18th Wisconsin Legislature

The Eighteenth Wisconsin Legislature convened from January 11, 1865, to April 10, 1865, in regular session.
Senators representing even-numbered districts were newly elected for this session and were serving the first year of a two-year term. Assembly members were elected to a one-year term. Assembly members and even-numbered senators were elected in the general election of November 8, 1864. Senators representing odd-numbered districts were serving the second year of their two-year term, having been elected in the general election held on November 3, 1863.
The governor of Wisconsin during this entire term was Republican James T. Lewis, of Columbia County, serving the second year of a two-year term, having won election in the 1863 Wisconsin gubernatorial election.

Major events

January 31, 1865: The United States House of Representatives passed the Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, banning slavery in the United States.
March 4, 1865: Second inauguration of President Abraham Lincoln.
April 3, 1865: Union Army forces occupied the Confederate capital city Richmond, Virginia, after a months-long siege.
April 9, 1865: Confederate General Robert E. Lee surrendered the Army of Northern Virginia to General Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Court House, Virginia.
April 14, 1865: President Abraham Lincoln was assassinated in Washington, D.C.
April 15, 1865: Vice President Andrew Johnson was sworn in as the 17th President of the United States.
May 10, 1865: Confederate States President Jefferson Davis was captured by the 4th Michigan Cavalry Regiment in Irwin County, Georgia, effectively ending the American Civil War.
November 7, 1865: Lucius Fairchild elected Governor of Wisconsin.
December 6, 1865: Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution was ratified by the required three-fourths of U.S. states.

Major legislation

February 7, 1865: Act to incorporate the Wisconsin soldiers' home,
February 24, 1865: Joint Resolution ratifying proposed amendment to the Constitution of the United States,

Sessions

1st Regular session: January 11, 1865April 10, 1865

Leaders

Senate leadership

President of the Senate: Wyman Spooner
President pro tempore: Willard H. Chandler

Assembly leadership

Speaker of the Assembly: William W. Field

Members

Members of the Senate

Members of the Wisconsin Senate for the Eighteenth Wisconsin Legislature:

District	Counties	Senator	Residence	Party
01	Sheboygan		Sheboygan	Union
02	Brown, Kewaunee		Green Bay	Dem.
03	Ozaukee		Ozaukee	Dem.
04	Washington		West Bend	Dem.
05	Milwaukee		Milwaukee	Dem.
06	Milwaukee		Milwaukee	Dem.
07	Racine		Racine	Union
08	Kenosha		Kenosha	Union
09	Adams, Juneau, Waushara		Wautoma	Union
10	Waukesha		Waukesha	Union
11	Dane		Windsor	Union
12	Walworth		Whitewater	Union
13	Lafayette		Gratiot	Union
14	Sauk		Prairie du Sac	Union
15	Iowa		Avoca	Union
16	Grant		Glen Haven	Union
17	Rock		Janesville	Union
18	Dodge		Fox Lake	Union
19	Manitowoc, Calumet		Manitowoc	Dem.
20	Fond du Lac		Nanaupa	Union
21	Winnebago		Waukau	Union
22	Door, Oconto, Outagamie, Shawanaw		Sturgeon Bay	Union
23	Jefferson		Waterloo	Dem.
24	Green		Monroe	Union
25	Columbia		Monroe	Union
26	Dane		Madison	Union
27	Marathon, Portage, Waupaca, Wood		Waupaca	Union
28	Ashland, Burnett, Dallas, Douglas, La Pointe, Pierce, Polk, St. Croix		Prescott	Union
29	Marquette, Green Lake		Princeton	Union
30	Bad Ax, Crawford, Richland		Richland City	Union
31	La Crosse, Monroe		Sparta	Union
32	Buffalo, Chippewa, Clark, Dunn, Eau Claire, Jackson, Pepin, Trempealeau		Black River Falls	Union
33	Dodge		Horicon	Dem.

Members of the Assembly

Members of the Assembly for the Eighteenth Wisconsin Legislature:

Employees

Senate employees

Chief Clerk: Frank M. Stewart
* Assistant Clerk: L. B. Hills
** Bookkeeper: S. Hauxhurst
* Engrossing Clerk: O. F. Clapp
* Enrolling Clerk: Thomas Marshall
* Transcribing Clerk: H. Harvey
Sergeant-at-Arms: Nelson Williams
* 1st Assistant Sergeant-at-Arms: James L. Wilder
* 2nd Assistant Sergeant-at-Arms: D. W. C. Wilson
* Sergeant-at-Arms' Porter: Thomas Goss
Postmaster: Frank Leland
* Assistant Postmaster: W. S. Williams
Doorkeeper: J. P. Miller
* Assistant Doorkeeper: George D. Potter
* Assistant Doorkeeper: S. J. Abbott
* Assistant Doorkeeper: Eames Wadsworth
* Assistant Doorkeeper: Norman McBeath
* Assistant Doorkeeper: August Wandrey
Firemen:
* James Yates
* Roswell Stow
* Fireman and Porter: William Holden
Messengers:
* Jonathan C. Hutchins
* Rufus H. Roys
* C. C. Frey
* Thomas Goss
* Seymour Stoughton

Assembly employees

Chief Clerk: John S. Dean
* Assistant Clerk: Ephraim W. Young
** Bookkeeper: William M. Newcomb
* Engrossing Clerk: L. R. Davis
* Enrolling Clerk: J. H. Balch
* Transcribing Clerk: R. H. Blodgett
Sergeant-at-Arms: Alonzo Wilcox
* 1st Assistant Sergeant-at-Arms: Lewis M. Hammond
* 2nd Assistant Sergeant-at-Arms: E. H. Bartholt
Postmaster: Hiram Morley
* 1st Assistant Postmaster: Hiram Beckwith
* 2nd Assistant Postmaster: R. Law
Doorkeepers:
* S. Raymond
* M. Colby
* H. H. Helms
* George D. Phinney
Firemen:
* E. E. Brown
* John Grant
* F. K. Melvin
* Nelson Bowerman
* William Fitzpatrick
* G. A. Foss
Speaker's Messenger: William P. Beach
Chief Clerk's Messenger: James E. Dean
Sergeant-at-Arms' Messenger: Louis Sholes
Gallery Attendant: S. Nye Jr.
Messengers:
* George F. Williston
* Frederic A. Frank
* Howard W. Tilton
* Linus S. Webb
* Alfred F. Bishop
* Frank Mason
* Harvey Olin
* Nicholas F. Weber
* John S. Young
* Richard C. Notbohm