39th Wisconsin Legislature

Major events

• January 7, 1889: Inauguration of William D. Hoard as the 16th Governor of Wisconsin.
• March 4, 1889: Inauguration of Benjamin Harrison as the 23rd President of the United States
• April 2, 1889: At the state's spring general election, Wisconsin voters approved an amendment to the Constitution of Wisconsin which abolished the separate offices of "chief justice" and "associate justices" of the Wisconsin Supreme Court, converting all members to "justices" and designating that the most senior justice would serve as chief justice.
• May 1889: First reported cases associated with the 1889–1890 pandemic.
• November 8, 1889: Montana was admitted as the 41st U.S. state.
• November 11, 1889: Washington was admitted as the 42nd U.S. state.
• March 18, 1890: The Wisconsin Supreme Court published its decision in State ex rel. Weiss v. District Board of School District No. Eight, also known as the Edgerton Bible Case. The Court ruled that the use of the bible in public school instruction was an unconstitutional merging of church and state. This decision was later cited by the United States Supreme Court in its 1963 decision banning compulsory prayer in schools.
• March 20, 1890: The new German Emperor Wilhelm II dismissed long-time German chancellor Otto von Bismarck.
• May 1, 1890: Coordinated mass rallies and strikes were held in the United States to call for an eight-hour workday.
• July 2, 1890: U.S. President Benjamin Harrison signed the Sherman Antitrust Act of 1890 into law.
• July 3, 1890: Idaho was admitted as the 43rd U.S. state.
• July 10, 1890: Wyoming was admitted as the 44th U.S. state.
• July 14, 1890: U.S. President Benjamin Harrison signed the Sherman Silver Purchase Act into law. The law increased the amount of silver the U.S. government would purchase, in order to encourage inflation.
• October 1, 1890: U.S. President Benjamin Harrison signed the Tariff Act of 1890, raising the average tariff on imports to 50%.
• November 4, 1890: George Wilbur Peck elected Governor of Wisconsin.
• December 29, 1890: The 7th U.S. Cavalry Regiment killed 153 Lakota Sioux at Wounded Knee, South Dakota, in an incident known as the Wounded Knee Massacre.

  Major legislation

• April 18, 1889: An Act concerning the education and employment of children, . Referred to as the "Bennett Law". The main purpose of the act was to raise the minimum employment age from 12 to 13 and required parents and guardians to ensure that children between the ages of 7 and 14 were receiving at least 12 weeks of education per year. "Section 5" of the act defined a "school" as only one which provided instructions solely in the English language. This proved to be a highly controversial move in a state which had many German, Polish, and Scandinavian language schools. The backlash against the law likely contributed significantly to the Democratic wave election in 1890.
• Joint Resolution agreeing to a proposed amendment to the constitution, . This was the required second legislative passage of a proposed amendment to the Wisconsin Constitution to abolish the separate offices of "chief justice" and "associate justices" of the Wisconsin Supreme Court and instead define all members of the court as "justices" with the most senior justice acting as "chief justice". This amendment was ratified by voters at the 1889 spring general election.
• Joint Resolution proposing an amendment to section 1, of article 10, of the constitution of the state of Wisconsin, relating to Education, . This was another attempt to amend the section of the Constitution of Wisconsin dealing with the Superintendent of Public Instruction. The previous attempt had just been defeated in an 1888 referendum.

  Party summary

Senate summary

Assembly summary

Sessions

• 1st Regular session: January 9, 1889April 19, 1889

  Leaders

Senate leadership

• President of the Senate: George W. Ryland
• President pro tempore: Thomas A. Dyson

  Assembly leadership

• Speaker of the Assembly: Thomas B. Mills

  Members

Members of the Senate

Members of the Assembly

Committees

Senate committees

• Senate Committee on AgricultureS. B. Stanchfield, chair
• Senate Committee on Assessment and Collection of TaxesJ. E. Leahy, chair
• Senate Committee on EducationC. Widule, chair
• Senate Committee on Enrolled BillsJ. W. DeGroff, chair
• Senate Committee on Engrossed BillsP. J. Clawson, chair
• Senate Committee on Federal RelationsH. A. Cooper, chair
• Senate Committee on Finance, Banks, and InsuranceG. H. Buckstaff, chair
• Senate Committee on IncorporationsW. A. Rust, chair
• Senate Committee on the JudiciaryGeorge F. Merrill, chair
• Senate Committee on Legislative ExpendituresW. S. Main, chair
• Senate Committee on Manufacturing and CommerceH. A. Taylor, chair
• Senate Committee on Military AffairsE. Scofield, chair
• Senate Committee on Privileges and ElectionsE. Scofield, chair
• Senate Committee on Public LandsR. E. Joiner, chair
• Senate Committee on RailroadsGeorge Fitch, chair
• Senate Committee on Roads and BridgesFrank Avery, chair
• Senate Committee on State AffairsA. P. Lovejoy, chair
• Senate Committee on Town and County OrganizationsJ. C. Reynolds, chair

  Assembly committees

• Assembly Committee on AgricultureE. Beaumont, chair
• Assembly Committee on Assessment and Collection of TaxesJ. W. Whelan, chair
• Assembly Committee on Bills on their Third ReadingHugh Porter, chair
• Assembly Committee on CitiesH. E. Legler, chair
• Assembly Committee on EducationM. J. Bennett, chair
• Assembly Committee on Engrossed BillsH. G. Klinefelter, chair
• Assembly Committee on Enrolled BillsC. F. Simmons, chair
• Assembly Committee on Federal RelationsJames W. Freeman, chair
• Assembly Committee on IncorporationsJ. W. Babcock, chair
• Assembly Committee on Insurance, Banks, and BankingW. H. Blyton, chair
• Assembly Committee on the JudiciaryW. J. McElroy, chair
• Assembly Committee on Legislative ExpendituresDwight S. Allen, chair
• Assembly Committee on Labor and ManufacturesV. W. Dorwin, chair
• Assembly Committee on Lumber and MiningJ. H. McCourt, chair
• Assembly Committee on Medical SocietiesR. H. Delap, chair
• Assembly Committee on MilitiaJ. B. McCoy, chair
• Assembly Committee on Privileges and ElectionsW. B. La Selle, chair
• Assembly Committee on Public ImprovementsK. K. Hagestad, chair
• Assembly Committee on Public LandsC. F. Mohr, chair
• Assembly Committee on RailroadsR. W. Jackson, chair
• Assembly Committee on Roads and BridgesJohn Stevenson, chair
• Assembly Committee on State AffairsH. M. Stocking, chair
• Assembly Committee on Town and County OrganizationCharles Hall, chair
• Assembly Committee on Ways and MeansE. C. Oliver, chair
• Assembly Special Committee on Labor and IndustriesHenry Siebers, chair