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Don A. J. Upham

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Don A. J. Upham
United States Attorney for the District of Wisconsin
In office
1858–1861
Appointed byJames Buchanan
Preceded byJohn R. Sharpstein
Succeeded byJohn B. D. Cogswell
4th Mayor of Milwaukee
In office
April 1849 – April 1851
Preceded byByron Kilbourn
Succeeded byGeorge H. Walker
Member of the Council of the Wisconsin Territory for Milwaukee and Washington counties
In office
December 7, 1840 – December 5, 1842
Serving with Jonathan Earle Arnold (1841) and John Hubbard Tweedy (1842)
Preceded by
Succeeded by
Personal details
Born(1809-05-01)May 1, 1809
Weathersfield, Vermont, U.S.
DiedJuly 19, 1877(1877-07-19) (aged 68)
Milwaukee, Wisconsin, U.S.
Resting placeForest Home Cemetery
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
CitizenshipUnited States
Political partyDemocratic
Spouse
Elizabeth Smith Jaques
​
​
(m. 1836⁠–⁠1877)​
Children
  • John Jaques Upham
  • (b. 1837; died 1898)
  • Caroline Jaques (Raymond)
  • (b. 1842; died 1924)
  • Adelaide J. (Taylor)
  • (b. 1850; died 1933)
  • Sarah Maria (Ransom)
  • (b. 1851; died 1912)
  • Horace A. J. Upham
  • (b. 1853; died 1919)
Parents
  • Joshua Upham (father)
  • Phebe (Chamberlain) Upham (mother)
Alma materUnion College
Professionlawyer, politician

Don Alonzo Joshua Upham (May 1, 1809 – July 19, 1877) was an American lawyer, Democratic politician, and Wisconsin pioneer. He served as the 4th Mayor of Milwaukee and was the Democratic nominee for Governor of Wisconsin in the 1851 election. He also served as President of the first Wisconsin Constitutional Convention and was United States Attorney for Wisconsin during the presidency of James Buchanan. His name was often abbreviated as D. A. J. Upham in historical documents.

Early life

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Upham was born in Weathersfield, Windsor County, Vermont in 1809.[1][2] After graduating from Union College in Schenectady, New York, in 1831,[3] he taught mathematics for three years at the University of Delaware in Newark, Delaware.

He then studied law privately in Delaware under James A. Bayard, Jr. He practiced law after being admitted to the Delaware bar in 1835. That year, he was also elected the Wilmington City Attorney.[4] He was the owner and editor of The Delaware Gazette for three years.[5] In 1837, Upham traveled west, eventually settling in the village of Milwaukee in the Wisconsin Territory, where he continued to work as a lawyer. Among the prospective attorneys who studied under him was Ira S. Haseltine.

Political career

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Upham held various political positions and in 1840 he served as a member of the Territorial Council, the upper house in the territory's legislature. He served in the Territorial Legislature from 1840 to 1842.[4][3] In 1843 he was the Milwaukee County Attorney,[6] and in 1846 he served as president of the first Wisconsin Constitutional Convention—though the constitution produced by this convention was not ratified by the voters.[7] Upham served two one-year terms as Mayor of Milwaukee, for 1849 and 1850.[8]

Upham was the Democratic nominee for Governor of Wisconsin in 1851, but fell 507 votes short of Whig candidate Leonard J. Farwell.[9]

In 1858, President James Buchanan appointed Upham United States Attorney for the District of Wisconsin, where he served until his successor was appointed in 1861.[10]

He died in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on July 19, 1877, and is interred in Milwaukee's historic Forest Home Cemetery.[7][11]

Family life

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Upham was the son of Joshua Upham and Phebe (Chamberlain) Upham. He married Elizabeth Smith Jaques October 20, 1836, and they were married until his death.[12] They had five children: John Jaques Upham, Adelaide Upham, Horace Alonzo Upham, Caroline Jaques Upham and Sarah Maria Upham.

Horace's former summer home, now known as Wawbeek-Horace A.J. Upham House, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

The Uphams were descended from Massachusetts Bay colonist John Upham, who arrived in 1680 and settled in Malden.[3]

References

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  1. ^ State Bar Association of Wisconsin (1905). Proceedings of the State Bar Association of Wisconsin. The Association. p. 236.
  2. ^ "A Brief History of Weathersfield" Archived 2019-05-06 at the Wayback Machine Excerpted from Bicentennial Edition Gazetteer of Vermont Heritage 1974 Accessed July 15, 2006.
  3. ^ a b c Atwood, David (1880). Memorial Record of the Fathers of Wisconsin: Containing Sketches of the Lives and Careers of the Members of the Constitutional Conventions of 1846 and 1847-8. D. Atwood. pp. 176–178.
  4. ^ a b Gregory, John. A New and Vastly Improved Edition of the Industrial Resources of Wisconsin. Milwaukee: See-Bote Job Print, 1870, pp. 118-119. Accessed February 3, 2018.
  5. ^ Gilman, Marcus Davis (1897). The Bibliography of Vermont: Or, A List of Books and Pamphlets Relating in Any Way to the State. With Biographical and Other Notes. Free Press association. p. 290.
  6. ^ Gilman, Marcus Davis (1897). The Bibliography of Vermont: Or, A List of Books and Pamphlets Relating in Any Way to the State. With Biographical and Other Notes. Free Press association. p. 290.
  7. ^ a b Forest Home Cemetery. "Self-Guided Historical Tour" Archived 2018-02-04 at the Wayback Machine. Accessed February 3, 2018.
  8. ^ Sentinel Company (1899). The Sentinel Almanac and Book of Facts. Sentinel Company. p. 49.
  9. ^ Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau. State of Wisconsin 1997-1998 Blue Book. Madison: Wisconsin Legislature Joint Committee on Legislative Organization, 1997, p. 680.
  10. ^ Dictionary of Wisconsin History. Accessed July 15, 2006.
  11. ^ "Don Alonzo Joshua Upham (1809 to 1877)". Forest Home Cemetery. Retrieved May 16, 2014.
  12. ^ Wisconsin Historical Society "Cool Breezes: Souvenirs from Near and Far." Accessed July 15, 2006.
[edit]
Party political offices
Preceded by Democratic nominee for Governor of Wisconsin
1851 		Succeeded by
Political offices
Preceded by Mayor of Milwaukee
1849–1850 		Succeeded by
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