Walter Halben Butler (February 13, 1852 – April 24, 1931) was a lawyer, teacher, newspaper publisher, and one-term Democratic

U.S. Representative The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...

from

Iowa's 4th congressional district Iowa's 4th congressional district is a List of United States congressional districts, congressional district in the U.S. state of Iowa that covers the western border of the state, including Sioux City, Iowa, Sioux City and Council Bluffs, Iowa, C ...

, then located in northeastern Iowa.

Biography

Born in

Springboro, Pennsylvania Springboro is a borough in Crawford County, Pennsylvania, Crawford County, Pennsylvania, United States, located 35 miles southwest of Erie, Pennsylvania, Erie. The population was 376 at the 2020 census, down from 477 at the 2010 census. History ...

on February 13, 1852, Butler moved to

Minnesota Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...

in 1868 with his parents, who settled in

Mankato Mankato ( ) is a city in Blue Earth, Nicollet, and Le Sueur counties in the U.S. state of Minnesota. It is the county seat of Blue Earth County, Minnesota. The population was 44,488 at the 2020 census, making it the 21st-largest city in Mi ...

, in

Blue Earth County Blue Earth County is a county in the state of Minnesota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 69,112. Its county seat is Mankato. The county is named for the Blue Earth River and for the deposits of blue-green clay once evident along the ...

. He attended public and private schools, and graduated from the

University of Wisconsin–Madison The University of Wisconsin–Madison (University of Wisconsin, Wisconsin, UW, UW–Madison, or simply Madison) is a public land-grant research university in Madison, Wisconsin, United States. It was founded in 1848 when Wisconsin achieved st ...

in 1875. He was a wrestler and sprinter there, and is credited as the first to run the

100-yard dash The 100-yard dash is a track and field sprint event of . It was part of the Commonwealth Games until 1970, and was included in the triathlon of the Olympics in 1904. It is not generally used in international events, replaced by the 100- ...

in 10 seconds. After studying law, 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 1875 and commenced practice in

Princeton, Wisconsin Princeton is a city in western Green Lake County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 1,267 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. The city is located within the Princeton (town), Wisconsin, Town of Princeton. The Fox River (Gree ...

. He moved to

Iowa Iowa ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the upper Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west; Wisconsin to the northeast, Ill ...

in 1876 and taught school at La Porte City until 1878, and at

Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...

until 1880. He moved to

West Union, Iowa West Union is a city in Fayette County, Iowa, Fayette County, Iowa, United States. The population was 2,490 at the time of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It is the county seat of Fayette County. History Originally called Knob Prai ...

, in 1883 and became owner and publisher of the ''Fayette County Union''. From 1885 to 1889, he served as superintendent of the Railway Mail Service's tenth division, at

St. Paul, Minnesota Saint Paul (often abbreviated St. Paul) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Minnesota and the county seat of Ramsey County. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 311,527, making it Minnesota's second-most populous city a ...

. He returned to West Union, and resumed his former newspaper pursuits. In 1890, Butler was nominated as a Democrat to run against incumbent Republican U.S. House Representative

Joseph Henry Sweney Joseph Henry Sweney (October 2, 1845 – November 11, 1918) was a one-term Republican U.S. Representative from Iowa's 4th congressional district in northeastern Iowa. Born in Warren County, Pennsylvania, Sweney attended the public schools of Pen ...

from the 4th congressional district. After defeating Sweney in the general election as part of a Democratic landslide, he served in the Fifty-second Congress. In 1892 he was defeated in his first re-election bid, by former Republican Congressman

Thomas Updegraff Thomas Updegraff (April 3, 1834 – October 4, 1910) was an American attorney, politician, and five-term Republican Party (United States), Republican member of the U.S. House of Representatives from northeastern Iowa. His two periods of service we ...

. Butler served in Congress from March 4, 1891 to March 3, 1893. After leaving Congress, he returned to northeastern Iowa for five years. He moved to

Des Moines, Iowa Des Moines is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities in Iowa, most populous city in the U.S. state of Iowa. It is the county seat of Polk County, Iowa, Polk County with parts extending into Warren County, Iowa, Wa ...

, in 1897 and to

Kansas City, Missouri Kansas City, Missouri, abbreviated KC or KCMO, is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri by List of cities in Missouri, population and area. The city lies within Jackson County, Missouri, Jackson, Clay County, Missouri, Clay, and Pl ...

, in 1907. He engaged in the real estate and loan business and, later in banking. He died in Kansas City on April 24, 1931. He was interred at

Forest Hill Calvary Cemetery Forest Hill Calvary Cemetery is a cemetery in Kansas City, Missouri. History The Forest Hill Calvary Cemetery was established in 1888. George Kessler served as the landscape architect when the cemetery was established. The cemetery is approxim ...

in Kansas City.

References

Sources

Books

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External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Butler, Walter Halben 1852 births 1931 deaths People from Springboro, Pennsylvania University of Wisconsin–Madison alumni Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Iowa Politicians from Kansas City, Missouri Politicians from Des Moines, Iowa People from West Union, Iowa Politicians from Mankato, Minnesota Lawyers from Kansas City, Missouri 19th-century members of the United States House of Representatives