Colonel William A. Phillips

Thaddeus Coleman Pound (December 6, 1832[notes 1] – November 20[2] or 21,[3] 1914) was an American businessman from Wisconsin who served in both houses of the Wisconsin legislature, as the tenth Lieutenant Governor of Wisconsin, and as a U.S. Representative (1877–1883).[4] His brother was Albert Pound, who also served in the Wisconsin Assembly.[5] He was the grandfather of poet Ezra Pound.[6]

Life and career

Born in Elk Township, Warren County, Pennsylvania, Pound moved with his parents, Judith (Coleman) and Elijah Pound, to Monroe County, New York in 1838 and then to the city of Rochester, New York, afterwards moving to what is now Rock County, Wisconsin.[citation needed] He became a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly and the Wisconsin State Senate. Pound was elected as Lieutenant Governor of Wisconsin serving under Governor Lucius Fairchild from January 3, 1870 until January 1, 1872.

In 1876, Pound was elected as a Republican to the Forty-fifth Congress, replacing Democrat George W. Cate in representing Wisconsin's 8th congressional district. He was reelected to the Forty-sixth and Forty-seventh Congresses (March 4, 1877 – March 3, 1883), and was succeeded in the 48th Congress by fellow Republican William T. Price.

During his time as a representative, Pound was a prominent businessman in Wisconsin. He was president of the Chippewa Falls and Western Railway and the St. Paul Eastern Grand Trunk Railway (both predecessors of the Soo Line Railroad). He also served as president of the Chippewa Spring Water Company (a company still in business as of 2008) as well as the Union Lumber Company, which was reorganized as the Chippewa Falls Lumber and Boom Company in 1879.[3]

Death and legacy

Pound died in Chicago, Illinois on November 20[2] or 21,[3] 1914, aged 81. The village of Pound, Wisconsin, is named in his honor.[3]

Notes

  1. ^ His birthdate, which is actually in 1832, is often given as 1833 (probably as a result of subtracting his age from his death date, when he was born in December, resulting in error) but 1832 is correct, as confirmed by his death certificate.[1]

References

  1. ^ Wilhelm, J. J. (1985). The American Roots of Ezra Pound. New York & London: Garland Publishing, Inc. p. 13. ISBN 0-8240-7500-5.
  2. ^ a b "Thaddeus C. Pound Dead". Oshkosh Daily Northwestern. November 21, 1914. p. 7. Retrieved April 21, 2016 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  3. ^ a b c d Easton, Larry E. (Summer 2007). "The Wisconsin Central in Eau Claire". The Soo. 29 (3). The Soo Line Historical and Technical Society: 9–43.
  4. ^ "Thaddeus C. Pound, 1870-1872". Office of the Lieutenant Governor, Wisconsin. Retrieved 2008-03-21.
  5. ^ The United States Biographical Dictionary and Portrait Gallery of Eminent and Self-made Men: Wisconsin Volume, Volume 1, American Biographical Publishing Company: 1877, Biographical Sketch of Albert Pound, pp. 256-257
  6. ^ Profile, jstor.org. Accessed March 18, 2024.

External links

Political offices
Preceded by Lieutenant Governor of Wisconsin
January 3, 1870–January 1, 1872
Succeeded by
U.S. House of Representatives
Preceded by Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Wisconsin's 8th congressional district

March 4, 1877 - March 3, 1883
Succeeded by