Robert Bland Sanderson (February 25, 1825 – June 18, 1887) was an American businessman, farmer, rancher and politician from

Columbia County, Wisconsin Columbia County is a county located in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census, the population was 58,490. Its county seat and largest city is Portage. The county was created in 1846 as part of Wisconsin Territory. Columbia County i ...

who represented part or all of Columbia County 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

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 ...

at various times in the 1860s, before moving to

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...

and becoming a prominent businessman in Tom Green County.

Background

He was born in

Slaidburn Slaidburn () is a village and civil parish within the Ribble Valley district of Lancashire, England. The parish covers just over 5,000 acres of the Forest of Bowland. Historically in the West Riding of Yorkshire, Slaidburn lies near the head of ...

West Riding of Yorkshire The West Riding of Yorkshire is one of three historic subdivisions of Yorkshire, England. From 1889 to 1974 the administrative county County of York, West Riding (the area under the control of West Riding County Council), abbreviated County ...

, England in 1825, and moved to the United States at the age of 23, arriving in New York City and moving on to

Buffalo, New York Buffalo is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of New York (behind only New York City) and the seat of Erie County. It is at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of the Niagara River, and is across the Canadian border from Sou ...

, where he went into the slaughtering business for a couple of years. In 1850, he sold out and moved to Wisconsin, and became a farmer and rancher. In 1851, his younger brother Thomas Sanderson left Slaidburn and came to Wisconsin with his wife and children, joining his brother in Columbia County. In 1856, Robert Sanderson married Mary Currie, daughter of an immigrant from

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...

. From 1858–1860, he was on the town board of Springvale in Columbia County, serving in 1860 as its chairman. His brother Thomas was treasurer of Springvale in 1859. As of 1862, when he first appeared in the Assembly, he was 36 years of age, and had been in Wisconsin for 12 years; he was at that time a resident of

Cambria Cambria is a name for Wales, being the Latinised form of the Welsh name for the country, . The term was not in use during the Roman period (when Wales had not come into existence as a distinct entity). It emerged later, in the medieval period, ...

, and a member of the Republican Party.

Legislative service

He was first elected to the Assembly for the 1862 session, representing the 3rd Columbia County district ( Courtland,

Fort Winnebago Fort Winnebago was a 19th-century fortification of the United States Army located on a hill overlooking the eastern end of the portage between the Fox and Wisconsin Rivers east of present-day Portage, Wisconsin. It was the middle one of three f ...

, Marcellon, Randolph, Scott, Springvale and Wyocena, succeeding James H. Bonney (also a farmer and a Republican). He was assigned to the

standing 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 ...

on railroads. He was succeeded in the 1863 term by Yates Ashley, a fellow Republican. Sanderson (now living in Poynette) returned to the Assembly for the 1866 session, this time from the 2nd Columbia County district, succeeding Jesse Hand, another farmer and member of the Union Party (the label which the Republicans were using during this era). He was assigned to the committees on the expiration and re-enactment of laws; and on agriculture and

manufactures Manufacturing is the creation or production of goods with the help of equipment, labor, machines, tools, and chemical or biological processing or formulation. It is the essence of secondary sector of the economy. The term may refer to a rang ...

. In 1867, Sanderson advanced to the Senate to represent the 25th Senate District (Columbia County) (he succeeded Jonathan Bowman in the Senate, and was succeeded in the Assembly by Ira Ford, both of the same party with himself); and was assigned to the committees on

roads A road is a linear way for the conveyance of traffic that mostly has an improved surface for use by vehicles (motorized and non-motorized) and pedestrians. Unlike streets, the main function of roads is transportation. There are many types of ...

, bridges and

ferries A ferry is a ship, watercraft or amphibious vehicle used to carry passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A passenger ferry with many stops, such as in Venice, Italy, is sometimes called a water bus or water tax ...

; and on

engrossed bill In the United States Congress, an enrolled bill is the final copy of a bill or joint resolution which has passed both houses of Congress in identical form. In the United States, enrolled bills are engrossed—prepared in a formally printed copy ...

s. He was also a member of the

Board of Regents In the United States, a board often governs institutions of higher education, including private universities, state universities, and community colleges. In each US state, such boards may govern either the state university system, individual c ...

for 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, ...

. He returned in 1868, although by that time the Union Party label had been abandoned; he was assigned to the committees on privileges and

elections An election is a formal group decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold Public administration, public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative ...

; on agriculture; and on railroads (chairing the latter). He was re-appointed to a new term as a regent, and served in that capacity through 1873, including serving on the

executive 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 ...

of the Board of Regents. He was succeeded in 1869 by fellow Republican William M. Griswold.

After the legislature

By 1870, he had moved to "'76 Farm" in

Dane County Dane County is a county in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census, the population was 561,504, making it the second-most populous county in Wisconsin. The county seat is Madison, which is also the state capital. Dane County is the ...

four miles outside of

Madison Madison may refer to: People * Madison (name), a given name and a surname * James Madison (1751–1836), fourth president of the United States Place names * Madison, Wisconsin, the state capital of Wisconsin and the largest city known by this ...

, where he raised

Clydesdales The Clydesdale is a Scottish breed of draught horse. It is named for its area of origin, the Clydesdale or valley of the River Clyde, much of which is within the county of Lanarkshire. The origins of the breed lie in the eighteenth century ...

shorthorn cattle The Shorthorn breed of cattle originated in the North East of England in the late eighteenth century. The breed was developed as dual-purpose, suitable for both dairy and beef production; however, certain blood lines within the breed always em ...

and other livestock. In 1870, he was the unsuccessful candidate for the 2nd Assembly district of that County against

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 ...

Knudt Heimdahl, with 751 votes to Heidal's 858; his brother Thomas was elected to Robert's old 2nd Columbia County Assembly seat at that same election. In 1871, Robert was one of the directors of the Chicago and Superior Railroad Company. He was also involved in the creation of the Madison and Portage Railway.

Gone to Texas

In 1876 Sanderson sold all his interests in Wisconsin and moved to Texas, whose climate and custom of free range husbandry suited his preferences. After a period as a sheep dealer in

San Antonio ("Cradle of Freedom") , image_map = , mapsize = 220px , map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = United States , subdivision_type1= State , subdivision_name1 = Texas , subdivision_t ...

, he joined his sons in a partnership with J. I. Case (like himself, a former Republican Wisconsin State Senator) and Eli Stilson, raising cattle and sheep. When the partnership dissolved, Case and Stilson took the cattle, and the Sandersons moved to

San Angelo San Angelo ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Tom Green County, Texas, United States. Its location is in the Concho Valley, a region of West Texas between the Permian Basin to the northwest, Chihuahuan Desert to the southwest, Osage Pl ...

, where they continued mostly in the sheep business. When the San Angelo National Bank was organized, Sanderson was elected its president, and held that office until his death on June 18, 1887. He and Mary Currie Sanderson had four sons and two daughters.Cox, James. ''Historical and Biographical Record of the Cattle Industry and the Cattlemen of Texas and Adjacent Territory'' St. Louis: Woodward & Tiernan Printing Company, 1895; pp. 420–421

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sanderson, Robert B. 1825 births 1887 deaths American bankers American cattlemen Ranchers from Texas Businesspeople from Texas Businesspeople from Wisconsin Businesspeople in agriculture English emigrants to the United States Republican Party members of the Wisconsin State Assembly People from Columbia County, Wisconsin People from Ribble Valley (district) People from San Angelo, Texas Republican Party Wisconsin state senators 19th-century American politicians