Gabriel Zophy (April 17, 1869 – September 9, 1947) was an American

carpenter Carpentry is a skilled trade and a craft in which the primary work performed is the cutting, shaping and installation of building materials during the construction of buildings, ships, timber bridges, concrete formwork, etc. Carpenter ...

building contractor A contractor (North American English) or builder (British English), is responsible for the day-to-day oversight of a construction site, management of vendors and trades, and the communication of information to all involved parties throughout the c ...

, and

Socialist Socialism is an economic ideology, economic and political philosophy encompassing diverse Economic system, economic and social systems characterised by social ownership of the means of production, as opposed to private ownership. It describes ...

from

West Allis West Allis is a city in Milwaukee County, Wisconsin, United States. A suburb of Milwaukee, it is part of the Milwaukee metropolitan area. The population was 60,325 at the 2020 census, making it the eleventh-most populous city in Wisconsin. His ...

who served one term (1911–1914) as a member of the

Wisconsin State 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 o ...

representing the

Milwaukee County Milwaukee County () is a county located in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. At the 2020 census, the population was 939,489, down from 947,735 in 2010. It is both the most populous and most densely populated county in Wisconsin, containing about 1 ...

-based 7th Senate district (14th and 17th

ward Ward may refer to: Division or unit * Hospital ward, a hospital division, floor, or room set aside for a particular class or group of patients, for example the psychiatric ward * Prison ward, a division of a penal institution such as a pris ...

s of the city of

Milwaukee Milwaukee is the List of cities in Wisconsin, most populous city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Located on the western shore of Lake Michigan, it is the List of United States cities by population, 31st-most populous city in the United States ...

; the towns of

Franklin Franklin may refer to: People and characters * Franklin (given name), including list of people and characters with the name * Franklin (surname), including list of people and characters with the name * Franklin (class), a member of a historic ...

Greenfield Greenfield or Greenfields may refer to: Places Canada * Greenfield, Edmonton, Alberta, a neighbourhood * Greenfield, Colchester County, Nova Scotia * Greenfield, Hants County, Nova Scotia * Greenfield, Kings County, Nova Scotia * Greenfield, Q ...

Lake A lake is often a naturally occurring, relatively large and fixed body of water on or near the Earth's surface. It is localized in a basin or interconnected basins surrounded by dry land. Lakes lie completely on land and are separate from ...

, Oak Creek and

Wauwatosa Wauwatosa ( ; colloquially Tosa) is a city in Milwaukee County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 48,387 at the 2020 census. Wauwatosa is a suburb located immediately west of Milwaukee and is part of the Milwaukee metropolitan area. It ...

); cities of

South Milwaukee South Milwaukee is a city in Milwaukee County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 20,795 at the 2020 census. Situated on the western shore of Lake Michigan, South Milwaukee developed as a streetcar suburb located south of Milwaukee. ...

, West Allis and Cudahy and the village of West Milwaukee).

Background

Zophy was born on April 17, 1869, in Schwanden,

Glarus Glarus (; ; ; ; ) is the capital of the canton of Glarus in Switzerland. Since 1 January 2011, the municipality of Glarus incorporates the former municipalities of Ennenda, Netstal and Riedern.Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

. He came to the United States with his parents in 1870 to

Juda, Wisconsin Juda is an unincorporated census-designated place located in the town of Jefferson, in Green County, Wisconsin, United States. Juda is 5 miles east of Monroe along Wisconsin State Highway 11, and 81. As of the 2020 census, its population was ...

(in Green County), where he attended the

public schools Public school may refer to: *Public school (government-funded), a no-fee school, publicly funded and operated by the government *Public school (United Kingdom), certain elite fee-charging private schools in England and Wales *Great Public Schools, ...

in winter and worked on farms in the summer. In 1885 he moved to Milwaukee where he learned the trade of carpentry, worked as a journeyman until 1894, when he engaged in the business of contracting and building which he since followed. He located In West Allis in 1901 before its incorporation as a village and took an active interest In public affairs. He became village

trustee Trustee (or the holding of a trusteeship) is a legal term which, in its broadest sense, refers to anyone in a position of trust and so can refer to any individual who holds property, authority, or a position of trust or responsibility for the ...

in 1903 serving one term. Later he was appointed school commissioner.

Senate career

He was a member of the state Central Committee of the Social Democratic Party (as the party was still known in Wisconsin) from West Allis in 1910 when he was elected to the Senate (replacing Republican George E. Page) with 4,344 votes, to 3,864 for Republican George G. Brew (nominally a Progressive, but suspected of

stalwart Stalwart may refer to: Ships * , several Royal Australian Navy ships * , several US Navy ships * ''Stalwart''-class ocean surveillance ship, a US Navy class ** , lead ship of the class * RSS ''Stalwart'', a Singapore Navy frigate Places * Sta ...

tendencies) and 3374 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 (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...

Benjamin Steinel, and was assigned to the Senate's

standing committee A committee or commission is a body of one or more persons subordinate to a deliberative assembly or other form of organization. A committee may not itself be considered to be a form of assembly or a decision-making body. Usually, an assembly o ...

on State Affairs.Beck, J. D., ed. ''The Blue Book of the State of Wisconsin''. Madison: Democrat Printing Company, State Printer, 1911; pp. 342, 350, 694.
/ref> He was succeeded in the 1914 election by fellow Socialist Louis A. Arnold (with whom he later served on the

board of directors A board of directors is a governing body that supervises the activities of a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government agency. The powers, duties, and responsibilities of a board of directors are determined by government regulatio ...

of the Commonwealth Mutual Savings Bank, a Socialist-led institution, along with Charles B. Whitnall). He also served as

vice-president A vice president or vice-president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vi ...

of the bank. Zophy died of a heart attack in 1947.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Zophy, Gabriel American construction businesspeople American carpenters Wisconsin state senators Wisconsin city council members People from Green County, Wisconsin People from the canton of Glarus People from West Allis, Wisconsin Politicians from Milwaukee County, Wisconsin Socialist Party of America politicians from Wisconsin Swiss emigrants to the United States 1869 births 1947 deaths American bankers