Theobald Otjen (October 27, 1851 – April 11, 1924) was a

U.S. Representative 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 c ...

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 ...

. Theobald was born to German immigrants John Conrad and Dorothea (Schreiner) Otjen, in west China township in

St. Clair County, Michigan St. Clair County is a county located in the U.S. state of Michigan and bordering the west bank of the St. Clair River. As of the 2020 Census, the population was 160,383. It is the 13th-most populous county in the state. The county seat is Port ...

and attended the Marine City (Michigan) Academy and a private school in Detroit. He was employed as foreman in the rolling mill of the Milwaukee Iron Co. in Milwaukee 1870–1872. He graduated from the law department of the

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

on March 25, 1875. He was admitted to the bar at Ann Arbor in 1875 and commenced practice in

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at th ...

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

. He moved to

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 ...

, in 1883. He served as member of the common council of Milwaukee 1887–1894. Otjen also served as a trustee of the Milwaukee Public Library 1887–1891, and a trustee of the public museum 1891–1894. He was an unsuccessful candidate for comptroller of the city in April 1892. He was an unsuccessful candidate for election in 1892 to the 53rd Congress and in 1893 to the same Congress to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of John L. Mitchell. Otjen was eventually 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 54th and to the five succeeding Congresses (March 4, 1895 – March 3, 1907) as the representative of

Wisconsin's 4th congressional district Wisconsin's 4th congressional district is a congressional district of the United States House of Representatives in Wisconsin, encompassing a part of Milwaukee County and including almost all of the city of Milwaukee (except the slivers of the c ...

. He was an unsuccessful candidate for renomination in 1906. He resumed the practice of law in

. Theobald married Louisa Elizabeth Heames, daughter of prominent Detroit civil engineer Henry Heames, in Detroit on March 27, 1879, and had five children between 1880 and 1892. He died in

, April 11, 1924. He was interred in Forest Home Cemetery.

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Otjen, Theobald 1851 births 1924 deaths People from St. Clair County, Michigan Wisconsin city council members Michigan Republicans University of Michigan Law School alumni Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Wisconsin