Robert McKee Bashford

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
The Honorable
Robert M. Bashford
Justice of the
Mayor of Madison, Wisconsin
In office
April 1890 – April 1891
Preceded byMoses Ransom Doyon
Succeeded byWilliam H. Rogers
Personal details
Born
Robert McKee Bashford

(1845-12-31)December 31, 1845
Fayette, Wisconsin
DiedJanuary 29, 1911(1911-01-29) (aged 65)
Madison, Wisconsin
Cause of deathCardiovascular disease
Resting placeForest Hill Cemetery
Madison, Wisconsin
Political partyDemocratic
Spouses
  • Florence E. Taylor
  • (died 1886)
  • Sarah Amelia Fuller
  • (died 1915)
Children
  • Florence (Spensley)
  • (b. 1875; died 1942)
Parents
  • Samuel Morris Bashford (father)
  • Mary Ann (McKee) (Trousdale) (mother)
ProfessionLawyer

Robert McKee Bashford (December 31, 1845 – January 29, 1911) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 25th Mayor of

Wisconsin State Senate from 1893 to 1897. He also served briefly as a justice of the Wisconsin Supreme Court in 1908, after the death of Chief Justice John B. Cassoday
.

Biography

Born in

Chicago, Illinois
, where he continued to practice law. While his firm was successful, he did not care for the work and moved back to Madison.

In 1890, Bashford became mayor of Madison, defeating

United States Supreme Court in the 1905 case of United States v. Stinson, in which he successfully defended a land purchaser from the federal government's attempt to reclaim the land based on accusations of fraud.[4] In 1908, Bashford was appointed to the Wisconsin Supreme Court, but lost a special election for the position four months later.[2] He resumed his law practice and was on the faculty of the University of Wisconsin Law School.[5][6]

Personal life and Family

Bashford was the son of Reverend Samuel Morris Bashford and his wife, Mary Ann (McKee) Parkinson Bashford. Bashford's father died when he was only five years old. His mother remarried to William Pearce Trousdale, who became Bashford's stepfather.

Bashford's first wife was Florence E. Taylor, the second daughter of Wisconsin Governor William Robert Taylor. They had one daughter together before her death in 1886. Bashford remarried with Sarah Amelia Fuller, who survived him.[7]

Bashford House

His former home, now known as the Robert M. Bashford House, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.[8][9]

Electoral history

Madison Mayor (1890)

Madison, Wisconsin, Mayoral Election, 1890[10]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
General Election, April 1, 1890
Democratic Robert M. Bashford 1,454 56.71%
Republican Arthur L. Sanborn 1,110 43.29%
Plurality 344 13.42%
Total votes 2,564 100.0%
Democratic hold

Wisconsin Supreme Court (1908)

Wisconsin Supreme Court Election, 1908[11]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
General Election, April 7, 1908
Nonpartisan
 		John Barnes 134,642 57.42%
Nonpartisan
 Robert M. Bashford (incumbent) 84,656 36.10%
Nonpartisan
 William Ruger 15,168 6.47%
Scattering 30 0.01%
Plurality 49,986 21.32%
Total votes 234,496 100.0%

References

  1. ^
    Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  2. ^
    Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  3. Newspapers.com
    .
  4. ^ United States v. Stinson, 197 U.S. 200 (1905), online at https://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=12864504571078634049.
  5. ^ "Bashford, Robert Mckee 1845 - 1911". Wisconsin Historical Society. 8 August 2017. Retrieved May 3, 2020.
  6. ^ "Former Justices - Robert M. Bashford (1845-1911)". Wisconsin Court System. Retrieved May 3, 2020.
  7. Newspapers.com
    .
  8. ^ "Bashford House". Historical Marker Database. Retrieved May 3, 2020.
  9. ^ "Robert M. Bashford House". landmarkhunter.com. Retrieved May 3, 2020.
  10. ^ "Bashford gains the mayoralty by greatly reduced majority". Wisconsin State Journal. April 2, 1890. Retrieved May 4, 2020.
  11. ^ Beck, J.D., ed. (1909). "Election Statistics". The Blue Book of the state of Wisconsin (Report). Madison, Wisconsin: State of Wisconsin. p. 556.

External links

Wisconsin Senate
Preceded by Member of the
26th
district
January 11, 1893 – January 13, 1897 		Succeeded by
Political offices
Preceded by Mayor of Madison, Wisconsin
April 1890 – April 1891 		Succeeded by
Legal offices
Preceded by Justice of the Wisconsin Supreme Court
January 8, 1908 – July 1, 1908 		Succeeded by
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