Theodore Conkey (December 11, 1819March 17, 1880) was an American surveyor, businessman, Democratic 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. Working as a surveyor with Albert Gallatin Ellis, he was responsible for many of the early surveys of northern Wisconsin and was one of the earliest settlers of what is now

Appleton, Wisconsin Appleton () is the county seat of Outagamie County, Wisconsin, United States, with small portions extending into Calumet County, Wisconsin, Calumet and Winnebago County, Wisconsin, Winnebago counties. Located on the Fox River (Green Bay tributary ...

. He was an early member of the

Wisconsin 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 ...

and

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. The Assembly is controlled by the Republican ...

, representing the 1st Senate district in the

1851 Events January–March * January 11 – Hong Xiuquan officially begins the Taiping Rebellion in China, one of the bloodiest revolts that would lead to 20 million deaths. * January 15 – Christian Female College, modern-d ...

and

1852 Events January–March * January 14 – President Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte proclaims a new constitution for the French Second Republic. * January 15 – Nine men representing various Jewish charitable organizations come to ...

terms, and representing

Outagamie County Outagamie County ( ) is a county in the Fox Cities region of the U.S. state of Wisconsin, in the northeast of the state. As of the 2020 census, the population was 190,705. Its county seat is Appleton. Outagamie County is part of the Appleton ...

in the

1857 Events January–March * January 1 – The biggest Estonian newspaper, '' Postimees'', is established by Johann Voldemar Jannsen. * January 7 – The partly French-owned London General Omnibus Company begins operating. * Ja ...

Assembly. He also served as a Union Army cavalry officer during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

Biography

Theodore Conkey was born in

Canton, New York Canton is an incorporated Administrative divisions of New York#Town, town in St. Lawrence County, New York, United States. The population was 11,638 at the time of the 2020 census. The town contains two Administrative divisions of New York#Villa ...

. He left his father's farm in 1841, moving first to Fond du Lac, in the

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 ...

, then settling for a year in

Madison Madison may refer to: People * Madison (name), a given name and a surname * James Madison (1751–1836), fourth president of the United States * Madison (footballer), Brazilian footballer Places in the United States Populated places * Madi ...

, where he taught school. He returned to Fond du Lac and took up a new career in civil engineering, where he conducted U.S. government surveys of land in Wisconsin. As a surveyor, he apprenticed under Albert Gallatin Ellis, who had been surveyor general of the Wisconsin and Iowa district. Together, they surveyed large tracts of northern Wisconsin. Conkey determined that the Grand Chute rapids would provide an ideal source for water-power, and in early 1849, in partnership with

Morgan Lewis Martin Morgan Lewis Martin (March 31, 1805December 10, 1887) was an American lawyer, land speculator, Democratic politician, and one of Wisconsin's founding fathers. He was one of the first lawyers in what is now Wisconsin. He represented the Wisconsi ...

and Abraham B. Bowen, they selected a tract of land on the north side of the Fox River to start a village. Conkey surveyed and

plat In the United States, a plat ( or ) (plan) is a cadastral map, drawn to scale, showing the divisions of a piece of land. United States General Land Office surveyors drafted township plats of Public Lands Survey System, Public Lands Surveys to ...

ted the land where the city would be built, and in July 1849, moved his family to the area, becoming one of the original pioneers of

. Conkey constructed a saw mill, and performed contract construction projects in the area. He was invested in improvements on the Fox and

Rivers, partnering again with Morgan Lewis Martin. In 1861, at news of the outbreak of the

, Conkey sold his mill and decided to help raise a company of men for the Union Army. His volunteers were incorporated into the

3rd Wisconsin Volunteer Cavalry Regiment The 3rd Wisconsin Cavalry Regiment was a volunteer cavalry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War. Service The 3rd Wisconsin Cavalry Regiment was organized at Janesville, Wisconsin, from November 30, 1861, to Janua ...

as Company I, and Conkey was named Captain of that company. The regiment was attached to the

Army of the Frontier The Army of the Frontier was a Union army that served in the Trans-Mississippi Theater during the American Civil War. It fought in several minor engagements in Arkansas, Indian Territory, and Kansas. In June 1863 the Army was discontinued but ...

and served almost the entire war in

Missouri Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...

Kansas Kansas ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the west. Kansas is named a ...

, and

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the West South Central region of the Southern United States. It borders Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, Texas to the southwest, and Oklahoma ...

. He mustered out of the service as lieutenant colonel of the regiment a few months after the close of the war. He returned to Wisconsin November 1865 and resumed the milling business, investing with Charles Pfennig. On his partner's death, Conkey bought out the other investors. He invested in enlarging and improving the mill, and was involved in running it until 1879, when he sold to Kimblerly, Clark & Co. Conkey effectively retired from business after this sale.

Political career

Conkey was a member of the Wisconsin Senate from 1851 to 1852. Perhaps his most important legislative contribution in the Senate was his act in 1851 to split off the western part of Brown county and create a new county named "Outagamie." Conkey later represented Outagamie county in the Wisconsin Assembly in 1857. He also served on the Appleton City Council and on the Outagamie County Board. He was a

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 ...

Personal life and family

Theodore Conkey was one of four children born to Asa Conkey and Mary (' Nash). Asa Conkey was a farmer, and had served in the U.S. Army during the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 was fought by the United States and its allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom and its allies in North America. It began when the United States United States declaration of war on the Uni ...

. Both of Theodore's parents had previously been in earlier marriages and had children from their prior marriages. One of Theodore's elder half-brothers from his mother's previous marriage was John Bannister, a pioneer of

Fond du Lac, Wisconsin Fond du Lac () is a city in Fond du Lac County, Wisconsin, United States, and its county seat. It is located at the southern end of Lake Winnebago and had a population of 44,678 at the 2020 census. The city forms the core of the Fond du Lac m ...

. An

Episcopalian Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protes ...

, Theodore Conkey married Cynthia F. Foote in June 1848. They had at least four children, though one died in childhood. Their daughter Helen married Lyman E. Barnes, who would later serve in Congress.

References

External links

* , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Conkey, Theodore 1819 births 1880 deaths People from Canton, New York Politicians from Fond du Lac, Wisconsin Politicians from Appleton, Wisconsin Democratic Party Wisconsin state senators Democratic Party members of the Wisconsin State Assembly People of Wisconsin in the American Civil War Union army officers American surveyors Wisconsin pioneers 19th-century members of the Wisconsin Legislature