Nathaniel B. Treat (March 12, 1839December 26, 1930) was an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

businessman, banker, and

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 ...

politician. He served four years 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, ...

, representing Green County. 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 ...

, he served as a

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 ...

officer and was on the staff of General

William Tecumseh Sherman William Tecumseh Sherman ( ; February 8, 1820February 14, 1891) was an American soldier, businessman, educator, and author. He served as a general in the Union Army during the American Civil War (1861–1865), achieving recognition for his com ...

Early life

Nathaniel B. Treat was born in

Orono, Maine Orono () is a town in Penobscot County, Maine, United States. Located on the Penobscot and Stillwater rivers, it was first settled by American colonists in 1774. They named it in honor of Chief Joseph Orono, a sachem of the indigenous Penobsc ...

, and was educated in the public schools there. He moved to

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 ...

in 1858 and settled in Monroe, in Green County.

Civil War service

In July 1862, Treat volunteered for service in the

and was appointed

first lieutenant First lieutenant is a commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces; in some forces, it is an appointment. The rank of lieutenant has different meanings in different military formations, but in most forces it is sub-divided into a ...

of Company B in the

31st Wisconsin Infantry Regiment The 31st Wisconsin Infantry Regiment was a volunteer infantry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War. Service The 31st Wisconsin was organized at Prairie du Chien and Racine, Wisconsin, and mustered into Federal se ...

. The regiment was initially engaged in guarding Confederate prisoners of war, held in prison camps in Wisconsin. They mustered into federal service in December 1862 and went forward to Tennessee, where they spent the next 18 months guarding supply routes. Treat was promoted to captain of Company B on October 8, 1863. In July 1864, they were ordered to proceed to the front in the midst of General

's Atlanta Campaign, and arrived just in time to join the

Battle of Atlanta The Battle of Atlanta was a battle of the Atlanta Campaign fought during the American Civil War on July 22, 1864, just southeast of Atlanta, Georgia. Continuing their summer campaign to seize the important rail and supply hub of Atlanta, Un ...

. Following consolidation of control in Atlanta, Sherman set off on his March to the Sea. During this campaign, Treat was detailed to General Sherman's staff, and remained with his staff until the end of the war. He mustered out of federal service with his regiment on June 20, 1865.

Postbellum career

After returning to Wisconsin, Treat was engaged in a mercantile business and served as foreman of the engine company 1 of the Monroe volunteer fire department. He served on the Monroe Common Council and the Green County Board of Supervisors. Treat was involved in the Republican Party and was elected to the

in 1894, representing all of Green County. He was re-elected in 1896, but was not a candidate for re-election in 1898. After his term in the Assembly, Treat was appointed to the State Board of Control by Governor

Edward Scofield Edward Scofield (March 28, 1842February 3, 1925) was an American lumberman and Republican politician. He was the 19th governor of Wisconsin (1897–1901) and served in the Wisconsin State Senate, representing Door, Marinette, and Oconto ...

. The Board of Control was charged with overseeing Wisconsin's state prisons, institutions for the insane, schools for wards of the state, and schools for the blind and deaf. He also became involved in the banking business for the rest of his career. Treat died at his home in Monroe, Wisconsin, at age 91.

Personal life and family

Nathaniel B. Treat was one of ten children born to Nathaniel Treat, a member of the Maine House of Representatives. His elder brother, Joseph B. Treat, also moved to Wisconsin, served in the

Wisconsin Legislature The Wisconsin Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. The Legislature is a bicameral body composed of the upper house, Wisconsin State Senate, and the lower Wisconsin State Assembly, both of which have had Republica ...

, and was chairman of the

Republican Party of Wisconsin The Republican Party of Wisconsin is a right-wing political party in Wisconsin and is the Wisconsin affiliate of the United States Republican Party (GOP). The state party chair is Paul Farrow. The state party is divided into 72 county parties f ...

. Joseph's son,

Charles Treat Charles Gould Treat (December 30, 1859 – October 11, 1941) was a major general in the United States Army. Biography Charles Gould Treat was born in Dexter, Maine, on December 30, 1859, and was a direct descendant of Governor Robert Treat. H ...

, became a major general in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land warfare, land military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight Uniformed services of the United States, U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army o ...

after commanding a division in

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. The Treats were descendants of

Robert Treat Robert Treat (February 23, 1624July 12, 1710) was a New England Puritan colonial leader, militia officer and governor of the Connecticut Colony between 1683 and 1698. In 1666 he helped found Newark, New Jersey. Biography Treat was born in Pitm ...

, a colonial governor of Connecticut Colony. Nathaniel B. Treat married twice. His first wife was Ava E. Read, with whom he had at least three children. Ava Read died in 1875, and the next year he married Helen Gilman. There were no known children of the second marriage. Helen Gilman died in a horse-drawn carriage accident in 1908; Treat was also seriously injured in the accident.

Electoral history

, colspan="6" style="text-align:center;background-color: #e9e9e9;", General Election, November 6, 1894 , colspan="6" style="text-align:center;background-color: #e9e9e9;", General Election, November 3, 1896

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Treat, Nathaniel B. 1839 births 1930 deaths People from Orono, Maine People from Monroe, Wisconsin People of Wisconsin in the American Civil War Union Army officers Businesspeople from Wisconsin County supervisors in Wisconsin Wisconsin city council members Republican Party members of the Wisconsin State Assembly