William J. Fisk

William J. Fisk
Born	Template:Birth date Brunswick, Ohio, U.S.
Died	March 1, 1909(1909-03-01) (aged 75) Green Bay, Wisconsin, U.S.
Occupation(s)	Entrepreneur, banker, politician
Years active	1850s–1902
Known for	Wisconsin State Assembly member (1875–1878), president of Green Bay City National Bank and Kellogg National Bank

William Justan Fisk (June 25, 1833 – March 1, 1909) was a notable American entrepreneur, Republican figure, and early settler of Wisconsin. He represented Brown County, Wisconsin in the Wisconsin State Assembly for three consecutive years from 1875 to 1878. As a leading banker in Green Bay, Fisk was instrumental in the 1875 repeal of the railroad-regulating Potter Law.

Biography

Fisk was born in Brunswick, Ohio and relocated to Green Bay with his family in 1836 when his father obtained employment there. He received his education locally and attended Appleton Institute before beginning work at a young age alongside his father at the U.S. land office, where he contributed to mapping Indian reservations and assessing river navigability.

Following advice to invest early, Fisk became a landowner by age sixteen. He gained experience as a jeweler’s assistant and merchant clerk prior to launching his own merchandise enterprise at twenty in Fort Howard. His first contract involved supplying shingles, which led him to establish one of the area’s earliest shingle mills—a venture that prospered until the economic downturn of 1857 resulted in extensive unsold stock that remained for two years.

In 1862, Fisk sold his business and successfully advocated for railroad development within Brown County. As a significant timber landholder, he secured contracts providing lumber for the Northwestern Railroad’s Wisconsin expansion, fostering a sustained business partnership.

During the 1860s, Fisk entered the banking sector by becoming a shareholder and director of Green Bay’s First National Bank in 1865. Although he lost approximately 10,000 acres of timberland during the Peshtigo fire of 1871, he advanced in banking—ultimately serving as president of Green Bay City National Bank prior to its merger with Kellogg National Bank in 1874. At Kellogg National Bank, he held the roles of vice president and later president from 1891 until health concerns prompted his retirement in 1902.

Political career

Initially affiliated with the Democratic Party, Fisk shifted allegiance to the Republican Party shortly after its inception, endorsing Abraham Lincoln in the 1860 United States presidential election. Under Lincoln’s administration, Fisk was appointed postmaster and elected alderman as well as city treasurer in Fort Howard. By the 1870s, he opposed Democratic attempts to impose regulations on Wisconsin railroads. Elected to the Wisconsin State Assembly in 1874, he actively resisted railroad regulatory measures enacted earlier that year and secured re-election in both 1875 and 1876.

During the 1875 session, Fisk chaired the Assembly’s railroad committee, which drafted legislation repealing Wisconsin’s railroad-regulating Potter Law.

Personal life and family

William J. Fisk was the oldest of seven children born to Judge Joel S. Fisk, an early Green Bay settler who established the region’s first lumber mill as well as Fond du Lac’s initial grist mill. Joel Fisk also held positions as Green Bay postmaster and U.S. Land Office register. The family lineage traces back to Phinehas Fiske, a Puritan settler arriving in Massachusetts Bay Colony around 1642.

William’s brother Melancton Hogeboom Fisk gained recognition as a prominent physician in Wisconsin and became De Pere’s first mayor following its incorporation in 1883. Another sibling, Valentine Saterlee Fisk, served as a captain in the 8th Kansas Infantry Regiment during the Civil War.

On January 8, 1855, William married Mary J. Driggs in Fond du Lac. Mary’s sister Martha was married to Samuel Ryan Jr., founder of the Appleton Crescent newspaper. William and Mary had four sons; among them Wilbur D. Fisk later served as treasurer of Fort Howard. William partnered with his son Harry under W. D. Fisk and Co., managing their business interests jointly.

Following Mary’s death in 1903, Fisk remarried Hattie Trowel from Milwaukee in November 1904. He passed away at his residence in Green Bay on March 1, 1909.