Everett F. "Butch" LaFond (January 4, 1901 – March 20, 1961) was an American

commercial fisherman Commercial fishing is the activity of catching fish and other seafood for commercial profit, mostly from wild fisheries. It provides a large quantity of food to many countries around the world, but those who practice it as an industry must often p ...

and politician from

Two Rivers, Wisconsin Two Rivers is a city in Manitowoc County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 11,712 at the 2010 census. It is the birthplace of the ice cream sundae (though other cities, such as Ithaca, New York, make the same claim). The city's adverti ...

.Wisconsin Blue Book, 1950 edition, page 27.

Background

LaFond was born January 4, 1901, son of Henry and Minnie (Krueger) LaFond, in Two Rivers, where his ancestors had been commercial fishers since 1848. He attended St. Luke's

parochial school A parochial school is a private primary or secondary school affiliated with a religious organization, and whose curriculum includes general religious education in addition to secular subjects, such as science, mathematics and language arts. The wor ...

, and Washington High School. He was a

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

veteran, having served in the

Navy A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions. It include ...

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the "Old World" of Afr ...

minesweepers A minesweeper is a small warship designed to remove or detonate naval mines. Using various mechanisms intended to counter the threat posed by naval mines, minesweepers keep waterways clear for safe shipping. History The earliest known usage of ...

. He was discharged in 1919 (he would be active with the American Legion and the

Veterans of Foreign Wars The Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW), formally the Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States, is an organization of US war veterans, who, as military service members fought in wars, campaigns, and expeditions on foreign land, waters, or ...

, serving as commander of the local VFW Post 1248), and went into the family business, the Lafond Fish Company.

Fishing business

LaFond was a vehement and outspoken advocate of the interests of the commercial fishing industry, and frequently came into conflict with

conservation Conservation is the preservation or efficient use of resources, or the conservation of various quantities under physical laws. Conservation may also refer to: Environment and natural resources * Nature conservation, the protection and managem ...

forces in Wisconsin. He was the founding secretary of the Wisconsin Federation of Commercial Fishermen when it was founded in 1927 at Two Rivers. By 1930, in coordination with his father Captain Henry LaFond, he was challenging the new state restrictions on the size of the mesh in

fishing nets A fishing net is a Net (device), net used for fishing. Nets are devices made from fibers woven in a grid-like structure. Some fishing nets are also called fish traps, for example #Fyke nets, fyke nets. Fishing nets are usually meshes formed by ...

, claiming the state's new regulations would harm fisheries in

Lake Michigan Lake Michigan is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is the second-largest of the Great Lakes by volume () and the third-largest by surface area (), after Lake Superior and Lake Huron. To the east, its basin is conjoined with that ...

. He would continue to disagree with state wildlife and conservation forces for decades to come, culminating in several cases where he was involved in violent clashes. In 1935, he got into a fistfight in the hallways of the

Wisconsin State Capitol The Wisconsin State Capitol, located in Madison, Wisconsin, houses both chambers of the Wisconsin legislature along with the Wisconsin Supreme Court and the Office of the Governor. Completed in 1917, the building is the fifth to serve as the W ...

with another commercial fisherman who supported proposed state regulations. One of a series of clashes between groups including LeFond and his family and state conservation watercraft sent two state conservation wardens to the hospital. On December 2, 1947, now-Senator LaFond and two fellow fisherman (one of them Assemblyman

Frank Le Clair Frank or Franks may refer to: People * Frank (given name) * Frank (surname) * Franks (surname) * Franks, a medieval Germanic people * Frank, a term in the Muslim world for all western Europeans, particularly during the Crusades - see Farang ...

) got into another clash with conservation wardens, and were charged with preventing the wardens from seizing evidence of violations of fishing laws. He was convicted of "resisting and obstructing conservation wardens in the performance of their duties," in part because of witness testimony that he told members of a mob gathered on the dock "Come on, boys, let's take 'em!"

Public office

He was a member of the Two Rivers

city council A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, rural counc ...

in 1934. In the mid-1930s, LaFond (who had been regarded as a leading member of the

Wisconsin Progressive Party The Wisconsin Progressive Party (1934–1946) was a political party that briefly held a dominant role in Wisconsin politics. History The Party was the brainchild of Philip La Follette and Robert M. La Follette, Jr., the sons of the famous Wisco ...

in the area, broke with the Progressives over commercial fishing regulations, and became identified with the

populist Populism refers to a range of political stances that emphasize the idea of "the people" and often juxtapose this group against " the elite". It is frequently associated with anti-establishment and anti-political sentiment. The term develope ...

Union Party. After flirting with a run against

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

Philip La Follette Philip Fox La Follette (May 8, 1897August 18, 1965) was an American politician. He was the 27th and 29th Governor of Wisconsin, as well as one of the founders of the Wisconsin Progressive Party. Early life and family La Follette was born in Ma ...

in 1938, he instead ran on the Union ticket for

Wisconsin's 1st State Senate district The 1st Senate District of Wisconsin is one of 33 districts in the Wisconsin State Senate. Located in northeast Wisconsin, the district comprises all of Door and Kewaunee counties, as well as most of northern Manitowoc County, much of south and ...

(

Door A door is a hinged or otherwise movable barrier that allows ingress (entry) into and egress (exit) from an enclosure. The created opening in the wall is a ''doorway'' or ''portal''. A door's essential and primary purpose is to provide security b ...

Kewaunee Kewaunee is a city in Kewaunee County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 2,837 at the 2020 census. Located on the northwestern shore of Lake Michigan, the city is the county seat of Kewaunee County. Its Menominee name is ''Kewāneh'', ...

and Manitowoc counties) to replace retiring Progressive John Cashman. He drew only 1334 votes, to 10,130 for

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

Francis A. Yindra Francis A. Yindra (January 17, 1906 – July 7, 1972) was a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly and the Wisconsin State Senate. Biography Yindra was born on January 17, 1906, in Manitowoc, Wisconsin. He graduated from Lincoln High School, ...

, 8,515 for Progressive George W. Kiel, and 8,413 for

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or again ...

Fred Borcherdt. He served on the Two Rivers

school board A board of education, school committee or school board is the board of directors or board of trustees of a school, local school district or an equivalent institution. The elected council determines the educational policy in a small regional ar ...

from 1940 to 1943, and was a member of the

Manitowoc County Manitowoc County is a county in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census, the population was 81,359. Its county seat is Manitowoc. The county was created in 1836 prior to Wisconsin's statehood and organized in 1848. Manitowoc County ...

Board of Supervisors from 1934 to 1947. In 1946, Cashman (who had returned to the Senate's 1st District) died in office. LaFond, running now as a Republican, won a substantial

plurality Plurality may refer to: Voting * Plurality (voting), or relative majority, when a given candidate receives more votes than any other but still fewer than half of the total ** Plurality voting, system in which each voter votes for one candidate and ...

in a six-way primary election, and was unopposed in the

general election A general election is a political voting election where generally all or most members of a given political body are chosen. These are usually held for a nation, state, or territory's primary legislative body, and are different from by-elections ( ...

. He was assigned to the

standing committee A committee or commission is a body of one or more persons subordinate to a deliberative assembly. A committee is not itself considered to be a form of assembly. Usually, the assembly sends matters into a committee as a way to explore them more ...

highways A highway is any public or private road or other public way on land. It is used for major roads, but also includes other public roads and public tracks. In some areas of the United States, it is used as an equivalent term to controlled-access ...

. At the start of the new legislative session, LaFond announced a plan to take control of net fishing away from the state conservation commission and return it to legislative control.Tribune Madison Bureau. "Seeks Return of Net Fishing Control to State Legislature"
''

La Crosse Tribune The ''La Crosse Tribune'' is a daily newspaper published in La Crosse, Wisconsin, covering the tri-state area of Wisconsin, Iowa, and Minnesota in the United States. The paper was first founded in 1904, following a media scandal in which existing ...

'' January 12, 1947; p. 14, col. 7 via Newspapers.com

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:LaFond, Everett People from Two Rivers, Wisconsin Wisconsin city council members County supervisors in Wisconsin Republican Party Wisconsin state senators Wisconsin Progressives (1924) Wisconsin Union Party politicians Military personnel from Wisconsin United States Navy sailors United States Navy personnel of World War I 1901 births 1961 deaths 20th-century American legislators School board members in Wisconsin 20th-century Wisconsin politicians