William F. Vilas | |
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| United States Senator fromWisconsin | |
| In office March 4, 1891 – March 3, 1897 | |
| Preceded by | John Coit Spooner |
| Succeeded by | John Coit Spooner |
| 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 |
| 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 |
| Member of theWisconsin State Assembly from theDane 1st district | |
| In office January 5, 1885 – March 9, 1885 | |
| Preceded by | Dexter Curtis |
| Succeeded by | Michael J. Cantwell |
| Personal details | |
| Born | William Freeman Vilas (1840-07-09)July 9, 1840 Chelsea, Vermont, U.S. |
| Died | August 27, 1908(1908-08-27) (aged 68) Madison, Wisconsin, U.S. |
| Resting place | Forest Hill Cemetery Madison, Wisconsin, U.S. |
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| Education | University of Wisconsin, Madison (BA) Albany Law School (LLB) |
| Signature | .png) |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | United States |
| Branch/service | United States Volunteers Union Army |
| Years of service | 1862–1863 |
| Rank | Lieutenant Colonel, USV |
| Unit | 23rd Reg. Wis. Vol. Infantry |
| Battles/wars | |
William Freeman Vilas (July 9, 1840 – August 27, 1908) was an American lawyer, politician, andUnited States Senator. In the U.S. Senate, he represented the state ofWisconsin for one term, from 1891 to 1897.[1] As a prominentBourbon Democrat, he was also a member of the cabinet ofU.S. PresidentGrover Cleveland, serving as the 33rdPostmaster General and the 17thSecretary of the Interior.
He was a major donor to theUniversity of Wisconsin, leaving $30,000,000 to the school at his death in 1908. He is the namesake of Vilas Hall on theUniversity of Wisconsin–Madison campus, as well asVilas County, Wisconsin, and the towns ofVilas, Colorado, andVilas, South Dakota.[2]
Vilas was born inChelsea, Vermont, the son of Esther Greene (Smilie) andLevi Baker Vilas, a politician. His grandfather was Nathan Smilie, a Democratic politicianwho ran for Governor of Vermont in 1839.[3] Vilas moved toMadison, Wisconsin, with his family in 1851. He graduated from theUniversity of Wisconsin in 1858, and from theAlbany Law School in 1860.
He enlisted in theUnion Army during theCivil War and was acaptain in the23rd Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry Regiment and later served as thelieutenant colonel of thatregiment.[4]
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 theWisconsin State Assembly in 1885, until he was appointed thepostmaster general between 1885 and 1888, and assecretary of the interior from 1888 to 1889, both under PresidentGrover Cleveland.[4]
After leaving thecabinet, he ledWisconsinGerman Americans in the protest against theBennett Law of 1889 which required schools to only use theEnglish 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 theSherman Silver Purchase Act.[5] He was unsuccessful in an 1896 reelection bid, having been defeated by SenatorJohn Coit Spooner, who held the seat before him and whom Vilas had defeated for reelection in 1890.
Vilas was a delegate to the Democratic National Convention of1896, but withdrew after the adoption of thefree-silver plank. He then became one of the chief organizers of theNational Democratic Party, attended the convention at Indianapolis, and was chairman of its committee on resolutions.[5] 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.
Back in Wisconsin, he was from 1897 to 1903 a member of the commission that had charge of the erection of the State Historical Library at Madison, and from 1906 to 1908 of the commission for the construction of the newstate capitol.[5]
_and_Levi_Baker_Vilas_(1811%25E2%2580%25931879)_at_Forest_Hill_Cemetery%2c_Madison%2c_WI.jpg)
He married Anna M. Fox, who had been born in the territory of Wisconsin. Their younger son, Levi Baker, died in early childhood and their elder daughter, Nellie, died in 1893. Their older son, Henry, died in 1899 at the age of 27 from complications related todiabetes.
William and Anna were survived by their younger daughter Mary Esther.[6]He is interred at theForest Hill Cemetery inMadison, Wisconsin.[7]
Vilas County, Wisconsin, is named for William F. Vilas.[8] Senator Vilas is also the namesake of the towns ofVilas, Colorado[9] andVilas, South Dakota.[10] His childhood home in Madison is located in what is now theLangdon Street Historic District. His family donated land to the city of Madison to build a public park, which later became a part of theHenry Vilas Zoo.
One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Vilas, William Freeman".Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 28 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. pp. 66–67.
This article incorporates text from this source, which is in thepublic domain.
| Military offices | ||
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| Preceded by | Command of the23rd Wisconsin Infantry Regiment June 5, 1863 – August 25, 1863 | Succeeded by Lt. Col. Edgar P. Hill |
| Wisconsin State Assembly | ||
| Preceded by | Member of theWisconsin State Assemblyfrom theDane 1st district January 5, 1885 – March 9, 1885 | Succeeded by |
| U.S. Senate | ||
| Preceded by | United States Senator (Class 3) from Wisconsin 1891–1897 withPhiletus Sawyer (1891–1893) John L. Mitchell (1893–1897) | Succeeded by |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by | United States Postmaster General Served under:Grover Cleveland 1885–1888 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | U.S. Secretary of the Interior Served under:Grover Cleveland 1888–1889 | Succeeded by |
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