Ezra Thompson Sprague (June 23, 1833 – December 30, 1888) was an American lawyer, judge, and Republican politician. He was a

Wisconsin circuit court The Wisconsin circuit courts are the general trial courts in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. There are currently 69 circuits in the state, divided into 9 judicial administrative districts. Circuit court judges hear and decide both civil and crimina ...

judge in 1870 and 1871. He also served as a Union Army officer in the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

and received an honorary brevet to brigadier general. His name was often abbreviated as .

Early life

Ezra Sprague was born in

Windham, Connecticut Windham ( ) is a town in Windham County, Connecticut, United States. It contains the former city of Willimantic, Connecticut, Willimantic as well as the communities of Windham Center, Connecticut, Windham Center, North Windham, and South Windha ...

, in June 1833. He was raised and educated there and attended the West Killingly Academy in

Danielson, Connecticut Danielson is a borough in the town of Killingly in Windham County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 4,155 at the 2020 census. History Danielson was originally named "Danielsonville" for Gen. James Danielson, the builder of th ...

. He then attended

Amherst College Amherst College ( ) is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Amherst, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1821 as an attempt to relocate Williams College by its then-president Zepha ...

, where he graduated in 1855. After graduation, he returned to West Killingly Academy as a teacher for two terms. He moved to

Madison, Wisconsin Madison is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. It is the List of municipalities in Wisconsin by population, second-most populous city in the state, with a population of 269,840 at the 2020 Uni ...

, in 1856 and began studying law in the offices of

George Baldwin Smith George Baldwin Smith (May 22, 1823September 18, 1879) was an American lawyer and Democratic politician. He was the 4th Attorney General of Wisconsin, and the 3rd and 16th mayor of Madison, Wisconsin.Elisha W. Keyes. He was admitted to the bar in 1857, and began practicing law in partnership with Jairus H. Carpenter under the firm name Carpenter & Sprague. This partnership continued until Sprague resigned to join the Union Army.

Civil War service

At the outbreak of the

, Sprague was one of the first to volunteer for service in the Union Army. He was enrolled as a private in Company K of the

1st Wisconsin Infantry Regiment The 1st Wisconsin Infantry Regiment was a volunteer infantry regiment in the Union Army during the American Civil War. Service The original 1st Regiment Wisconsin was raised at Milwaukee, Wisconsin on April 16, 1861, and mustered into Federa ...

on April 17, 1861, just days after the attack on Fort Sumter. The 1st Wisconsin Infantry Regiment went east to Pennsylvania and Virginia, and Sprague was promoted to corporal and then sergeant. They participated in the

Battle of Hoke's Run The Battle of Hoke's Run, also known as the Battle of Falling Waters or Battle of Hainesville, took place on July 2, 1861, in Berkeley County, West Virginia, Berkeley County, Virginia (now West Virginia) as part of the Manassas campaign of the ...

, but because these early enlistments were only established for three-month terms, the regiment expired in August 1861. Sprague, like many of the first regiment, re-enlisted for a three-year term. He was then commissioned

adjutant Adjutant is a military appointment given to an Officer (armed forces), officer who assists the commanding officer with unit administration, mostly the management of “human resources” in an army unit. The term is used in French-speaking armed ...

of the

8th Wisconsin Infantry Regiment The 8th Wisconsin Infantry Regiment was a volunteer infantry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War. The 8th Wisconsin's military mascot was Old Abe, a bald eagle that accompanied the regiment into battle. Servic ...

, under colonel Robert C. Murphy. The 8th Wisconsin Infantry mustered into federal service in September 1861, and was assigned to the western theater. Shortly after arriving at

St. Louis St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a populatio ...

, they began participating in the campaign to gain control of Missouri under General John Pope. Through 1862, they engaged in all the battles of northern Mississippi around Iuka and

Corinth Corinth ( ; , ) is a municipality in Corinthia in Greece. The successor to the ancient Corinth, ancient city of Corinth, it is a former municipality in Corinthia, Peloponnese (region), Peloponnese, which is located in south-central Greece. Sin ...

, and then joined Grant's

Vicksburg Campaign The Vicksburg campaigns were a series of maneuvers and battles in the Western Theater of the American Civil War directed against Vicksburg, Mississippi, a fortress city that dominated the last Confederate-controlled section of the Mississippi ...

. In the year after Vicksburg, they participated in a series of campaigns to solidify Union control over the Mississippi River delta, including a campaign into Texas, the

Meridian campaign The Meridian campaign or Meridian expedition took place from February 3 – March 6, 1864, from Vicksburg, Mississippi to Meridian, Mississippi, by the Union Army of the Tennessee, led by Maj. Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman. Sherman captured ...

into central Mississippi, and the Red River campaign through Louisiana. During these years, as Sprague was serving as adjutant to the colonel of the 8th Wisconsin Infantry, he also worked as an assistant adjutant on the division staff. In the Summer of 1864, Sprague returned to

, to accept promotion to

colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

and appointment as commander of the 42nd Wisconsin Infantry Regiment. He oversaw the preparation of the regiment at

Camp Randall Camp Randall was a United States Army base in Madison, Wisconsin, the largest staging point for Wisconsin troops entering the American Civil War. At this camp fresh volunteers received quick training before heading off to join the Union Army. Al ...

, and mustered into federal service on September 7, 1864. The regiment arrived at

Cairo, Illinois Cairo ( , sometimes ) is the southernmost city in the U.S. state of Illinois and the county seat of Alexander County, Illinois, Alexander County. A river city, Cairo has the lowest elevation of any location in Illinois and is the only Illinoi ...

, on September 22, and were assigned to guard duty in southern Illinois. Sprague was detached from the regiment and assigned post commander at Cairo for the remainder of the war. The regiment mustered out on June 20, 1865. He was subsequently granted an honorary brevet to brigadier general; he was nominated for the brevet on January 13, 1866, the U.S. Senate confirmed the brevet on March 12, and it had an effective date of June 20, 1865.

Postbellum years

At the close of the war, Sprague moved to

De Pere, Wisconsin De Pere ( ) is a city in Brown County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 25,410 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. It is part of the Green Bay metropolitan area. History When the first European, Jean Nicolet, visited the p ...

, and resumed his legal career. In 1870, an act of the legislature changed the

Wisconsin circuit courts The Wisconsin circuit courts are the general trial courts in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. There are currently 69 circuits in the state, divided into 9 judicial administrative districts. Circuit court judges hear and decide both civil and crimina ...

circuit boundaries, such that the incumbent circuit judge for the 10th circuit no longer resided within the 10th circuit. While the Governor was absent, in April 1870, the Lieutenant Governor Thaddeus C. Pound appointed Sprague to serve as circuit judge for the 10th circuit. Sprague chose not to run for a full term the following year, and was succeeded in April 1871 by Eleazor H. Ellis, who won that election. That Fall, however, Sprague accepted the Republican nomination for

Wisconsin Senate The Wisconsin Senate is the upper house of the Wisconsin State Legislature. Together with the Wisconsin State Assembly they constitute the legislative branch of the state of Wisconsin. The powers of the Wisconsin Senate are modeled after those ...

in the 2nd Senate district. The 2nd district, comprising Brown, Kewaunee, and Door counties, was at that time one of the safest Democratic seats in the State Senate. Nevertheless, Sprague ran a good race and came within 200 votes of defeating his Democratic opponent,

Myron P. Lindsley Myron Plato Lindsley (September 18, 1825January 16, 1883) was an American attorney and Democratic politician. He was the 10th Mayor of Green Bay, Wisconsin, and represented Green Bay for two years in the Wisconsin State Senate. Biography Lind ...

. Sprague suffered from a bout of poor health after the 1871 election, and moved west to

Salt Lake City Salt Lake City, often shortened to Salt Lake or SLC, is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Utah. It is the county seat of Salt Lake County, the most populous county in the state. The city is the core of the Salt Lake Ci ...

Utah Territory The Territory of Utah was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from September 9, 1850, until January 4, 1896, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Utah, the 45th st ...

, hoping that his health would benefit from the mild climate. In Utah he resumed his law practice and served several concurrent roles for the federal government in the territory, including

Assistant United States Attorney An assistant United States attorney (AUSA) is an official career civil service position in the U.S. Department of Justice composed of lawyers working under the U.S. attorney of each U.S. federal judicial district. They represent the federal gov ...

, bankruptcy commissioner, and clerk of the Utah Territory

Supreme Court In most legal jurisdictions, a supreme court, also known as a court of last resort, apex court, high (or final) court of appeal, and court of final appeal, is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

. He suffered from poor health in the late 1880s. In December 1888, he contracted a severe cold and died at his home in Salt Lake City on the night of December 30, 1888.

Personal life and family

Ezra Sprague was one of three children born to William Borden Sprague and his second wife, Joanna (''née'' Hutchins). The Spragues were part of the

Sprague family The Sprague family is an American Pilgrim, business, political, and society family. Francis Sprague and his daughters Anne Sprague and Mercy Sprague were the first members of the Sprague family to arrive in America. They arrived at Plymouth Col ...

from the branch descended from Ralph Sprague, who came to America with the Puritan migration in the 1620s. Ezra Sprague married Helen A. Crandall of

, on November 20, 1860. They had at least five children together, though one daughter died in childhood.

Electoral history

Wisconsin Senate (1871)

, colspan="6" style="text-align:center;background-color: #e9e9e9;", General Election, November 3, 1871

References

, - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Sprague, Ezra T. 1833 births 1888 deaths People from Windham, Connecticut Lawyers from Madison, Wisconsin People from De Pere, Wisconsin Lawyers from Salt Lake City Wisconsin state court judges People of Wisconsin in the American Civil War Union army generals