Louis John Fellenz Sr. (November 29, 1882 – January 1, 1953) was an American lawyer, politician, and judge from Wisconsin. He was district attorney of Fond du Lac County for four years, was a member of the Wisconsin Senate, and was a Wisconsin circuit court judge for the last nine years of his life.[1][2][3]

The Honorable
Louis J. Fellenz
Wisconsin Circuit Court Judge for the 18th Circuit
In office
1943 – January 1, 1953
Appointed byWalter Samuel Goodland
Preceded byClayton F. Van Pelt
Succeeded byRussell E. Hanson
Member of the Wisconsin Senate
from the 18th district
In office
January 1, 1929 – January 1, 1933
Preceded byWilliam A. Titus
Succeeded byMorley Garfield Kelly
District Attorney of Fond du Lac County
In office
January 1, 1915 – January 1, 1919
Preceded byThomas C. Downs
Succeeded byJames Murray
Personal details
Born
Louis John Fellenz

(1882-11-29)November 29, 1882
Ashford, Wisconsin
DiedJanuary 1, 1953(1953-01-01) (aged 70)
Fond du Lac, Wisconsin
Resting placeRienzi Cemetery
Fond du Lac, Wisconsin
Political partyRepublican
Spouses
  • Erma Emma Tabor
  • (m. 1914)
Children
Parents
  • Mathias Joseph Fellenz (father)
  • Susan (Beringer) Fellenz (mother)
Alma materUniversity of Wisconsin Law School

Early life and career

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Fellenz was born on November 29, 1882, in Ashford, Wisconsin, in Fond du Lac County. He attended school in Campbellsport, Wisconsin, before graduating from Oshkosh State Normal School in 1902. He taught school for two years before attending the University of Wisconsin Law School, where he received his LL.B. in 1907. He practiced law in Fort Atkinson for 3 years, then moved his practice to Fond du Lac.[2]

Public office

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In 1914 he was elected District Attorney of Fond du Lac County, running as a Republican. He was re-elected in 1916, and left office in January 1919. He returned to his law practice until 1928, when he was elected to represent Fond du Lac County in the Wisconsin State Senate for a four-year term. In the senate, he was chairman of the interim committee on the courts, and also served on the committees on fire insurance and guardianship. He was not a candidate for re-election in 1932.[2][4][5]

Fellenz continued his law practice until he was appointed, in 1943, as a Wisconsin Circuit Court Judge for the Fond du Lac-based 18th Circuit, replacing the retiring Judge Clayton F. Van Pelt. He was re-elected without opposition in 1947, but died in January 1853, before the end of his 2nd term.

Family and personal life

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Louis Fellenz married Erma E. Tabor in 1914. They had one son and two daughters, who all survived him. His son, Louis J. Fellenz, Jr., also went on to serve as a member of the Senate, representing the same district as his father.[2]

Fellenz was an avid hunter and golfer and a baseball enthusiast.[2]

Electoral history

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Wisconsin Senate (1928)

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Wisconsin Senate, 18th District Election, 1928[6]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
General Election, November 6, 1928
Republican Louis J. Fellenz 21,550 65.24%
Democratic J. J. Gough 11,483 34.76%
Total votes 33,033 100.0%
Republican hold

Wisconsin Circuit Court (1947)

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Wisconsin Circuit Court, 18th Circuit Election, 1947[7]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
General Election, April 1, 1947
Independent Louis J. Fellenz 22,702 100.0%
Total votes 22,702 100.0%

References

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  1. ^ "State government: legislative branch". Wisconsin Blue Book. Retrieved 2015-05-26.
  2. ^ a b c d e Wisconsin (1953). "A Joint Resolution relating to the life and public service of Louis J. Fellenz, Sr". Wisconsin Session Laws. Madison, Wisconsin: 595. Retrieved December 21, 2019.
  3. ^ Kelly, Alice, ed. (1931). "Legislative branch of the state government". The Wisconsin Blue Book, 1931 (Report). Madison, Wisconsin: State of Wisconsin. p. 205. Retrieved December 21, 2019.
  4. ^ "Reilly Reelection in Sixth District Appears Certainty". Oshkosh Daily Northwestern. November 9, 1932. p. 18. Archived from the original on September 17, 2016. Retrieved September 7, 2016 – via Newspapers.com.  
  5. ^ "Fellenz, L. J." Political Graveyard. Retrieved 2015-05-26.
  6. ^ Anderson, William J.; Anderson, William A., eds. (1929). "1928 State government: legislative branch". The Wisconsin Blue Book, 1929 (Report). State of Wisconsin. pp. 510–511. Retrieved December 21, 2019.
  7. ^ Ohm, Howard F.; Kuehn, Hazel L., eds. (1948). "Parties and elections: the judicial and nonpartisan elections". The Wisconsin Blue Book, 1948 (Report). State of Wisconsin. p. 693. Retrieved December 21, 2019.
Legal offices
Preceded by
Clayton F. Van Pelt
Wisconsin Circuit Court Judge for the 18th Circuit
1943 – 1953
Succeeded by
Russell E. Hanson