Walter Duncan McIndoe (March 30, 1819August 22, 1872) was a Scottish American

immigrant Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not natives or where they do not possess citizenship in order to settle as permanent residents or naturalized citizens. Commuters, tourists, ...

, lumber industrialist, and politician. A Republican, he represented

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 ...

for two terms in the

United States House of Representatives 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 the ...

(from 1863 to 1867).

Biography

Born in Dumbartonshire,

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to th ...

, McIndoe immigrated to the United States in 1834. He engaged in business in New York, Charleston, and St. Louis, finally settling in the

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 ...

in 1845 where he became involved in the lumber business. He served as 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 1850, 1854, and 1855. In 1850 as a member of the Assembly he introduced a bill changing the name of his home community from "Big Bull Falls" to Wausau and creating

Marathon County Marathon County is a county located in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census, the population was 138,013. Marathon County's seat is Wausau. It was founded in 1850, created from a portion of Portage County. At that time the coun ...

. Initially a Whig, in 1854 he became a member of the newly formed

Republican Party Republican Party is a name used by many political parties around the world, though the term most commonly refers to the United States' Republican Party. Republican Party may also refer to: Africa *Republican Party (Liberia) * Republican Part ...

. He was a candidate for the Republican nomination for

Governor of Wisconsin The governor of Wisconsin is the head of government of Wisconsin and the commander-in-chief of the state's army and air forces. The governor has a duty to enforce state laws, and the power to either approve or veto bills passed by the Wiscon ...

at the 1857 Republican state convention, contending with Edward Dwight Holton, with both candidates losing to the eventual nominee and governor,

Alexander Randall Alexander or Alex Randall may refer to: * Alexander Randall (Wisconsin politician) (1819–1872), former Governor of Wisconsin *Alexander Randall (Maryland politician) (1803–1881), former Attorney General of Maryland *Alex Randall, a character i ...

. 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 state ...

he was provost marshal of Wisconsin. McIndoe was first elected to Congress in the December 1862 special election to replace Congressman Luther Hanchett, who died three weeks after the 1862 general election. Hanchett was the incumbent in

Wisconsin's 2nd congressional district Wisconsin's 2nd congressional district is a congressional district of the United States House of Representatives in southern Wisconsin, covering Dane County, Iowa County, Lafayette County, Sauk County and Green County, as well as portions of ...

and, in the 1862 general election, had been elected to Wisconsin's newly-created 6th congressional district. McIndoe's election allowed him to replace Hanchett for the last months of the

37th Congress The 37th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1861, ...

and also for the full term of the

38th Congress The 38th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1863, ...

. He was subsequently re-elected in

1864 Events January–March * January 13 – American songwriter Stephen Foster (" Oh! Susanna", " Old Folks at Home") dies aged 37 in New York City, leaving a scrap of paper reading "Dear friends and gentle hearts". His parlor song ...

to the 39th Congress, ultimately serving from January 26, 1863, until March 3, 1867. During the Thirty-ninth Congress, he served as chairman of the House Committee on Revolutionary Pensions. In 1866, McIndoe declined candidacy for renomination, instead resuming his interests in the lumber business. He died in

Wausau, Wisconsin Wausau ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Marathon County, Wisconsin, United States. The Wisconsin River divides the city into east and west. The city's suburbs include Schofield, Weston, Mosinee, Maine, Rib Mountain, Kronenwetter, ...

, on August 22, 1872, and was interred at Pine Grove Cemetery.

Electoral history

U.S. House of Representatives (1862, 1864)

, colspan="6" style="text-align:center;background-color: #e9e9e9;", Special Election, December 30, 1862 , colspan="6" style="text-align:center;background-color: #e9e9e9;", General Election, November 8, 1864

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:McIndoe, Walter D. 1819 births 1872 deaths Politicians from Wausau, Wisconsin Businesspeople from Wisconsin Members of the Wisconsin State Assembly Wisconsin Whigs Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Wisconsin 19th-century American politicians Scottish emigrants to the United States 19th-century American businesspeople