George Wilbur Peck

George Wilbur Peck
17th Governor of Wisconsin
In office January 5, 1891 – January 7, 1895
Lieutenant	Charles Jonas
Preceded by	William D. Hoard
Succeeded by	William H. Upham
9th Mayor of Milwaukee
In office 1890 – November 11, 1890
Preceded by	Thomas H. Brown
Succeeded by	Peter J. Somers
Personal details
Born	September 28, 1840 Henderson, New York, US
Died	April 16, 1916 (aged 75) Milwaukee, Wisconsin, US
Resting place	Forest Home Cemetery Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Citizenship	US
Political party	Democratic Party
Spouse(s)	Francena Rowley Peck
Parents	David B. Peck Alzina P. (Joslin) Peck
Alma mater	Union College
Profession	Writer politician
Military service
Service/branch	10th Wisconsin Regiment
Years of service	1863–1866
Rank	Lieutenant

George Wilbur Peck (September 28, 1840 – April 16, 1916) was an American writer and politician from Wisconsin. He served as the 17th Governor of Wisconsin and the 9th Mayor of Milwaukee.^[1]

Biography

Peck was born in 1840 in Henderson, New York, the oldest of three children of David B. and Alzina P. (Joslin) Peck.^[2] In 1843, the family moved to Cold Spring, Wisconsin. Peck attended public school until age 15, when he was apprenticed in the printing trade. He married Francena Rowley in 1860 and they had two sons. In 1863 he enlisted in the 10th Wisconsin Regiment as a private. He was taken prisoner and held at Libby Prison in Richmond, Virginia. After he was released in a prisoner exchange, he was appointed to West Point Military Academy by Abraham Lincoln. He was promoted to lieutenant and served until the regiment mustered out in 1866.^[3]

Peck became a newspaper publisher who founded newspapers in Ripon and La Crosse, Wisconsin. His La Crosse newspaper, The Sun, was founded in 1874. In 1878 Peck moved the newspaper to Milwaukee, renaming it Peck's Sun. The weekly newspaper contained Peck's humorous writings, including his famous "Peck's Bad Boy" stories.^[4]

In the spring of 1890 Peck ran for mayor of Milwaukee. A Democrat, Peck was elected despite a Republican majority in the city.^[4] The state's Democratic leaders took notice and made Peck the party's nominee for the 1890 gubernatorial race. Peck won the election, beating the incumbent William Hoard, and resigned as Milwaukee's mayor on November 11, 1890. He was reelected as governor in 1892, defeating Republican John C. Spooner, but lost a third term to William Upham in 1894. He ran again in 1904 but lost to the incumbent Robert M. La Follette, Sr..^[3]

Peck died in 1916 in Milwaukee at age 75 of Bright's disease and was buried at Forest Home Cemetery.^[5] After his death, his "Peck's Bad Boy" writings became the basis for several films and a short-lived television show, including Peck's Bad Boy and Peck's Bad Girl.^[6][7]

References

1. http://www.wisconsinhistory.org/Content.aspx?dsNav=Ny:True,N:4294963828-4294963805&dsNavOnly=Ntk:All||3|%2c&dsRecordDetails=R:CS1623
2. Greasley, Philip A. (2001). Dictionary of Midwestern Literature, Volume 1: The Authors. Indiana University Press. p. 406.
3. Wisconsin. Legislature. Senate (1917). Journal of Proceedings. Wisconsin. Legislature. p. 149.
4. "George W. Peck from Wisconsin Authors and Their Works 1918 by Charles Rounds". Wisconsin Electronic Reader. Retrieved May 17, 2014.
5. "Historical People". Forest Home Cemetery. Retrieved May 17, 2014.
6. "Academic Dictionaries and EncyclopediasPeck's bad boy". Wisconsin Electronic Reader. Retrieved May 17, 2014.
7. Leszczak, Bob (2012). Single Season Sitcoms, 1948–1979: A Complete Guide. McFarland. p. 154.

Bibliography

Peck's Fun, 1879 (copy) Peck's Sunshine, 1882 (copy) Peck's Bad Boy and His Pa, 1883 How Private Geo. W. Peck Put Down the Rebellion, 1887 (copy)

Peck's Uncle Ike and the Red Headed Boy, 1899 (copy) Peck's Bad Boy Abroad, 1904 (copy) Peck's Bad Boy with the Circus, 1905 (copy) Peck's Bad Boy with the Cowboys, 1907 Peck's Bad Boy in an Airship, 1908 (copy)

External links

• Works by George Wilbur Peck at Project Gutenberg
• Works by or about George Wilbur Peck at Internet Archive
• Works by George Wilbur Peck at LibriVox (public domain audiobooks)
• George W. Peck at the Internet Movie Database
• George Wilbur Peck at Find a Grave
• Many George W. Peck stories read in Mister Ron's Basement Podcast, now indexed for convenience