Philip L. Spooner Jr.

Philip Spooner Jr. was born in Lawrenceburg, Indiana, in January 1847. He moved with his parents to Madison, Wisconsin, in 1859, where he was raised and educated.{{cite report|url= http://digital.library.wisc.edu/1711.dl/WI.WIBlueBk1879 |title= The Blue Book of the State of Wisconsin |year= 1879 |publisher= State of Wisconsin |editor-last= Warner |editor-first= Hans B. |chapter-url= https://images.library.wisc.edu/WI/EFacs/WIBlueBks/BlueBks/WIBlueBk1879/reference/wi.wibluebk1879.i0021.pdf |chapter= Biographical Sketches |page=477 |accessdate= February 27, 2022 }} He attended the University of Wisconsin, but did not graduate.

In 1867 he went into the business as an insurance agent, selling fire and life insurance for Aetna and other insurers.{{Cite book|url= https://archive.org/details/historyofdanecou02keye/ |title= History of Dane County |publisher= Western Historical Association |year= 1906 |last= Keyes |first= Elisha W. |author-link= Elisha W. Keyes |page= [https://archive.org/details/historyofdanecou02keye/page/835/ 835–836] |accessdate= February 27, 2022 }} He also became active with the Republican Party of Wisconsin, serving on the Madison city council. He ran for Wisconsin State Assembly in 1875, but was defeated by Liberal Republican William Charlton.{{Cite report|url= http://digital.library.wisc.edu/1711.dl/WI.WIBlueBk1876 |title= The Legislative Manual of the State of Wisconsin |year= 1876 |publisher= State of Wisconsin |editor-last= Bashford |editor-first= R. M. |chapter-url= https://images.library.wisc.edu/WI/EFacs/WIBlueBks/BlueBks/WIBlueBk1876/reference/wi.wibluebk1876.i0021.pdf |chapter= Official Directory |page= 463 |accessdate= February 27, 2022 }}

File:P. L. Spooner Insurance Commissioner.jpg, with associates.]]

He worked in the insurance business until 1878, when he was appointed to the newly-created position of state insurance commissioner by Governor William E. Smith. He was subsequently re-appointed to another two-year term in 1880. The position changed into a state-wide elected office in 1881, and he was elected to continue in the office in 1881 and 1884.{{cite report|url= http://digital.library.wisc.edu/1711.dl/WI.WIBlueBk1882 |title= The Blue Book of the State of Wisconsin |year= 1882 |publisher= State of Wisconsin |editor-last= Heg |editor-first= J. E. |chapter-url= https://images.library.wisc.edu/WI/EFacs/WIBlueBks/BlueBks/WIBlueBk1882/reference/wi.wibluebk1882.i0022.pdf |chapter= Biographical Sketches |page= 528 |accessdate= February 27, 2022 }}{{cite report|url= http://digital.library.wisc.edu/1711.dl/WI.WIBlueBk1885 |title= The Blue Book of the State of Wisconsin |year= 1885 |publisher= State of Wisconsin |editor-last= Heg |editor-first= J. E. |chapter-url= https://images.library.wisc.edu/WI/EFacs/WIBlueBks/BlueBks/WIBlueBk1885/reference/wi.wibluebk1885.i0017.pdf |chapter= Biographical Sketches |page= 418 |accessdate= February 27, 2022 }} He did not run for another term in 1886.

While serving as insurance commissioner, he was also elected mayor of Madison, Wisconsin, in the Spring of 1880 and served a one year term. In addition to his insurance and political interests, he was the president and major shareholder in Madison Traction Co. He died after a long illness at his home in Madison on January 2, 1918.{{cite news|url= https://www.newspapers.com/clip/96582145/obituary-for-p-l-spooner-aged-77/ |title= P. L. Spooner Dead After Long Illness |newspaper= The Capital Times |date= January 2, 1918 |page= 1 |accessdate= February 27, 2022 |via= Newspapers.com }}

Philip Loring Spooner Jr. was the second-born son of Philip Loring Spooner and his wife Lydia Lord Spooner ({{nee}} Coit). Philip Spooner Sr. was a prominent lawyer in Madison, clerk of the Wisconsin Supreme Court, and dean of the University of Wisconsin Law School.{{Cite book|url= https://archive.org/details/biographicalrevi01biog/ |title= Biographical Review of Dane County, Wisconsin |year= 1893 |publisher= Biographical Review Publishing Co. |location= Chicago |page= [https://archive.org/details/biographicalrevi01biog/page/272 272–277] |accessdate= February 27, 2022 }} Philip Jr.'s siblings included John Coit Spooner, who served 16 years as United States senator from Wisconsin, and Roger C. Spooner, who was a chairman of the Republican Party of Dane County.

Philip Spooner Jr. was never married.{{cite news|url= https://www.newspapers.com/clip/96587831/philip-spooner-obit-wsj/ |title= P. L. Spooner, ex-Mayor of City, is Dead |newspaper= Wisconsin State Journal |date= January 2, 1918 |page= 1 |accessdate= February 27, 2022 |via= Newspapers.com }} He shared a home in Madison with his sister and her husband until their deaths.

{{Election box begin | title= Wisconsin Assembly, Dane 2nd District Election, 1875}}

| colspan="6" style="text-align:center;background-color: #e9e9e9;"| General Election, November 2, 1875

{{Election box winning candidate with party link|

|party = Liberal Republican Party (United States)

|candidate = William Charlton

|votes = 1,327

|percentage = 50.44%

|change =

}}

{{Election box candidate with party link|

|party = Republican Party (United States)

|candidate = Philip L. Spooner

|votes = 1,304

|percentage = 49.56%

|change = +2.52%

}}

{{Election box plurality

|votes = 23

|percentage = 0.87%

|change = -5.04%

}}

{{Election box total

|votes = 2,631

|percentage = 100.0%

|change = +0.30%

}}

{{Election box gain with party link no swing |

|winner = Liberal Republican Party (United States)

|loser = Democratic Party (United States)

}}

{{Election box end}}

{{Election box begin | title= Wisconsin Commissioner of Insurance Election, 1881}}

| colspan="6" style="text-align:center;background-color: #e9e9e9;"| General Election, November 8, 1881

{{Election box winning candidate with party link|

|party = Republican Party (United States)

|candidate = Philip L. Spooner

|votes = 85,349

|percentage = 49.85%

|change =

}}

{{Election box candidate with party link|

|party = Democratic Party (United States)

|candidate = Louis Kemper

|votes = 67,574

|percentage = 39.47%

|change =

}}

{{Election box candidate with party link|

|party = Prohibition Party

|candidate = Thomas Bracken

|votes = 11,580

|percentage = 6.76%

|change =

}}

{{Election box candidate with party link|

|party = Greenback Party

|candidate = Lorenzo Merrill

|votes = 6,693

|percentage = 3.91%

|change =

}}

{{Election box plurality

|votes = 17,775

|percentage = 10.38%

|change =

}}

{{Election box total

|votes = 171,196

|percentage = 100.0%

|change =

}}

{{Election box hold with party link no swing |

|winner = Republican Party (United States)

}}

{{Election box end}}

{{Election box begin | title= Wisconsin Commissioner of Insurance Election, 1884}}

| colspan="6" style="text-align:center;background-color: #e9e9e9;"| General Election, November 4, 1884

{{Election box winning candidate with party link|

|party = Republican Party (United States)

|candidate = Philip L. Spooner (incumbent)

|votes = 162,387

|percentage = 52.87%

|change = +1.22%

}}

{{Election box candidate with party link|

|party = Democratic Party (United States)

|candidate = Ole S. Holum

|votes = 144,785

|percentage = 45.54%

|change = +6.07%

}}

{{Election box candidate with party link|

|party = Prohibition Party

|candidate = Nelson La Due

|votes = 6,538

|percentage = 2.06%

|change = -4.71%

}}

{{Election box candidate with party link|

|party = Greenback Party

|candidate = J. B. Russell

|votes = 4,222

|percentage = 1.33%

|change = -2.58%

}}

{{Election box plurality

|votes = 17,602

|percentage = 5.54%

|change = -4.85%

}}

{{Election box total

|votes = 317,932

|percentage = 100.0%

|change = +85.71%

}}

{{Election box hold with party link no swing |

|winner = Republican Party (United States)

}}

{{Election box end}}

{{reflist}}

{{s-start}}

{{s-ppo}}

|-

{{s-non|reason = New office created}}

{{s-ttl|title = Republican nominee for {{nobreak|Commissioner of Insurance of Wisconsin}} |years= 1881, 1884 }}

{{s-aft|after = Philip Cheek Jr. }}

{{s-off}}

{{s-bef|before = John R. Baltzell }}

{{s-ttl|title = {{nobreak|Mayor of Madison, Wisconsin}} |years= April 1880{{spaced ndash}}April 1881 }}

{{s-aft|after = James Conklin }}

|-

{{s-non|reason = New office created}}

{{s-ttl|title = {{nobreak|Commissioner of Insurance of Wisconsin}} |years= April 1, 1878{{spaced ndash}}January 3, 1887 }}

{{s-aft|after = Philip Cheek Jr. }}

{{s-end}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Spooner, Philip}}

Category:1847 births

Category:1918 deaths

Category:People from Lawrenceburg, Indiana

Category:Wisconsin Republicans

Category:Mayors of Madison, Wisconsin

Category:State insurance commissioners of the United States

Category:19th-century mayors of places in Wisconsin

Category:Politicians from Madison, Wisconsin

Category:Insurance agents