief federal c ...

for the Eastern District of Wisconsin in the 1940s. His older brother, Charles Ottomar "Otto" Husting, served as Paul's private secretary in the U.S. Senate.

Electoral history

Wisconsin Senate (1906, 1910)

, colspan="6" style="text-align:center;background-color: #e9e9e9;", General Election, November 6, 1906 , colspan="6" style="text-align:center;background-color: #e9e9e9;", General Election, November 8, 1910

U.S. Senate (1914)

, colspan="6" style="text-align:center;background-color: #e9e9e9;", Democratic Primary, September 1, 1914 , colspan="6" style="text-align:center;background-color: #e9e9e9;", General Election, November 3, 1914

References

External links

Paul Husting, late a senator from Wisconsin, Memorial addresses delivered in the House of Representatives and Senate frontispiece 1919
, - , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Husting, Paul O. 1866 births 1917 deaths 19th-century American politicians Accidental deaths in Wisconsin American people of French-Canadian descent American people of Luxembourgian descent Deaths by firearm in Wisconsin Democratic Party United States senators from Wisconsin Democratic Party Wisconsin state senators District attorneys in Wisconsin Firearm accident victims in the United States Hunting accident deaths Juneau family People from Fond du Lac, Wisconsin People from Mayville, Wisconsin University of Wisconsin Law School alumni