Isaac E. Messmore
Isaac Elijah Messmore (August 21, 1821 – January 8, 1902) was a Canadian American lawyer, politician, and Union Army officer in the American Civil War. He also held public office as a Wisconsin Circuit Court Judge and as a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly.
The Honorable Isaac E. Messmore | |
|---|---|
| Wisconsin Circuit Court Judge for the 6th Circuit | |
| In office 1861 – June 1, 1862 | |
| Appointed by | Alexander Randall |
| Preceded by | George W. Gale |
| Succeeded by | Edwin Flint |
| Member of the Wisconsin State Assembly from the La Crosse and Monroe district | |
| In office January 1, 1861 – January 1, 1862 | |
| Preceded by | John J. McKay |
| Succeeded by |
|
| Personal details | |
| Born | Isaac Elijah Messmore August 21, 1821 Upper Canada, British Empire |
| Died | January 8, 1902 (aged 80) Los Angeles County, California, U.S. |
| Cause of death | Pneumonia |
| Resting place | Angelus-Rosedale Cemetery Los Angeles, California |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse(s) |
|
| Children |
|
| Mother | Jane (Moat) Messmore |
| Father | John Messmore |
| Alma mater | Richmond Law School |
| Profession | Politician |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  |
| Branch/service |  Union Army |
| Years of service | 1862–1863 |
| Rank |  |
| Commands | 31st Reg. Wis. Vol. Infantry |
| Battles/wars | American Civil War |
Biography
Born in Upper Canada, near Detroit, Isaac Messmore grew up in Michigan and later studied law as a young man, graduating from the Richmond Law School in Virginia; he went on to live in La Crosse, Wisconsin, where he practiced law in the 1850s.
In 1861, he served in the Wisconsin State Assembly as a Republican. Later in 1861, he was appointed a Wisconsin Circuit Court judge; however, his appointment to the bench was ruled to have been improperly authorized by the governor, and thus invalid.[1]
Messmore next went on to serve in the 31st Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry Regiment during the American Civil War, attaining the rank of colonel.
After the end of the war, Messmore resettled in Washington, D.C., where he was very soon appointed assistant commissioner of the Internal Revenue Bureau. While in Washington, in 1867, he acquired the Meridian Hill estate, an older property which sat a short distance north of the White House; he then subdivided this tract of land, and its lots were sold to create a new neighborhood.[2]
In the late 1860s, he next served on the Metropolitan Revenue Board of the City of New York, primarily fighting excise-tax fraud. Messmore subsequently moved to Grand Rapids, Michigan, where he purchased and became, in 1881, the editor and publisher of the newspaper The Democrat.
He later relocated to Los Angeles, California, about 1888, where he was active in the California Democratic Party. There, in 1894, running for—but losing—the position of Representative from California's 6th congressional district.[3] Colonel Messmore was noted to have been a defender of the rights of the average citizen against the economic power of the railroads.
Family
Isaac first married Editha McKenney in 1848; she died about 1860. He remarried, in about 1861, Margaret A. Jones (née Hull) of New York, who lived with him until his death. Children: a son, Charles and a daughter, Florence, as well as an adopted stepson, William Hull.
Isaac Messmore died in California in 1902, two days after the death of his wife, Margaret. Both died of pneumonia.[4] Messmore died in Los Angeles, California on January 8, 1902.[5][6]
Notes
- 'Proceedings of the State Bar Association of Wisconsin 1903,'Wisconsin Bar Association: 1903, Biographical Sketch of Isaac E. Messmore, pg. 228-231.
- Meridian Hill: A History, by Stephen McKevitt (History Press, 2014), pg. 42-45.
- The San Francisco Call Newspaper, August 23, 1894 (Vol. 76, No. 84) pg. 1.
- History of Kent County, Michigan,' 1881, Biographical Sketch of Isaac E. Messmore, pg. 426-427.
- 'Death of Colonel I. E. Messmore.' The Ottawa Citizen (Ottawa, Ontario, Canada), January 9, 1902, pg. 1
- 'Death of Col. Messmore,' The Muscatine News-Tribune (Iowa), January 10, 1902, pg. 3