Francis Little (American politician)

Francis Little
Francis Little
Member of the Wisconsin Senate
	In office; January 1, 1872 – January 4, 1875
Preceded by	Eliphalet S. Miner
Succeeded by	David McFarland
Constituency	9th Senate district
	In office; January 2, 1871 – January 1, 1872
Preceded by	Lemuel W. Joiner
Succeeded by	Carl H. Schmidt
Constituency	15th Senate district
Member of the Wisconsin State Assembly; from the Iowa 2nd district
	In office; January 4, 1864 – January 1, 1866
Preceded by	John H. Vivian
Succeeded by	James Spensley
Personal details
Born	February 23, 1822; County Fermanagh, Ireland, UK
Died	January 6, 1890 (aged 67); Linden, Wisconsin, U.S.
Resting place	Graceland Cemetery, Mineral Point, Wisconsin
Political party	Republican; Natl. Union (1860s);
Spouse	Susannah Fawcett (m. 1851⁠–⁠1890)
Children	Margaret Elizabeth (Clarke); (b. 1853; died 1952); Mary Alice (Bleakly); (b. 1858; died 1917); Lucy Ann Little; (b. 1860; died 1861); John Francis Little; (b. 1862; died 1863); Martha Lucinda Little; (b. 1864; died 1882); Sarah Elinor Little; (b. 1866; died 1957); Francis Fawcett Little; (b. 1868; died 1895); Susannah Clarke Little; (b. 1872; died 1927); William David Little; (b. 1875; died 1967);
Occupation	Farmer

Francis Little (February 23, 1822 – January 6, 1890) was an Irish American immigrant, Wisconsin pioneer, and Republican politician. He was a member of the Wisconsin State Senate (1871–1875) and State Assembly (1864 & 1865), representing Iowa County.

Biography

Little was born in County Fermanagh, Ireland (in what is now Northern Ireland) on February 23, 1822. He received a common school education in Ireland and emigrated to the United States in 1842, staying for a year at the home of his brothers in Mercer County, Illinois.

In 1844, he moved north into the Wisconsin Territory and settled at New Diggings, where he worked in the smelting shop of Stole & Leakley for four years. He then used his earnings to purchase a half-stake in a new general merchandise business with Leakley. After four years of that business, he parlayed his earnings to purchase 320 acres of land in what is now the town of Linden, including the historic site of Fort Washington, which had been utilized in the Black Hawk War.^[1] He went on to serve at least four terms as chairman of the town board of supervisors (1858–1862). (Records before 1858 are incomplete.)^[1]

He also served three years on the county board of supervisors and six years as county superintendent of the poor.^[1] Politically, he was a stalwart Republican and was elected to two consecutive terms in the Wisconsin State Assembly from Iowa County's southern district, serving in the 1864 and 1865 sessions. He was elected in 1870 to represent all of Iowa County in the Wisconsin State Senate, and was subsequently re-elected in 1872.^[2]^[3]

He was active in the Iowa County Agricultural Society, and served as a vice president of the organization in 1863. He was also involved with the Southwestern Wisconsin Industrial Association, serving on the board of that organization in 1879.^[1]

Little died on January 6, 1890, at his home in Linden, Wisconsin, and was buried in Mineral Point, Wisconsin.^[4]^[5]

Personal life and family

In 1851, Little married English American immigrant Susana Fawcett. They had ten children together, though three died in childhood.^[1]

Electoral history

Wisconsin Senate (1870)

Wisconsin Senate, 15th District Election, 1870^[2]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
General Election, November 8, 1870
	Republican	Francis Little	1,865	50.76%
	Democratic	Benjamin Evans	1,809	49.24%
Plurality			56	1.52%
Total votes			3,674	100.0%
	Republican hold

Wisconsin Senate (1872)

Wisconsin Senate, 9th District Election, 1872^[3]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
General Election, November 5, 1872
	Republican	Francis Little (incumbent)	2,116	51.37%	−13.01%
	Democratic	Henry C. Barnard	2,003	48.63%
Plurality			113	2.74%	-26.02%
Total votes			4,119	100.0%	-22.91%
	Republican hold

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e History of Iowa County, Wisconsin. Western Historical Company. 1881. pp. 580, 811, 911–912. Retrieved July 8, 2022.
^ ^a ^b "Official Directory". The Legislative Manual of the State of Wisconsin (Report). State of Wisconsin. 1872. p. 437. Retrieved July 8, 2022.
^ ^a ^b "Official Directory". The Legislative Manual of the State of Wisconsin (Report). State of Wisconsin. 1873. p. 434. Retrieved July 8, 2022.
^ "Ex-Senator Francis Little". The Weekly Wisconsin. January 11, 1890. p. 1. Retrieved April 18, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Died - Francis Little". Iowa County Democrat. January 10, 1890. p. 3. Retrieved July 8, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.