Joseph Weeks Babcock was a seven-term Republican

Republican Party (United States)

The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...

 member of the United States House of Representatives

United States House of Representatives

The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...

 from Wisconsin

Wisconsin

Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...

.

Babcock was the grandson of Joseph Weeks

Joseph Weeks

Joseph Weeks was a United States Representative from New Hampshire. He was the grandfather of Joseph Weeks Babcock who represented Wisconsin in the United States Congress from 1893-1907. He was born in Warwick, Massachusetts, where he attended the common schools...

, Congressman from Vermont

Vermont

Vermont is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state ranks 43rd in land area, , and 45th in total area. Its population according to the 2010 census, 630,337, is the second smallest in the country, larger only than Wyoming. It is the only New England...

. He grew up in Butler County, Iowa

Butler County, Iowa

-2010 census:The 2010 census recorded a population of 14,867 in the county, with a population density of . There were 6,682 housing units, of which 6,120 were occupied.-2000 census:...

, where he started his lumber career working at his father's lumberyard. In 1881 he moved to Necedah, Wisconsin

Necedah, Wisconsin

Necedah is a village in Juneau County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 888 at the 2000 census. The village is located within the Town of Necedah.-Attractions:The Necedah Shrine and the Necedah National Wildlife Refuge are located nearby....

, where he amassed a fortune during his 17 years as manager and secretary of the Necedah Lumber Company, and served in the Wisconsin State Assembly

Wisconsin State Assembly

The Wisconsin State Assembly is the lower house of the Wisconsin Legislature. Together with the smaller Wisconsin Senate, the two constitute the legislative branch of the U.S. state of Wisconsin....

 from 1888-1892.

In 1892, Babcock was elected to Congress from Wisconsin's 3rd congressional district

Wisconsin's 3rd congressional district

Wisconsin's 3rd congressional district is a U.S. congressional district covering much of southwestern and western Wisconsin; it is the second-largest congressional district by area in Wisconsin...

. In 1893, he helped organize the Republican Congressional Campaign Committee

National Republican Congressional Committee

The National Republican Congressional Committee is the Republican Hill committee which works to elect Republicans to the United States House of Representatives....

; he was credited with helping achieve Republican successes in the 1894 House elections, and was chairman of the committee for the next ten years. He was a candidate for Speaker of the House

Speaker of the United States House of Representatives

The Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, or Speaker of the House, is the presiding officer of the United States House of Representatives...

 in 1902, but lost to Joseph Cannon. He was defeated for reelection in 1906 by Democrat

Democratic Party (United States)

The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...

 James William Murphy

James William Murphy

James William Murphy was an American politician from Wisconsin....

.

He continued to live in Washington, where in 1909 he died at age 59 after suffering for several weeks from liver and kidney problems.

Sources

• American National Biography
  American National Biography
  The American National Biography is a 24 volume biographical encyclopedia set containing approximately 17,400 entries and 20 million words, first published in 1999 by Oxford University Press under the auspices of the American Council of Learned Societies. A 400-entry supplement appeared in 2002...
  
  , vol. 1, pp. 811–812.
• Wisconsin Historical Society biography
• Findagrave.com entry
• Men of Mark in America Biography
• "Ex-Congressman J. W. Babcook", The New York Times, 28 April 1909, p 9. [ProQuest Historical Newspapers, New York Times (1857-Current file), Document ID: 101878577]