Lyman Walker (May 30, 1799October 16, 1886) was an American lawyer and

Democratic 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 ...

politician. He was a member of the

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

and

Assembly Assembly may refer to: Organisations and meetings * Deliberative assembly, a gathering of members who use parliamentary procedure for making decisions * General assembly, an official meeting of the members of an organization or of their representa ...

, representing

Brown Brown is a color. It can be considered a composite color, but it is mainly a darker shade of orange. In the CMYK color model used in printing or painting, brown is usually made by combining the colors orange and black. In the RGB color model use ...

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 ...

, and

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'', ...

counties. He also served 13 years as district attorney of Kewaunee County.

Biography

Born in

Tully, New York Tully is a Administrative divisions of New York#Town, town in Onondaga County, New York, Onondaga County, New York (state), New York, United States. The population of the town was 951 at the 2019 United States Census, 2019 census. The name of the ...

, Walker was a lawyer. He served as Tully town supervisor from 1834 to 1836 and as deputy sheriff for

Onondaga County, New York Onondaga County ( ) is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 476,516. The county seat is Syracuse. Onondaga County is the core of the Syracuse, NY MSA. History The name ''Onondaga'' derives from ...

, from 1828 to 1834. He moved to

Ohio Ohio () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Of the List of states and territories of the United States, fifty U.S. states, it is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 34th-l ...

, in 1842 and was appointed postmaster at Cochranton by President Franklin Pierce, and then at

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard language, Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the List of cities in Italy, second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 ...

by President

James Polk James is a common English language surname and given name: *James (name), the typically masculine first name James * James (surname), various people with the last name James James or James City may also refer to: People * King James (disambiguat ...

. In 1855, Walker moved to Anhapee,

Kewaunee County, Wisconsin Kewaunee County is a county located in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census, the population was 20,563. Its county seat is Kewaunee. The county was created in 1852 and organized in 1859. Its Menominee name is ''Kewāneh'', an arc ...

. In Kewaunee County, he became active with the

Democratic Party of Wisconsin The Democratic Party of Wisconsin is the affiliate of the Democratic Party in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. It is currently headed by chair Ben Wikler. Important issues for the state party include support for workers and unions, strong public educ ...

. In 1856, Kewaunee County held its first elections for state offices and elected Louis Van Dycke as district attorney without opposition. Van Dycke, however, was not a lawyer, and as a result, the county contracted with lawyers to represent the district attorney's office in court. In 1859, Walker was selected to fill that role by the circuit court judge David Taylor. Walker was then elected district attorney at the 1860 election and was consecutively re-elected to four subsequent terms, leaving office in 1871. While serving as district attorney, he was elected to represent Kewaunee County in 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 the 1865 session, running on the Democratic Party ticket. He was then elected county superintendent in 1866. In 1869, he was elected to the

on the Democratic ticket. He served a two-year term representing the 2nd State Senate district, which then comprised all of Brown, Door, and Kewaunee counties. He was noted as the oldest member of the Senate during the 1871 session, then age 72. After his term in the Senate, he won two more terms as district attorney, serving from 1875 until his resignation in 1878. He retired in 1878 and moved to

Manitowoc County, Wisconsin 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 Count ...

, to reside with his son's widow, Elizabeth Mallory Walker, and his grandchildren. In 1880, Elizabeth married

Edward Decker Edward Decker (May 2, 1827July 9, 1911) was an American businessman, Democratic politician, and Wisconsin pioneer. He is known as the founder of Kewaunee County, Wisconsin, and was a member of the Wisconsin State Senate during the 1860 and 186 ...

and Walker moved with them to

Casco, Wisconsin Casco is a village in Kewaunee County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 583 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Green Bay Metropolitan Statistical Area. The village is located within the Town of Casco. Casco is named after Casco ...

. Lyman Walker died at Decker's home after a series of strokes on October 16, 1886.

Personal life and family

Lyman Walker married Miriam Winslow at

Hillsdale, New York Hillsdale is a town in Columbia County, New York, near Hudson, New York and Great Barrington, Massachusetts. State Routes 22 and 23 intersect near the town center, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The town has several ...

, on November 5, 1822. They had five children, though one died in infancy and another died in early adulthood. His wife died in November 1850, before he moved to Wisconsin. His eldest child was Charlotte Cornelia, who married in 1843 and was widowed with two children in 1862. She then moved to Ahnapee, to reside with her father until her death in 1871. Both of Walker's surviving sons' served as

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 ...

officers during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by state ...

. His elder son, Charles H. Walker, was captain of Company K and later major of the

21st Wisconsin Infantry Regiment The 21st Wisconsin Infantry Regiment was a volunteer infantry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War. They were assigned for their entire war service to XIV Corps, operating in the western theater of the war. ...

. He also served as a Wisconsin state legislator and county judge. His younger son, Horace, was captain of Company A in the

5th Wisconsin Infantry Regiment The 5th Wisconsin Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War. Service The 5th Infantry was assembled at Camp Randall, in Madison, Wisconsin, on July 12, 1861. It left Wisconsin for Wash ...

. He died at the

Second Battle of Rappahannock Station The Second Battle of Rappahannock Station took place on November 7, 1863, near the village of Rappahannock Station (now Remington, Virginia), on the Orange and Alexandria Railroad. It was between Confederate forces under Maj. Gen. Jubal E ...

Grand Army of the Republic The Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) was a fraternal organization composed of veterans of the Union Army (United States Army), Union Navy ( U.S. Navy), and the Marines who served in the American Civil War. It was founded in 1866 in Decatur, I ...

Post #18 was named in his honor. Walker ultimately outlived all of his children.

Electoral history

Wisconsin Senate (1869)

, colspan="6" style="text-align:center;background-color: #e9e9e9;", General Election, November 2, 1869

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Walker, Lyman 1799 births 1886 deaths People from Ahnapee, Wisconsin People from Tully, New York New York (state) lawyers Town supervisors in New York (state) District attorneys in Wisconsin Democratic Party members of the Wisconsin State Assembly Democratic Party Wisconsin state senators 19th-century American politicians 19th-century American lawyers Ohio postmasters