Cadwallader C. Washburn | |
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| 11th Governor of Wisconsin | |
| In office January 1, 1872 – January 5, 1874 | |
| Lieutenant | Milton Pettit |
| Preceded by | Lucius Fairchild |
| Succeeded by | William Robert Taylor |
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromWisconsin's6th district | |
| In office March 4, 1867 – March 3, 1871 | |
| Preceded by | Walter D. McIndoe |
| Succeeded by | Jeremiah McLain Rusk |
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromWisconsin's2nd district | |
| In office March 4, 1855 – March 3, 1861 | |
| Preceded by | Ben C. Eastman |
| Succeeded by | Luther Hanchett |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Cadwallader Colden Washburn (1818-04-22)April 22, 1818 Livermore, Massachusetts, U.S. (now Livermore, Maine) |
| Died | May 14, 1882(1882-05-14) (aged 64) Eureka Springs, Arkansas, U.S. |
| Resting place | Oak Grove Cemetery,La Crosse, Wisconsin |
| Party | Republican |
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| Parents |
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| Profession | lawyer, politician |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  United States |
| Branch/service |  United States ArmyUnion Army |
| Years of service | 1862–1865 |
| Rank |  Major General |
| Commands | |
| Battles/wars | American Civil War |
Cadwallader Colden Washburn (April 22, 1818 – May 14, 1882) was an American businessman, politician, and soldier who founded amill that later becameGeneral Mills. A member of theWashburn family ofMaine, he was a U.S. representative and governor ofWisconsin, and served as a general in theUnion Army during theAmerican Civil War.
Washburn was born inLivermore (in modern-dayMaine, then a part ofMassachusetts),[1] the son of Martha (née Benjamin) andIsrael Washburn Sr. He was one of seven brothers, who includedIsrael Washburn Jr.,Elihu B. Washburne,William D. Washburn, andCharles Ames Washburn. Washburn attended school inWiscasset, Maine, and later taught there in 1838–1839.[2] In 1839 he moved toDavenport,Iowa Territory, where he taught school, worked in a store, and worked as a surveyor. Inspired by his brother Elihu who set up a legal practice in nearbyGalena, Illinois, he studied law. In 1842 he was admitted to theWisconsin bar and moved toMineral Point,Iowa County,Wisconsin Territory, where he began a legal practice.[1][3]
In 1844, Washburn formed a partnership with land agentCyrus Woodman. Together the two men developed a number of companies, such as the Wisconsin Mining Company. The most successful business venture undertaken by the men was land acquisition. In May 1855 they established Washburn's and Woodman's Mineral Point Bank. Washburn and Woodman dissolved their partnership amicably in 1855.
In 1856, theMinneapolis Mill Company was chartered by the Minnesota territorial legislature. Among the incorporators were Washburn's cousinDorilus Morrison, andRobert Smith, an Illinois congressman who had acquired the rights to the water power at the west side ofSt. Anthony Falls inMinneapolis. The company struggled initially, and several of the early investors sold out. Washburn bought in and eventually became president. His brother William moved to Minneapolis about that time, and actively managed the company. The company built a dam, a canal and a complex set of water transfer tunnels which were then leased, along with land that the company owned at the foot of the falls, to a variety of mills – cotton mills, woolen mills, sawmills and grist/flour mills. Eventually the work and investment of the two brothers paid off well, and they used their new-found capital to invest in mills themselves.[4]
In 1853, Washburn built a mill at Waubeck on theChippewa River.[5] In 1859 Washburn moved toLa Crosse, Wisconsin, and after his war time service, he engaged in a project to clear theBlack River to make it easier to drive logs. In 1871 he formed the La Crosse Lumber Company, which eventually sawed 20,000,000board feet of lumber annually. He also had the largest shingle mill in the upper Mississippi valley.[6]
In 1866, he built his own Washburn "B" Mill, which was thought at the time to be too large to ever turn a profit. However, he succeeded and in 1874 built an even largerWashburn "A" Mill. The original "A" mill complex was destroyed, along with several nearby buildings, in a flour explosion in 1878, but was later rebuilt.[7] In 1877, Washburn teamed withJohn Crosby to form the Washburn-Crosby Company. At the same time, Washburn sent William Hood Dunwoody to England to open that market for spring wheat.[8] Successful, Dunwoody became a silent partner and went on to become one of the wealthiest millers in the world. Dunwoody became a philanthropist endowing hospitals, educational facilities which becameDunwoody College of Technology, and a charitable home which ultimately becameDunwoody Village.[citation needed] The corporation eventually became known asGeneral Mills.[8]
In 1854, Washburn ran for Congress as aRepublican, later serving three terms as part of the34th,35th and36th United States Congresses representingWisconsin's 2nd congressional district, from March 4, 1855, to March 3, 1861. During the 34th Congress, he and his brothers voted forNathaniel Banks during the protracted1855-56 House of Representatives Speaker election.[9] In his last term Washburn served as chairman of theCommittee on Private Land Claims. He declined to run again in 1860.
The Washburn family had always been strongly opposed to slavery. Washburn moved toLa Crosse, Wisconsin, in 1861 but returned to Washington, D.C., later that year as a delegate in thepeace convention that was held in an attempt to prevent theAmerican Civil War.[1] He served in the Union Army during the Civil War, becoming colonel of the2nd Wisconsin Volunteer Cavalry, on February 6, 1862; brigadier general of Volunteers on July 16, 1862; and major general on November 29, 1862. Washburn had the honor of having his appointment document signed by PresidentAbraham Lincoln. At one pointUlysses S. Grant called Washburn "one of the best administrative officers we have."[10] He commanded the cavalry of the XIII Corps in the opening stages ofUlysses S. Grant'sVicksburg campaign.[11] Once siege operations had begun against the city of Vicksburg and Grant called for all available forces, Washburn led a detachment of theXVI Corps during thesiege of Vicksburg. He commanded the 1st Division in theXIII Corps in Nathanial P. Banks' operations along the Texas Coast leading the expeditionagainst Fort Esperanza in November 1863.
For the rest of the war he served in administrative capacities in Mississippi and Tennessee. While commanding Union forces in Memphis, he was the target of an unsuccessful raid led byNathan B. Forrest to kidnap him and other Union generals.[12] He left the Union Army on May 25, 1865.
After the conclusion of the war, Washburn returned to his home in La Crosse, where he was elected again for two terms in the House of Representatives. This time he representedWisconsin's 6th congressional district at the40th and41st Congresses from March 4, 1867, to March 3, 1871, where he was chairman of theCommittee on Expenditures on Public Buildings in the first term. He declined to run in 1870.[1]
In 1871, he was urged to run forGovernor of Wisconsin againstJames R. Doolittle. Washburn won the election and was inaugurated governor of Wisconsin on the first Monday in January 1872 and served from 1872 to 1874. He ran unsuccessfully for reelection in 1873.[13]
A year later, he purchased the Edgewood Villa estate from Samuel Marshall, whereEdgewood College sits today.[14]
Shortly after his birth in 1818, Washburn was diagnosed withepilepsy.
On January 1, 1849, New Years Day, he married Jeanette Garr, daughter of Andrew Sheffield Garr and Elizabeth Sinclair Garr.[15] Both were 30-years-old at the time. The following year, the couple brought their first daughter, Jeanette (Nettie) Garr Washburn, into the world in 1850. After giving birth to Nettie her mother, Jeanette, started showing signs of mental illness. After Frances (Fanny) was born two years later, in 1852, Washburn made arrangements for his wife's care at the Bloomingdale Asylum. Later she was transferred to an institution inBrookline, Massachusetts, where she remained until her death at the age of 90 in 1909.[16]
Washburn donated the Edgewood Villa estate to theSinsinawa Dominican Sisters ofMadison, Wisconsin, in 1881.[17] The Edgewood Villa later becameEdgewood College[18] andEdgewood High School.[19] Nearly a year later, on May 14, 1882,[20] he died inEureka Springs, Arkansas, while on a visit to the springs for his health.[1][21] His body was interred in Oak Grove Cemetery[22] inLa Crosse, Wisconsin.
After his death, his estate was valued at an estimated two to three million dollars.[1][23] In his will, Cadwallader left money to his daughter and other members of his family. A large bequest was made to the city of La Crosse; land was bought and a building for theLa Crosse Public Library erected.[24] However, the largest portion was set aside to pay for the care of his wife, Jeanette.[16]
The city ofWashburn inBayfield County, Wisconsin, was named after Cadwallader Washburn,[25] as wereWashburn County in northern Wisconsin[26] and the city ofWashburn, North Dakota,[27] As well as, Washburn Center for Children, andWashburn High School in Minneapolis.[citation needed]Washburn Observatory, at theUniversity of Wisconsin–Madison, was also named for Washburn, who as governor, allocated the money for its construction.[28]La Crosse, Wisconsin, where Washburn is laid to rest at his memorial in the Oak Grove Cemetery, has a downtown neighborhood and park named for the former governor and long time resident of the city.
Media related toCadwallader Colden Washburn at Wikimedia Commons| Party political offices | ||
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| Preceded by | Republican nominee forGovernor of Wisconsin 1871,1873 | Succeeded by |
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
| Preceded by | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromWisconsin's 2nd congressional district March 4, 1855 – March 3, 1861 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromWisconsin's 6th congressional district March 4, 1867 – March 3, 1871 | Succeeded by |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Governor of Wisconsin 1872 – 1874 | Succeeded by |
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