John Wilford Blackstone Jr.

John Wilford Blackstone Jr. (December 22, 1835  October 22, 1911)[1] was an American farmer, lawyer, politician, and judge. A Republican, he represented Lafayette County for one term each in the Wisconsin State Senate and Assembly. He also served two four-year terms as County Judge for Lafayette County.

The Honorable

John W. Blackstone Jr.
Member of the Wisconsin Senate
from the 12th district
In office
January 1, 1880  January 1, 1882
Preceded byJoseph B. Treat
Succeeded byArchibald N. Randall
Member of the Wisconsin State Assembly
from the Lafayette 2nd district
In office
January 1, 1879  January 1, 1880
Preceded byBernard McGinty
Succeeded byBernard McGinty
District Attorney of Lafayette County
In office
January 1, 1873  December 31, 1874
Preceded byJoseph H. Clary
Succeeded byJames R. Rose
County Judge of Lafayette County
In office
January 1, 1862  December 31, 1869
Preceded byL. P. Higbee
Succeeded byPhilo A. Orton Jr.
Personal details
Born(1835-12-22)December 22, 1835
White Oak Springs, Michigan Territory
DiedOctober 22, 1911(1911-10-22) (aged 75)
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Resting placeEvergreen Cemetery
Shullsburg, Wisconsin
Political partyRepublican
Spouse(s)
Ellen E. Hardy
(m. 1861)
Children
  • Roccey (Prince)
  • Jessie Edna Blackstone
  • (b. 1867; died 1931)
  • John Wilford Blackstone III
  • Ralph Hardy Blackstone
  • (b. 1880; died 1956)
MotherCatherine (Tomlinson) Blackstone
FatherJohn Wilford Blackstone
Alma materBeloit College
Brown University
Professionlawyer, judge

Biography

Born in White Oak Springs (then part of the Michigan Territory) Blackstone read law with John K. Williams and was admitted to the State Bar of Wisconsin in 1861. He was elected County Judge in Lafayette County that year, commencing his term in January 1862. He served two terms before losing re-election in 1868. In 1873, he returned to office as District Attorney.[2][3]

He served in the Wisconsin State Assembly in the 1879 session and in the Wisconsin State Senate for the 1880 and 1881 sessions.[2] He also worked as an agent of the Bureau of Pensions for three years. Later in life, he moved to Minneapolis, Minnesota, where his daughter, Roccey, resided. He died there in 1911.

Personal life and family

Blackstone is a direct descendant of William Blaxton (Blackstone), one of the first colonists of the Plymouth Colony, and the first English resident at Boston (1623) and Rhode Island (1635). The name "Blackstone" appears on many landmarks of New England due to his noteworthy ancestor.[2][3]

His father was John Wilford Blackstone, Sr., one of the early pioneers of Lafayette County, who served in the Wisconsin Territorial Legislature and was a judge for Iowa County during the time it was organized under the Michigan Territory.[2][4]

John W. Blackstone Jr. married Ellen E. Hardy, of Platteville, Wisconsin, on June 20, 1862. They had at least four children:[3]

References

  1. 'John Wilford Blackstone,"Minnesota Death Records, 1866-1816,"
  2. Butterfield, Consul Willshire (1881). History of Lafayette county, Wisconsin. Chicago: Western Historical Co. pp. 492–493, 653–654, 735. Retrieved June 6, 2020.
  3. "John Wilford Blackstone". Commemorative Biographical Record of the Counties of Rock, Green, Grant, Iowa, and Lafayette Wisconsin. Chicago: J. H. Beers & Co. 1901. pp. 345–347. Retrieved June 6, 2020.
  4. The Blackstone Family
Wisconsin State Assembly
Preceded by
Bernard McGinty
Member of the Wisconsin State Assembly from the Lafayette 2nd district
January 1, 1879  January 1, 1880
Succeeded by
Bernard McGinty
Wisconsin State Senate
Preceded by
Joseph B. Treat
Member of the Wisconsin Senate from the 12th district
January 1, 1880  January 1, 1882
Succeeded by
Archibald N. Randall
Legal offices
Preceded by
L. P. Higbee
County Judge of Lafayette County, Wisconsin
January 1, 1862  December 31, 1869
Succeeded by
Philo A. Orton, Jr.
Preceded by
Joseph H. Clary
District Attorney of Lafayette County, Wisconsin
January 1, 1873  December 31, 1874
Succeeded by
James R. Rose
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