Statewide County WI Archives Biographies.....KEMPF, JOHN J.
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File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by:
Tina S. Vickery tsvickery@gmail.com October 21, 2007, 7:16 pm

Author: Halford Erickson

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. MEMBERS OF THE FIFTY-EIGHTH
CONGRESS. UNITED STATES. STATE OFFICERS.

STATE TREASURER.

JOHN J. KEMPF (Rep.), of Milwaukee, is a native of the
county from which he was elected, having been born in the
town of Granville, in Milwaukee county, on May 4th, 1857.
He is of German-French extraction and his parents lived on
one of the oldest homesteads in the state of Wisconsin, a
farm located by one of the pioneers of the state. Mr.
Kempf was reared on the home farm and attended the
district school at Granville until he moved into the city
of Milwaukee, where he completed his public schooling at
the old sixth ward school, under the tutelage of the well-
known Prof. Wall. After this he attended the Spencerian
Business College with a view to fitting himself for the
mercantile career he has since followed. Having acquired
a liking for the boot and shoe business, at the age of
sixteen Mr. Kempf entered the employ of a Milwaukee firm
and continued in the service of the same firm until he
attained to his majority, when he started the store which
he now owns. Mr. Kempf secured his first public office in
1887, when he was elected alderman of the sixth ward.
During his term as alderman, he received the honor of
appointment by the mayor to the Library Board, and served
on the Finance committee of the Board. After serving but
one year of his aldermanic term, he was nominated senator
of the Fourth Senatorial district, and he thereupon
resigned from the common council to make the run for
senator, to which position he was elected over three
opposing candidates. He served four years as state
senator. In 1894, he received the republican nomination
for register of deeds of Milwaukee county and was elected
to that office by the largest plurality on the county
ticket, running about 1,100 votes ahead of any other
candidate. He was the last register to serve under the old
fee system. He was elected state treasurer in 1902, and
re-elected in 1904, receiving 238,759 votes, against
155,340 for Andrew Jenson (Dem.), 17,945 for Henry Luther
(Soc. Hem.), 13,219 for Gustav Wollaeger, Jr. (Nat. Rep.),
19,061 for John A. Berg (Pro.), and 219 for Henry D. Puck
(Soc. Lab.).

Additional Comments:
Erickson, Halford.  The Blue Book of the State of
Wisconsin. Madison: Democrat Printing Co., State Printer,
1905.

File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/wi/history/bluebook/1905/bios/kempf348nbs.txt

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