William F. Vilas

William Vilas
William Vilas
United States Senator; from Wisconsin
	In office; March 4, 1891 – March 3, 1897
Preceded by	John Coit Spooner
Succeeded by	John Coit Spooner
33rd United States Postmaster General
	In office; March 6, 1885 – January 6, 1888
President	Grover Cleveland
Preceded by	Frank Hatton
Succeeded by	Donald M. Dickinson
17th United States Secretary of the Interior
	In office; January 16, 1888 – March 6, 1889
President	Grover Cleveland; Benjamin Harrison
Preceded by	Lucius Lamar
Succeeded by	John Willock Noble
Personal details
Born	William Freeman Vilas; July 9, 1840; Chelsea, Vermont, U.S.
Died	August 27, 1908 (aged 68); Madison, Wisconsin, U.S.
Political party	Democratic
Spouse	Anna Fox
Education	University of Wisconsin, Madison (BA); Albany Law School (LLB)
Military service
Allegiance	United States; • Union
Branch/service	United States Army; • Union Army
Rank	Lieutenant Colonel
Unit	23rd Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry Regiment
Battles/wars	American Civil War

William Freeman Vilas (July 9, 1840 – August 27, 1908) was a member of the Democratic Party who served in the United States Senate for the state of Wisconsin from 1891 to 1897.^[1] He was a prominent Bourbon Democrat.

Life and career

Vilas was born in Chelsea, Vermont, the son of Esther Greene (Smilie) and Levi Baker Vilas, a politician. Vilas moved to Madison, Wisconsin with his family in 1851. He graduated from the University of Wisconsin in 1858, and from the Albany Law School in 1860. He enlisted in the Union Army during the Civil War and was a captain in the 23rd Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry Regiment and later served as the lieutenant colonel of that regiment.

Following the war, Vilas was a Professor of Law at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, and a regent of the University from 1880 to 1885 and 1898 to 1905. Vilas served as a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly in 1885, until he was appointed the Postmaster General between 1885 and 1888, and as Secretary of the Interior from 1888 to 1889, both under President Grover Cleveland.

He married Anna M. Fox, who had been born in the territory of Wisconsin. Their younger son died in early childhood and their elder daughter, Nellie, died in 1893. The surviving children were Henry and Mary Esther.^[2]

After leaving the cabinet, he led Wisconsin German Americans in the protest against the Bennett Law of 1889 which required schools to only use the English language. From 1891 until 1897 he was a member of the United States Senate, in which, during President Cleveland's second term, he was recognized as the chief defender of the Administration, and he was especially active in securing the repeal of the silver purchase clause of the Sherman Silver Purchase Act. He was unsuccessful in an 1896 reelection bid, having been defeated by Senator John Coit Spooner.

Vilas was a delegate to the Democratic National Convention of 1896, but withdrew after the adoption of the free-silver plank. He then became one of the chief organizers of the National Democratic Party, attended the convention at Indianapolis, and was chairman of its committee on resolutions. He was also the main drafter of the National Democratic Party's platform. Vilas, a favorite of the delegates, refused to run as the party's sacrificial lamb.

He is interred at the Forest Hill Cemetery in Madison, Wisconsin.

Vilas County, Wisconsin is named for William F. Vilas.^[3] Senator Vilas is also the namesake of the towns of Vilas, Colorado^[4] and Vilas, South Dakota.^[5] His childhood home in Madison is located in what is now the Langdon Street Historic District.

References

^ Vilas, William Freeman 1840 - 1908 at www.wisconsinhistory.org
^ Hinman, Ida (1895). The Washington Sketch Book, Supplement. Washington, DC: Hartman & Cadick. p. 11.
^ Vilas County History
^ Dawson, John Frank. Place names in Colorado: why 700 communities were so named, 150 of Spanish or Indian origin. Denver, CO: The J. Frank Dawson Publishing Co. p. 50.
^ Chicago and North Western Railway Company (1908). A History of the Origin of the Place Names Connected with the Chicago & North Western and Chicago, St. Paul, Minneapolis & Omaha Railways. p. 134.

Sources

United States Congress. "William F. Vilas (id: V000099)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. Retrieved on 2008-02-15

External links

Works by or about William F. Vilas at Internet Archive

Political offices
Preceded by Frank Hatton	United States Postmaster General Served under: Grover Cleveland 1885–1888	Succeeded by Donald M. Dickinson
Preceded by Lucius Q.C. Lamar	U.S. Secretary of the Interior Served under: Grover Cleveland 1888–1889	Succeeded by John W. Noble
U.S. Senate
Preceded by John C. Spooner	Senator from Wisconsin (Class 3) 1891–1897 with Philetus Sawyer (1891–1893) John L. Mitchell (1893–1897)	Succeeded by John C. Spooner

[1] Vilas, William Freeman 1840 - 1908 at www.wisconsinhistory.org

[2] Hinman, Ida (1895). The Washington Sketch Book, Supplement. Washington, DC: Hartman & Cadick. p. 11.

[3] Vilas County History

[4] Dawson, John Frank. Place names in Colorado: why 700 communities were so named, 150 of Spanish or Indian origin. Denver, CO: The J. Frank Dawson Publishing Co. p. 50.

[5] Chicago and North Western Railway Company (1908). A History of the Origin of the Place Names Connected with the Chicago & North Western and Chicago, St. Paul, Minneapolis & Omaha Railways. p. 134.

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v t e United States Postmasters General
Confederal	Franklin Bache Hazard
Federal	Osgood Pickering Habersham G. Granger Meigs McLean
Cabinet level Post Office Department	Barry Kendall Niles F. Granger Wickliffe Johnson Collamer Hall Hubbard Campbell A. Brown Holt King Blair Dennison Randall Creswell Marshall Jewell Tyner Key Maynard James Howe Gresham Hatton Vilas Dickinson Wanamaker Bissell Wilson Gary Smith Payne Wynne Cortelyou Meyer Hitchcock Burleson Hays Work New W. Brown Farley Walker Hannegan Donaldson Summerfield Day Gronouski O'Brien Watson Blount
U.S. Postal Service	Blount Klassen Bailar Bolger Carlin Casey Tisch Frank Runyon Henderson Potter Donahoe Brennan DeJoy

v t e United States senators from Wisconsin
Class 1	Dodge Doolittle Carpenter Cameron Sawyer Mitchell Quarles La Follette Sr. La Follette Jr. McCarthy Proxmire Kohl Baldwin
Class 3	Walker Durkee Howe Carpenter Cameron Spooner Vilas Spooner Stephenson Husting Lenroot Blaine Duffy Wiley Nelson Kasten Feingold Johnson

v t e Chairmen of the United States Senate Committee on Post Office and Civil Service
Post Office and Post Roads (1816–1947)	Wilson Stokes Lanman Johnson Bibb Grundy Robinson Henderson Merrick Niles Rusk Yulee Gwin Collamer Dixon Ramsey Hamlin Ferry Maxey Ferry Hill Conger Sawyer Vilas Wolcott Mason Penrose Bourne Bankhead Townsend Sterling Moses Phipps Oddie McKellar Chávez
Civil Service and Retrenchment (1873–1921)	Wright Clayton Blaine Teller Butler Hawley Chace Wolcott Call Jarvis Pritchard Baker Perkins Cummins Pomerene McKellar Sterling
Civil Service (1921–1947)	Sterling Stanfield Couzens Dale Bulow Downey
Post Office and Civil Service (1947–1977)	Langer Johnston Carlson Johnston Monroney McGee

v t e Cabinet of President Grover Cleveland (1885–1889)
Secretary of State	Thomas F. Bayard (1885–1889)
Secretary of the Treasury	Daniel Manning (1885–1887) Charles S. Fairchild (1887–1889)
Secretary of War	William Crowninshield Endicott (1885–1889)
Attorney General	Augustus Hill Garland (1885–1889)
Postmaster General	William F. Vilas (1885–1888) Donald M. Dickinson (1888–1889)
Secretary of the Navy	William Collins Whitney (1885–1889)
Secretary of the Interior	Lucius Quintus Cincinnatus Lamar (1885–1888) William F. Vilas (1888–1889)
Secretary of Agriculture	Norman Jay Coleman (1889)

Authority control databases
International	FAST ISNI VIAF WorldCat
National	Germany Israel United States Czech Republic
People	US Congress
Other	NARA SNAC

Life and career

See also

References

Sources

External links