John Coit Spooner (January 6, 1843June 11, 1919) was a politician and lawyer from

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

. He served in the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and ...

from 1885 to 1891 and from 1897 to 1907. A Republican, by the 1890s, he was one of the "Big Four" key Republicans who largely controlled the major decisions of the Senate, along with Orville H. Platt of Connecticut, William B. Allison of Iowa, and Nelson W. Aldrich of Rhode Island.

Early life

Spooner was born in Lawrenceburg, Indiana, on January 6, 1843, the son of Philip Loring Spooner and Lydia (Coit) Spooner. Philip Spooner was an attorney and judge and served on the bench in both Indiana and Wisconsin. Spooner moved with his parents to Madison, Wisconsin, in 1859. He attended the common schools and graduated from the

University of Wisconsin A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase ''universitas magistrorum et scholarium'', which ...

with a

Bachelor of Philosophy Bachelor of Philosophy (BPhil, BPh, or PhB; la, Baccalaureus Philosophiae or ) is the title of an academic degree that usually involves considerable research, either through a thesis or supervised research projects. Unlike many other bachelor's ...

(Philosophiae Baccalaureus, or P.B.) degree in 1864. While in college, Spooner joined the

Psi Upsilon Psi Upsilon (), commonly known as Psi U, is a Fraternities and sororities in North America, North American fraternity,''Psi Upsilon Tablet'' founded at Union College on November 24, 1833. The fraternity reports 50 chapters at colleges and univers ...

fraternity and was admitted to membership in

Phi Beta Kappa The Phi Beta Kappa Society () is the oldest academic honor society in the United States, and the most prestigious, due in part to its long history and academic selectivity. Phi Beta Kappa aims to promote and advocate excellence in the liberal a ...

Military service

During the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government polic ...

, he enlisted in the

Union Army During the American Civil War, the Union Army, also known as the Federal Army and the Northern Army, referring to the United States Army, was the land force that fought to preserve the Union of the collective states. It proved essential to th ...

as a private assigned to Company D, 40th Wisconsin Infantry, a three-month unit. After Spooner's 100 days of service were complete, he returned home and recruited a company from his college classmates, Company A, 50th Wisconsin Infantry, which he commanded as a

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

. At the close of the war, Spooner received a

brevet Brevet may refer to: Military * Brevet (military), higher rank that rewards merit or gallantry, but without higher pay * Brevet d'état-major, a military distinction in France and Belgium awarded to officers passing military staff college * Aircre ...

promotion to major.

Start of career

After the war, Spooner served as private secretary to

Wisconsin Governor The governor of Wisconsin is the head of government of Wisconsin and the commander-in-chief of the state's Wisconsin Army National Guard, army and Wisconsin Air National Guard, air forces. The governor has a duty to enforce state laws, and the ...

Lucius Fairchild, and then the governor's military secretary with the rank of

colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military 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 colonel was typically in charge ...

He later served as quartermaster general of the Wisconsin Militia with the rank of

brigadier general Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed t ...

. He studied law with his father from 1865 to 1867, and he was

admitted to the bar An admission to practice law is acquired when a lawyer receives a license to practice law. In jurisdictions with two types of lawyer, as with barristers and solicitors, barristers must gain admission to the bar whereas for solicitors there are dist ...

in 1867. After becoming a lawyer, Spooner was appointed assistant attorney general of

and he served from 1869 to 1870. In 1869, Spooner received the

honorary degree An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or '' ad ho ...

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. ...

from the University of Wisconsin. Spooner moved to Hudson in 1870, and practiced law there from 1870 to 1884. He established himself in the field of railroad and corporation law, and served as counsel for the

West Wisconsin Railway The West Wisconsin Railway was a small railroad in Wisconsin, connecting the Chicago and North Western Railway at Elroy, Wisconsin to Hudson, Wisconsin. It became part of the Chicago, St. Paul, Minneapolis and Omaha Railway ("Omaha Road"). This Omah ...

and Chicago, St. Paul and Minneapolis Railway. Spooner was a member of the

Wisconsin State Assembly The Wisconsin State Assembly is the lower house of the Wisconsin Legislature. Together with the smaller Wisconsin Senate, the two constitute the legislative branch of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Representatives are elected for two-year terms ...

in 1872. He was a member of the University of Wisconsin Board of Regents from 1882 to 1886.

United States Senator

He was elected as a Republican to the

January 27, 1885, and served from 1885 to 1891, being defeated for re-election by

William F. Vilas William Freeman Vilas (July 9, 1840August 27, 1908) was an American lawyer, politician, and United States Senator. In the U.S. Senate, he represented the state of Wisconsin for one term, from 1891 to 1897. As a prominent Bourbon Democrat, he wa ...

. He served as chairman of the

Committee on Claims The United States Senate Committee on Claims was among the first standing committees established in the Senate. It dealt generally with issues related to private bills and petitions. After reforms in the 1880s that created judicial and administra ...

from 1886 to 1891. In 1888 and again in 1892, Spooner was a delegate to the Republican National Convention and was the chairman of Wisconsin's delegation. Spooner was the unsuccessful Republican nominee for governor of Wisconsin in 1892. After his election defeat, he moved to Madison and resumed practicing law in 1893. In 1897, Spooner was elected to the U.S. Senate, succeeding Vilas. He was reelected in 1903, and served from 1897 until his resignation in 1907. He served as chairman of the Committee on Canadian Relations from 1897 to 1899 and of the Committee on Rules from 1899 to 1907. As a Senator, Spooner was credited with the Sherman Antitrust Act of 1890 provision that enabled the government to prosecute

Standard Oil Standard Oil Company, Inc., was an American oil production, transportation, refining, and marketing company that operated from 1870 to 1911. At its height, Standard Oil was the largest petroleum company in the world, and its success made its co- ...

. He also promoted the legislation which created a civil government for the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

following the

Spanish–American War , partof = the Philippine Revolution, the decolonization of the Americas, and the Cuban War of Independence , image = Collage infobox for Spanish-American War.jpg , image_size = 300px , caption = (cl ...

. He was the author of the Spooner Act, which gave President

Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. ( ; October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), often referred to as Teddy or by his initials, T. R., was an American politician, statesman, soldier, conservationist, naturalist, historian, and writer who served as the 26t ...

authority to purchase the

Panama Canal Zone The Panama Canal Zone ( es, Zona del Canal de Panamá), also simply known as the Canal Zone, was an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the Isthmus of Panama, that existed from 1903 to 1979. It was located within the terr ...

. A popular figure among Republicans, he turned down three cabinet posts during his political career: Secretary of the Interior in President

William McKinley William McKinley (January 29, 1843September 14, 1901) was the 25th president of the United States, serving from 1897 until his assassination in 1901. As a politician he led a realignment that made his Republican Party largely dominant in t ...

's administration in 1898,

Attorney General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general or attorney-general (sometimes abbreviated AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. The plural is attorneys general. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have exec ...

under President McKinley in 1901, and Secretary of State in President

William Howard Taft William Howard Taft (September 15, 1857March 8, 1930) was the 27th president of the United States (1909–1913) and the tenth chief justice of the United States (1921–1930), the only person to have held both offices. Taft was elected pr ...

's administration in 1909. Spooner and fellow Wisconsin Senator, Robert M. La Follette, were known to be bitter rivals. Spooner disagreed with La Follette's

progressive Progressive may refer to: Politics * Progressivism, a political philosophy in support of social reform ** Progressivism in the United States, the political philosophy in the American context * Progressive realism, an American foreign policy par ...

policies, which were opposed to his own

conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...

policies. Spooner was also one of the early opponents of direct

primary election Primary elections, or direct primary are a voting process by which voters can indicate their preference for their party's candidate, or a candidate in general, in an upcoming general election, local election, or by-election. Depending on the ...

s. At the time,

party A party is a gathering of people who have been invited by a host for the purposes of socializing, conversation, recreation, or as part of a festival or other commemoration or celebration of a special occasion. A party will often feature ...

nominees were selected by the party officials, sometimes by party bosses. Spooner's view of political campaigns if direct primaries became standard was:

Direct primaries would destroy the party machinery ... and would build up a lot of personal machines, and would make every man a self-seeker, and would degrade politics by turning candidacies into bitter personal wrangles.

Later life

After his retirement from the Senate, he practiced law in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the U ...

. In 1910, Spooner and

Joseph P. Cotton Joseph Potter Cotton (July 22, 1875 – March 10, 1931) was an American politician and lawyer who served as the United States Under Secretary of State from 1929 until his death in 1931. Biography Cotton was born in Newport, Rhode Island on Ju ...

formed the firm of Spooner & Cotton, where Spooner practiced until his death.

Death and burial

Spooner died on June 11, 1919, at his home on 205 West 57th Street in

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five Boroughs of New York City, boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the List of co ...

, following a nervous breakdown. He was interred in Forest Hill Cemetery in Madison, Wisconsin.

Awards and honors

Spooner received the

of LL.D. from the University of Wisconsin in 1894. He also received honorary LL.D. degrees from

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Sta ...

in 1908 and

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manha ...

(1909).

Family

In 1868, Spooner married Annie Main of Madison. They were the parents of four children, three of whom lived to adulthood—Charles Philip Spooner (1869–1947), Willet Main Spooner (1871–1928), John C. Spooner (1877–1881), and

Philip Loring Spooner Philip Loring Spooner (October 5, 1879May 16, 1945) was an American tenor. Biography He was born on October 5, 1879, in Hudson, Wisconsin, to John Coit Spooner and Anne Elizabeth Maine. He attended Columbia Preparatory School in Washington, D ...

(1879–1945).

Notes

References

External links

Retrieved on 2008-02-15 * {{DEFAULTSORT:Spooner, John Coit 1843 births 1919 deaths Republican Party members of the Wisconsin State Assembly Wisconsin lawyers New York (state) lawyers Union Army officers University of Wisconsin–Madison alumni Politicians from Madison, Wisconsin Politicians from New York City People from Lawrenceburg, Indiana People of Wisconsin in the American Civil War Republican Party United States senators from Wisconsin New York (state) Republicans 19th-century American politicians Lawyers from Madison, Wisconsin 19th-century American lawyers Psi Upsilon