Wisconsin
First Wisconsin election held in Green Bay – The Press
By Kris Leonhardt
Editor-in-chief
GREEN BAY – The first election held in the state of Wisconsin occurred in Green Bay, then part of a much larger Brown County.
Brown County — named for Gen. Jacob Brown — was one of the first counties organized in the state.
It was incorporated in October of 1818 by Michigan Territory Governor Lewis Cass, at that time taking up much of the eastern half of what was to become the state of Wisconsin.
What is now Wisconsin became part of the Indiana Territory when it was formed in 1800.
In 1809, it became part of the Illinois Territory and when Illinois became a state, it was merged into the Michigan Territory until Michigan became its own state.
In Florence Elizabeth Baker’s “A Brief History of the Elective Franchise in Wisconsin” — presented to the Wisconsin Historical Society in 1894 — Baker recounts the first time the elective franchise was exercised in Wisconsin.
“In June of 1825, we discover a Detroit paper (Detroit Gazette) stopping its press ‘to announce that the schooner Harriet arrived this morning (June 14) from Green Bay and Mackinac, bringing the intelligence that Mr. Biddle received 82 votes at Green Bay and 42 on the island of Mackinac. Mr. Wing received at the former place 34 and at the latter 18, and Mr. Richard two at Mackinac,’” the paper stated.
“In 1830, the counties of Brown, Crawford, Chippewa and Iowa, which included part of the Wisconsin Territory, but were then in Michigan Territory, were exempted from the operation of the law requiring freehold security to be given for any purpose, or as a qualification for office.”
The race was for the U.S. House of Representatives, and at that time the election was held on varying dates from July 1824, to August 1825 across the country.
Incumbent Gabriel Richard faced Austin Eli Wing and John Biddle for the non-voting delegate for the Michigan Territory at-large.
Richard lost to Wing in the election.
“As Michigan was still a territory, Wing was a non-voting delegate. He was allowed to debate, bring up bills in committee, but not to vote. He was again elected in 1830 as Michigan’s delegate to the U.S. House,” said Monroe County Museum Volunteer Mary Strevel wrote in a Monroe News column.
Strevel transcribed hand-written letters donated to the museum from the Wing family.
“In the process of deciphering one of the letters Austin had written to his father in 1825, I learned that the election of 1825 was contested. Austin had two opponents in this election: Major Biddle and Mr. Richard. Wing tied Biddle for the seat at 732 votes. Mr. Wing objected to the counting of certain votes given at Sault de St. Marie on the grounds of illegality. Of course Mr. Biddle objected, and a committee was formed to look into this matter. After much debating, the election was decided in favor of Austin Eli Wing and he became the delegate to the 19th Congress.”
Wisconsin guard Andrew Rohde reflects on early March Madness exit
Wisconsin guard Andrew Rohde said the Badgers ‘thought we could do so many things’ in the NCAA Tournament before it ended abrupty with an upset loss.
Wisconsin men’s basketball has added a sharpshooting wing via the transfer portal.
Miami (Ohio) transfer Eian Elmer has signed with the Badgers, the team announced April 18. The 6-foot-7 wing will join UW with one year of eligibility remaining.
Elmer averaged a career-high 12.7 points and 5.9 rebounds while shooting 49.8% from the field and 42.9% from 3-point range in 2025-26. His production helped the RedHawks go 32-2 and earn an at-large NCAA Tournament bid.
“We are really excited to add another excellent addition to our spring signees,” UW coach Greg Gard said in a release. “Eian brings a wealth of experience and scoring punch as a 6-7 wing. … A terrific shooter, his skillset and production fit excellently into our plan as we build out next year’s team. Throughout our evaluation process, our staff loved his size, power and skill and truly believe he will thrive in our system.”
Elmer is Wisconsin’s third transfer portal addition since the end of the 2025-26 season, joining former George Washington guard Trey Autry and former Hofstra forward Victory Onuetu. UW also added Australian guard Owen Foxwell.
The additions of Autry, Onuetu and now Elmer leave Gard’s staff with three more roster spots to fill ahead of the 2026-27 season.
The Badgers are looking to replace much of their production from a 2025-26 team that went 24-11. Nolan Winter is expected to be the team’s only returning starter after John Blackwell and Aleksas Bieliauskas entered the transfer portal and Nick Boyd and Andrew Rohde exhausted their eligibility.
MILWAUKEE – Friday’s severe storms have passed. And with that, the threat of any severe weather has also passed for the immediate future as no storms or rain are expected for several days.
However, plenty of damage remains across southeastern Wisconsin as of Saturday morning, in addition to the ongoing flooding threat.
Several area rivers are at flood stage, and there are multiple river flood warnings in effect.
FOX6 Weekend WakeUp on Saturday begins at 6 a.m.
On the scene in the morning
What we know:
Farmstead damage in Franklin
FOX6’s Hayley Spitler is in Franklin on Saturday morning, April 18, getting a daylight look at the damage from last night’s storms.
Storm damage in Caledonia
Friday’s storms left quite the mark across southern and southeastern Wisconsin, including at L and L Farms and Greenhouse in Caledonia.
FOX6 Weather Extras
Local perspective:
Meanwhile, FOX6Now.com offers a variety of extremely useful weather tools to help you navigate the stormy season. They include the following:
FOX6 Storm Center app
FOX LOCAL Mobile app
FOX Weather app
Maps and radar
We have a host of maps and radars on the FOX6 Weather page that are updating regularly — to provide you the most accurate assessment of the weather. From a county-by-county view to the Midwest regional radar and a national view — it’s all there.
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School and business closings
When the weather gets a little dicey, schools and businesses may shut down. Monitor the latest list of closings, cancellations, and delays reported in southeast Wisconsin.
FOX6 Weather Experts in social media
The Source: Information in this post was compiled by the FOX6 Weather Experts.
How Aleksas Bieliauskas has grown in first season with Wisconsin Badgers
Wisconsin coach Greg Gard has high praise for Aleksas Bieliauskas about a month into the Lithuania native’s freshman season.
MADISON – One of Wisconsin men’s basketball’s departing transfers is headed to an SEC program with some connections to the Badgers.
Ex-UW forward Aleksas Bieliauskas has committed to South Carolina, he announced on April 17.
Bieliauskas left the Badgers after appearing in all 35 games as a freshman and making 28 starts. He averaged 4.9 points and 4.4 points in 20.2 minutes, and highlights of his freshman year included his five 3-pointers in UW’s upset over eventual national champion Michigan.
He’ll join a program with plenty of Wisconsin ties. South Carolina head coach Lamont Paris was an assistant coach at Wisconsin from 2010-17 on Bo Ryan and Greg Gard’s staffs. South Carolina assistant coach Tanner Bronson and director of video services Roman DiPasquale also are UW alumni.
Bieliauskas is the second of UW’s four departing transfers to commit to a new school. Reserve forward Jack Robison committed to North Dakota State on April 15. Starting guard John Blackwell and reserve forward Riccardo Greppi have not announced their next schools yet.
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