Frank Willis Wheeler (March 2, 1853 – August 9, 1921) was a

shipbuilder Shipbuilding is the construction of ships and other Watercraft, floating vessels. In modern times, it normally takes place in a specialized facility known as a shipyard. Shipbuilders, also called shipwrights, follow a specialized occupation th ...

and politician from the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...

Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

Biography

Wheeler was born in

Chaumont, New York Chaumont ( ) is a village in Jefferson County, New York, United States. Its population was 624 at the 2010 census. The village is named for Jacques-Donatien Le Ray de Chaumont, son of Benjamin Franklin's landlord and friend at Passy in France ...

attended the

common school A common school was a public school in the United States during the 19th century. Horace Mann (1796–1859) was a strong advocate for public education and the common school. In 1837, the state of Massachusetts appointed Mann as the first secretar ...

s. In 1864, he moved with his parents to

East Saginaw, Michigan East Saginaw was a city in Saginaw County in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is now part of the city of Saginaw. History Much of the area that later became East Saginaw was granted by treaty to James Reilly, the Métis son of fur trader Stephen V. ...

and attended the Saginaw High School and the Ypsilanti State Normal School (now (

Eastern Michigan University Eastern Michigan University (EMU, EMich, Eastern Michigan or simply Eastern) is a public university, public research university in Ypsilanti, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1849 as the Michigan State Normal School, it was the fourth normal ...

). He engaged in boatbuilding and moved to West Bay City in 1876. He became master of the Saginaw River Tug Association and engaged in shipbuilding at the Bay Cities for many years. In 1888, Wheeler was the Republican candidate for the

U.S. House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...

from

Michigan's 10th congressional district Michigan's 10th congressional district is a United States congressional district in the Lower Peninsula of Michigan. It consists of southern Macomb County, Rochester and Rochester Hills in Oakland County. District boundaries were redrawn i ...

and defeated incumbent

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 (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...

Spencer O. Fisher Spencer Oliver Fisher (February 3, 1843 – June 1, 1919), was a politician from the U.S. state of Michigan. Fisher was born in Camden, Michigan, where he attended the public schools. He also attended Albion College and Hillsdale College. H ...

to be elected to the 51st Congress. Wheeler served from March 4, 1889 to March 3, 1891 and was not a candidate for reelection in 1890. After leaving Congress, Wheeler engaged in his former pursuits until 1899, when he moved to

Detroit Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...

. He returned to Saginaw in 1917 and organized the Saginaw Shipbuilding Co. and was engaged in building boats for the United States Government. Frank W. Wheeler died in Saginaw and is interred in Elm Lawn Cemetery,

Bay City, Michigan Bay City is a city in Bay County, Michigan, United States, and its county seat. The population was 32,661 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. The city is located just upriver from the Saginaw Bay on the Saginaw River. It is the princip ...

References

Frank W. Wheeler
at ''The Political Graveyard'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Wheeler, Frank Willis 1853 births 1921 deaths Eastern Michigan University alumni People from Jefferson County, New York People from Bay City, Michigan People from Saginaw, Michigan Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Michigan 19th-century members of the United States House of Representatives