64th Wisconsin Legislature Wisconsin legislative term for 1939–1940
The Sixty-Fourth Wisconsin Legislature convened from January 11, 1939, to October 6, 1939, in regular session.[ 1]
This session saw a significant reorganization of several state government functions, including the creation of the Department of Taxation , the Department of Public Welfare , the Department of Securities , and the Department of Motor Vehicles . This legislative term also coincided with the outbreak of World War II in Europe.
Senators representing odd-numbered districts were newly elected for this session and were serving the first two years of a four-year term. Assembly members were elected to a two-year term. Assembly members and odd-numbered senators were elected in the general election of November 8, 1938. Senators representing even-numbered districts were serving the third and fourth year of a four-year term, having been elected in the general election of November 3, 1936.[ 1]
Major events
January 2, 1939: Inauguration of Julius P. Heil as the 30th Governor of Wisconsin .
February 10, 1939: Pope Pius XI died from a heart attack.
March 2, 1939: The 1939 papal conclave elected Cardinal Secretary of State Eugenio Pacelli as the next pope, he then took the papal name Pius XII .
March 15, 1939: German forces occupied the remaining independent portions of Bohemia and Moravia, abolishing the Republic of Czechoslovakia .
April 1, 1939: The Spanish Civil War came to an end when the last republican forces surrendered to the fascists.
April 3, 1939: U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the Reorganization Act of 1939 , granting the president powers for two years to reorganize the executive branch.
July 1, 1939: The Executive Office of the President of the United States was established using the powers under the Reorganization Act of 1939.
July 4, 1939: Wisconsin U.S. representative Harry W. Griswold (WI-03) died in office.
August 2, 1939: Albert Einstein signed the Einstein–Szilard letter to U.S. President Franklin Roosevelt, advising him of the potential use of uranium to construct an atomic bomb .
August 23, 1939: The Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact was signed pledging non-aggression between Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union, and dividing eastern Europe into spheres of influence for the two empires.
September 1, 1939: German forces began the Invasion of Poland , inititating World War II .
September 3, 1939: The United Kingdom, France, New Zealand, Australia, and India declared war on Germany.
September 23, 1939: The recently completed Mississippi River Bridge at La Crosse, Wisconsin , was opened to traffic.
October 8, 1939: Germany officially annexed western Poland.
October 21, 1939: The first meeting of the U.S. Advisory Committee on Uranium , a precursor of the Manhattan Project .
November 4, 1939: U.S. President Franklin Roosevelt signed the Neutrality Act of 1939 , allowing the sale of weapons to the United Kingdom and France.
November 30, 1939: Soviet forces invaded Finland , initiating the Winter War .
December 10, 1939: The Green Bay Packers won the 1939 NFL Championship Game .
March 5, 1940: Leaders of the Soviet Union signed the order leading to the Katyn massacre , mass executions of Polish intelligentsia.
March 12, 1940: The Moscow Peace Treaty was signed, ending the Winter War. Finland made territorial concessions to the Soviet Union.
April 9, 1940: German forces began Operation Weserübung , invading neutral countries Denmark and Norway.
May 10, 1940:
May 16, 1940: U.S. President Franklin Roosevelt requested from Congress credit of $900 million for the construction of 50,000 airplanes per year.
May 17, 1940: German forces fully occupied the Netherlands , ending the Battle of Netherlands .
June 4, 1940: The Dunkirk evacuation ended after safely evacuating 338,226 British and allied soldiers from German-occupied Europe.
June 10, 1940: Italy declared war on the United Kingdom and France.
June 13, 1940: Paris was declared an open city to avoid destruction.
June 22, 1940: France and Germany signed the Armistice of 22 June 1940 , ending the Battle of France . France was divided into a German occupied territory covering the north and west of the country, and a free state of Vichy France in the south.
July 10, 1940: The Battle of Britain began.
July 22, 1940: The United Kingdom refused a peace offer from Germany.
September 7, 1940: German air forces began a campaign of carpet bombing in Britain, known as The Blitz .
September 16, 1940: U.S. President Franklin Roosevelt signed the Selective Training and Service Act of 1940 .
September 27, 1940: Germany, Italy, and Japan signed the Tripartite Pact .
November 5, 1940: 1940 United States general election :
November 11, 1940: The British Navy launched the first aircraft carrier strike in naval history against Italian naval units at the Battle of Taranto .
November 11–12, 1940: The 1940 Armistice Day Blizzard resulted in 154 deaths, including 13 in Wisconsin.
December 29, 1940: At one of his fireside chats , U.S. President Franklin Roosevelt declared that the United States must become "the great arsenal of democracy."
Major legislation
Party summary
Senate summary
Senate partisan composition Democratic: 6 seats
Progressive: 11 seats
Republican: 16 seats
Assembly summary
Assembly partisan composition Democratic: 15 seats
Progressive: 32 seats
Republican: 53 seats
Sessions
Regular session: January 11, 1939 – October 6, 1939
Leaders
Senate leadership
Assembly leadership
Members
Members of the Senate
Members of the Senate for the Sixty-Fourth Wisconsin Legislature:[ 2]
Senate partisan representation Democratic: 6 seats
Progressive: 11 seats
Republican: 16 seats
Dist.
Counties
Senator
Residence
Party
01
Door , Kewaunee , & Manitowoc
Francis A. Yindra (res. Dec. 6, 1939) Manitowoc
Dem.
02
Brown & Oconto
Michael F. Kresky Jr. Green Bay
Prog.
03
Milwaukee (South City)
Arthur L. Zimny Milwaukee
Dem.
04
Milwaukee (Northeast County & Northeast City)
Milton T. Murray Milwaukee
Rep.
05
Milwaukee (Northwest City)
Bernhard Gettelman Milwaukee
Rep.
06
Milwaukee (North-Central City)
George Hampel Milwaukee
Prog.
07
Milwaukee (Southeast County & Southeast City)
Anthony P. Gawronski Milwaukee
Dem.
08
Milwaukee (Western County)
Allen Busby West Milwaukee
Prog.
09
Milwaukee (City Downtown)
Cornelius T. Young Milwaukee
Dem.
10
Buffalo , Pepin , Pierce , & St. Croix
Kenneth S. White River Falls
Rep.
11
Bayfield , Burnett , Douglas , & Washburn
Philip E. Nelson Maple
Prog.
12
Ashland , Iron , Price , Rusk , Sawyer , & Vilas
Joseph E. McDermid Ladysmith
Prog.
13
Dodge & Washington
Jesse Peters Hartford
Rep.
14
Outagamie & Shawano
Mike Mack Shiocton
Rep.
15
Rock
Maurice Coakley Beloit
Rep.
16
Crawford , Grant , & Vernon
Edward J. Roethe Fennimore
Rep.
17
Green , Iowa , & Lafayette
Carl Lovelace Woodford
Rep.
18
Fond du Lac Green Lake & Waushara
Morvin Duel (res. Sep. 20, 1939) Fond du Lac
Rep.
19
Calumet & Winnebago
Taylor G. Brown Oshkosh
Rep.
20
Ozaukee & Sheboygan
Harry W. Bolens Port Washington
Dem.
21
Racine
Kenneth L. Greenquist Racine
Prog.
22
Kenosha & Walworth
Conrad Shearer Kenosha
Rep.
23
Portage & Waupaca
Fred R. Fisher Waupaca
Rep.
24
Clark , Taylor , & Wood
Walter J. Rush Neillsville
Prog.
25
Lincoln & Marathon
Otto Mueller Wausau
Rep.
26
Dane
Fred Risser Madison
Prog.
27
Columbia , Richland , & Sauk
Jess Miller Richland Center
Rep.
28
Chippewa & Eau Claire
G. Erle Ingram Eau Claire
Prog.
29
Barron , Dunn , & Polk
Albert J. Connors Barron
Prog.
30
Florence , Forest , Langlade , Marinette , & Oneida
Ernest Sauld Pembine
Dem.
31
Adams , Juneau , Monroe , & Marquette
Amrose B. Coller Necedah
Rep.
32
Jackson , La Crosse , & Trempealeau
Oscar S. Paulson La Crosse
Prog.
33
Jefferson & Waukesha
William A. Freehoff Waukesha Rep.
Members of the Assembly
Members of the Assembly for the Sixty-Fourth Wisconsin Legislature:[ 2]
Assembly partisan composition Democratic: 15 seats
Progressive: 32 seats
Republican: 53 seats
Milwaukee County districts
Committees
Senate committees
Senate Standing Committee on Agriculture and Labor – C. Shearer, chair
Senate Standing Committee on Committees – H. W. Bolens, chair
Senate Standing Committee on Contingent Expenditures – M. Duel, chair
Senate Standing Committee on Corporations and Taxation – C. T. Young, chair
Senate Standing Committee on Education and Public Welfare – E. J. Roethe, chair
Senate Standing Committee on Highways – M. Mack, chair
Senate Standing Committee on the Judiciary – M. Coakley, chair
Senate Standing Committee on Legislative Procedure – E. J. Roethe, chair
Senate Standing Committee on State and Local Government – B. Gettelman, chair
Assembly committees
Assembly Standing Committee on Agriculture – O. R. Rice, chair
Assembly Standing Committee on Commerce and Manufactures – B. M. Engebretson, chair
Assembly Standing Committee on Conservation – F. N. Graass, chair
Assembly Standing Committee on Contingent Expenditures – E. Grassman, chair
Assembly Standing Committee on Education – W. H. Goldthorpe, chair
Assembly Standing Committee on Elections – M. Catlin, chair
Assembly Standing Committee on Engrossed Bills – H. Youngblood, chair
Assembly Standing Committee on Enrolled Bills – C. M. Nelson, chair
Assembly Standing Committee on Excise and Fees – L. E. Douglass, chair
Assembly Standing Committee on Highways – D. C. McDowell, chair
Assembly Standing Committee on Insurance and Banking – M. Catlin, chair
Assembly Standing Committee on the Judiciary – R. W. Peterson, chair
Assembly Standing Committee on Labor – A. R. Ludvigsen, chair
Assembly Standing Committee on Municipalities – A. F. Hinz, chair
Assembly Standing Committee on Printing – W. F. Miller, chair
Assembly Standing Committee on Public Welfare – G. H. Hipke, chair
Assembly Standing Committee on Revision – A. C. Grosvenor, chair
Assembly Standing Committee on Rules – R. W. Peterson, chair
Assembly Standing Committee on State Affairs – C. A. Budlong, chair
Assembly Standing Committee on Taxation – M. J. Fitzsimons, chair
Assembly Standing Committee on Third Reading – L. T. Niemuth, chair
Assembly Standing Committee on Transportation – D. I. Hammergren, chair
Joint committees
Joint Standing Committee on Finance – O. Mueller (Sen.) & P. B. McIntyre (Asm.), co-chairs
Employees
Senate employees
Chief Clerk: Lawrence R. Larsen [ 3] Assistant Chief Clerk: Thomas M. Donahue
Sergeant-at-Arms: Emil A. Hartman
Assistant Sergeant-at-Arms: Albert E. Daley
Assembly employees
Chief Clerk: John J. Slocum[ 3]
Sergeant-at-Arms: Robert A. Merrill
Assistant Sergeant-at-Arms: Phillip K. Lalor
Notes
References
^ a b Barish, Lawrence S.; Lemanski, Lynn, eds. (2021). "Historical Lists" (PDF) . State of Wisconsin Blue Book 2021–2022 (Report). Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau. pp. 468, 471, 475, 479– 480. ISBN 978-1-7333817-1-0 . Retrieved August 5, 2023 . ^ a b Ohm, Howard F.; Bryhan, Leone G., eds. (1940). "Members of the Legislature". The Wisconsin Blue Book 1940 (Report). Wisconsin Legislative Reference Library . pp. 23– 70. Retrieved August 1, 2023 . ^ a b Ohm, Howard F.; Bryhan, Leone G., eds. (1940). "Officers of the Senate and Assembly". The Wisconsin Blue Book 1940 (Report). Wisconsin Legislative Reference Library . pp. 264– 270. Retrieved August 5, 2023 .
External links
