Walworth County, Wisconsin - Chapter 6: Political Organization, 1912

Chapter 6: Political Organization

Wisconsin, having passed from French to English and thence to American possession, was included in the old Northwest Territory until 1800. when it became part of Indiana Territory. In [809 it was joined to Illinois Territory, and in 1818 to Michigan Territory, the latter organized in 1805 In 1836 the territory of Wisconsin (less the northern peninsula given to Michigan to placate her for the loss of the Ohio strip) was organized, and in 1838 Iowa was detached from its imperial domain. On admission as the thirtieth American state, in 1848. it suffered the loss of the region between St. Croix river and the upper Mississippi.

With territorial government came need of new counties. Iowa. < rawford and Milwaukee were at once set off from Brown (with Des Moines and Dubuque across the river). In 1838 Milwaukee county, though much the smallest of these, was most sub-divided, and one of the new counties was named for the then chancellor of the state of New York, Reuben 1 [yde Walworth, of Saratoga, the last of a short, illustrious line of judges (beginning in 1777 and ending with 1847). But not as chancellor was he thus honored in Wisconsin. He was also president of the New York Stale Temperance Society, and his name, with that of Edward C. Delavan, of Albany, were thought peculiarly fit for a new county and one of its towns, - since the town was already founded on a moral idea, and pious men of Delavan, Spring Prairie and Geneva were trying to build the county on the same foundation. Judge Walworth was born in 1788 and died in 1807. In 1848 he was the defeated Democratic candidate for governor, his name on the ("ass and Butler ticket of the divided party. He lived to compile a valuable genealogy of his mother's family, descendants of John Hyde, of Norwich, Connecticut.

Walworth county lies along the northern line of Illinois, it- eastern about twenty-seven miles from the slightly irregular shore of ] ake Michigan. It is twenty-four miles square, its center in latitude \2 41' north, and longitude 88° 32' west. The bordering counties are Rock on the west, Jefferson and Waukesha north. Racine and Kenosha east, Boone and McHenry south. Its sixteen townships were in 1838 included in five towns, of wi ivan was the southwestern quarter of the county, Elkhorn the northwestern quarter, Geneva the southeastern quarter, while the northeastern quarter was justly divided between Spring Prairie and Troy. In 1842 a census was taken for reapportionment of legislative representation. Sheriff Mallory and Under Sheriff Oatman performed this work, and Mr. Davis recorded their returns in Vol. 1, pp. 422-446, of Mortgages. It is evident from the face of this record that the returns were clerically well made. Mr. Davis was a shrewd and competent business man, but his spelling and writing were rather oldfashioned, even for seventy years ago. He followed his copy with faithful intent, and the list of eight hundred and seventy-five names has as few errors as most of such records. Only the heads of households are shown by name, with number of males and females set against each name. It is plain that many unmarried men thus missed entry by name; for several households numbered from twelve to twenty-five. The sum of this enumeration, if the register's crabbed figures are rightly read and added, was four thousand six hundred and eighteen. The five towns had become nine, and a tenth was foreshown by returning two sheets for Troy. Richmond and Whitewater had been taken from Elkhorn; Darien and Walworth (the latter including Sharon) from Delavan; while Geneva and Spring Prairie were unchanged. In a year or more afterward each land-office division had been named and organized for home rule. The village of Elkhorn, laid out in 1837, spread itself loosely into four sections, lying in as many towns. This was soon found inconvenient for various county purposes, and in 1846 section 1 of Delavan, section 6 of Geneva, section 31 of Lafayette, and section 36 of the town of Elkhorn were set off as a new town and village of Elkhorn, and the larger remnant of the old town was renamed Sugar Creek. Thus, the list of towns became complete : Bloomfield, Darien, Delavan, East Troy, Elkhorn, Geneva, Hudson, Lafayette, Lagrange, Linn, Richmond, Sharon, Spring Prairie, Sugar Creek, Troy, Walworth, Whitewater. In 1865 Hudson was newly named Lyons. (In the newer county of St. Croix the names of Hudson, Richmond, Springfield and Troy are repeated.)

Congressional And Legislative Districts

At the four sessions of the second Territorial Assembly. 1838-40, one member sat in the Council and two in the House of Representatives for the joint district of Rock and Walworth counties. At both sessions of the third Assembly (December, 1840, and December, 1841 i. four members appeared in the lower House. At the fourth Assembly two councihnen sat for the dis-

When Wisconsin put on statehood, in 1848, the counties of Jefferson, Green, Milwaukee, Racine (including Kenosha), Rock and Walworth constituted the first of her two congressional districts. In 1852 lefferson. Green and Rock were made part of a new district, the other counties remaining the first of three districts. In 186 J the first district was left unchanged, though the state had gained three members of Congress. In 1872 .Milwaukee was dropped and Rock added. In 1882 Waukesha was exchanged for Jefferson. From 1892 to 1912 the counties of the first district have been ( rreen, Kenosha, Racine, Rock and Walworth.

For the state Senate thirty-three members were chosen biennially- [or odd-numbered districts in even-numbered years, for even-numbered districts in odd-numbered years - until 1882, when the sessions becacic biennial and the terms quadrennial. Walworth was a senate district from 1848 to 1870, - at first numbered fourteenth. In 1853 it was numbered twelfth. In 1872 it was joined to Kenosha and numbered eighth. In 1892 it was joined with several towns of Rock to make the twenty- fourth. This apportionment was found unconstitutional, because not composed of entire assembly districts, and in 1896 the two assembly districts of Walworth, with one of Jefferson, made up the twenty-third senate district. Since 1902 the whole of these two counties compose the twenty-third.

From 1848 to 185 1 the county chose five assemblymen. The towns of the first district were East Troy, Spring Prairie, Troy. Those of the second district were Lagrange, Richmond, Whitewater; third district, Darien, Linn, Sharon, Walworth; fourth district, Bloomfield, Geneva, Hudson; fifth district, Delavan, Elkhorn, Lafayette, Sugar Creek. m

From 1852 to 1855 there were six districts: First, Elkhorn, Geneva, Hudson; second, Lafayette, Sugar Creek, Troy; third, East Troy, Spring Prairie; fourth, Lagrange, Richmond, Whitewater; fifth, Darien, Delavan, Sharon; sixth, Bloomfield, Linn, Walworth.

From 1856 to 18(15 the county was divided quarterly: the Geneva district numbered one, the Delavan district two, the Whitewater districl tli the East Troy district (with Elkhorn) four.

From 1884 to 1890 ( with biennial terms) the western half of the county, less the town of Walworth, was the first district. The rest of the county, including Elkhorn, was the second district.

From 1892 to 1900 the northern half, with Elkhorn, became the first district, the eight southern towns the second district. One more reduction, in 1902, has made the whole county one assembly district.

This steady loss of representation is due to the small increase of population here since the monetary panic of 1857, while Milwaukee and the northern counties have multiplied mightily. The several Federal enumerations have shown but one decrease - between 18^0 and 1870:

The legislative membership is constitutionally fixed at thirty-three senators and one hundred assemblymen, and thus Walworth's loss is gain elsewhere in the state. But the county has yet some noticeable influence in legislation, and she is yet of some appreciable political value.

Judicial Circuits

In 1837 citizens of the present county of Walworth went to Milwaukee as plaintiffs or defendants in cases at law. In 1838 the county was attached temporarily, for judicial purposes, to the new county of Racine. In April, 1839, a federal judge held a term of court at Elkhorn. The federal judicial district of eastern Wisconsin includes Walworth. One citizen of this county, the late George Nelson Wiswell, was President Harrison's federal marshal for this district.

From the beginning of state government this county has been of the first judicial circuit, - until 1869, with Green, Kenosha. Racine and Rock: since that year, with Kenosha and Racine only. Circuit judges are chosen at April elections, their term of six years beginning in the following January. The current term of office began on the first Monday of January. 1908.

fudges of probate were chosen in the period between [840 and 1849. A line of county judges began in January, 1850. Their functions were substantially those of the probate judges, with slight additions to their jurisdiction in later years, until 1907. "An act to confer civil ami criminal jurisdiction on the countv court of Walworth county" was published June 20th of that year. By this act the county court has concurrent jurisdiction with the circuit court in all actions of law and equity in which the sum at issue does not exceed twenty-five thousand dollars; in actions of foreclosure of mortgages and mechanic's liens; in actions for divorces and annulment of marriage contract; of title to real estate; of partition of real estate; and in all criminal cases except murder, manslaughter and homicide. Issues of fad may be tried with or without jury. Since iqoi special terms of county court may be held at Whitewater. Of course, all the county judges have been lawyers of good personal and professional repute; though, in 1885, a somewhat vigorous effort was made to open the way to the county bench for men not bred to the "insipid clamor of the bar." The act of 1907 seems not likely to encourage another such movement.