Milton Howard Pettit (October 22, 1835 – March 23, 1873) was an American businessman, Republican politician, and

Wisconsin Wisconsin ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest of the United States. It borders Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michig ...

pioneer. He was the 11th

lieutenant governor of Wisconsin The lieutenant governor of Wisconsin is the first person in the Gubernatorial lines of succession in the United States#Wisconsin, line of succession of Wisconsin's executive branch, thus serving as governor in the event of the death, resignation, ...

, during the governorship of

Cadwallader C. Washburn Cadwallader Colden Washburn (April 22, 1818May 14, 1882) was an American businessman, politician, and soldier who founded a mill that later became General Mills. A member of the Washburn family of Maine, he was a U.S. representative and governo ...

, and died while in office. Earlier, he had been mayor of

Kenosha, Wisconsin Kenosha () is a city in Kenosha County, Wisconsin, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of cities in Wisconsin, fourth-most populous city in Wisconsin, with a population of 99,986 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. S ...

, and had represented Kenosha in 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 ...

Biography

He was born in

Fabius, New York Fabius is a town in Onondaga County, New York, United States. As of the 2020 Census, the population was 2,006. The classical name of the town was assigned by a clerk interested in the classics. The Town of Fabius contains a village of Fabius. ...

, in 1835, but moved to Somers,

Wisconsin Territory The Territory of Wisconsin was an organized and incorporated territory of the United States that existed from July 3, 1836, until May 29, 1848, when an eastern portion of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Wisconsin. Belm ...

, at the age of 11. As an adult, in 1854, he moved to the neighboring city of

, and became a member of the Republican Party. In 1859 he was elected to the city council and, in 1861, he was elected to his first term as Mayor of Kenosha. He would be elected to three more one-year terms as Mayor, in 1865, 1867, and 1870, and was elected to represent

Kenosha County Kenosha County () is located in the southeastern corner of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census, the population was 169,151, and was estimated to be 168,754 in 2024, making it the eighth-most populous county in Wisconsin. Its co ...

in the

for the 1870 and 1871 sessions of the

Wisconsin Legislature The Wisconsin Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. The legislature is a bicameral body composed of the upper house, Wisconsin State Senate, and the lower Wisconsin State Assembly, both of which have had Republ ...

. In 1871, he was the Republican nominee for Lieutenant Governor, and won election, along with Republican gubernatorial nominee Cadwallader Washburn. Shortly after taking office in 1872, however, his health began to fail, and he died in the spring of 1873. He was the second Lieutenant Governor of Wisconsin to die in office, after Timothy Burns.

Electoral history

Wisconsin Senate (1869)

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

Wisconsin Lieutenant Governor (1871)

, colspan="6" style="text-align:center;background-color: #e9e9e9;", General Election, November 7, 1871

References

* * 1835 births 1873 deaths Republican Party Wisconsin state senators Mayors of Kenosha, Wisconsin Wisconsin city council members People from Fabius, New York People from Somers, Wisconsin 19th-century members of the Wisconsin Legislature 19th-century mayors of places in Wisconsin Burials at Green Ridge Cemetery (Kenosha, Wisconsin) {{Wisconsin-mayor-stub