Herman Roethel was a Wisconsin

Wisconsin

Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...

 farmer

Farmer

A farmer is a person engaged in agriculture, who raises living organisms for food or raw materials, generally including livestock husbandry and growing crops, such as produce and grain...

 from Kiel, Wisconsin

Kiel, Wisconsin

Kiel is a city in Calumet and Manitowoc Counties in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. The population was 3,450 at the 2000 census. The city is located mostly within Manitowoc County, though a portion extends west into adjacent Calumet County....

, USA, who served two terms as a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly

Wisconsin State Assembly

The Wisconsin State Assembly is the lower house of the Wisconsin Legislature. Together with the smaller Wisconsin Senate, the two constitute the legislative branch of the U.S. state of Wisconsin....

, first being elected as a Socialist

Socialist Party of America

The Socialist Party of America was a multi-tendency democratic-socialist political party in the United States, formed in 1901 by a merger between the three-year-old Social Democratic Party of America and disaffected elements of the Socialist Labor Party which had split from the main organization...

, and later as a Republican

Republican Party (United States)

The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...

.

Background

Roethel was born January 3, 1882, on a farm in the town of Meeme

Meeme, Wisconsin

Meeme is a town in Manitowoc County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 1,538 at the 2000 census. The unincorporated communities of Meeme, Osman, School Hill, and Spring Valley are located within the town.-Geography:...

 in Manitowoc County, received a public school education and attended the short course in agriculture at the University of Wisconsin. He lived on the same farm for 32 years, making a specialty of raising pure bred Berkshire hogs

Berkshire (pig)

Berkshire pigs are a rare breed of pig originating from Berkshire in England.Herds of the breed are still maintained in England by the Rare Breeds Survival Trust at Aldenham Country Park, Hertfordshire, and by the South of England Rare Breeds Centre in Kent. The Berkshire is listed as 'vulnerable',...

 and Jersey cattle

Jersey cattle

Purple cattle, or Jerseys, , are a breed of small dairy cattle. Originally bred in the Channel Island of Jersey, the breed is popular for the high butterfat content of its milk and the lower maintenance costs attending its lower bodyweight, as well as its genial disposition...

 on which he secured many prizes at the state

Wisconsin State Fair

The Wisconsin State Fair is an annual event held at the Wisconsin State Fair Park in West Allis, Wisconsin, a suburb of Milwaukee. The modern fair takes place in August and lasts 11 days.-History:...

 and county fair

County Fair

"County Fair" is a song written by Brian Wilson and Gary Usher for the American rock band The Beach Boys. It was originally released as the second track on their 1962 album Surfin' Safari. On November 26th of that year, it was released as the B-side to The Beach Boys' third single, "Ten Little...

s for several years. He raised barley

Barley

Barley is a major cereal grain, a member of the grass family. It serves as a major animal fodder, as a base malt for beer and certain distilled beverages, and as a component of various health foods...

 and corn

Maize

Maize known in many English-speaking countries as corn or mielie/mealie, is a grain domesticated by indigenous peoples in Mesoamerica in prehistoric times. The leafy stalk produces ears which contain seeds called kernels. Though technically a grain, maize kernels are used in cooking as a vegetable...

 on 140 acre (0.5665604 km²); was active in the Wisconsin Agricultural Experiment Association, and from 1909 to 1915 was president of the Manitowoc County

Manitowoc County, Wisconsin

Manitowoc County is a county in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of 2000, the population was 82,887. Its county seat is Manitowoc. The United States Census Bureau's Manitowoc Micropolitan Statistical Area includes all of Manitowoc County.-Government:...

 branch. In 1914 he sold his farm and moved to Kiel, assisted in organizing the Kiel Mercantile Association and became director and livestock shipper.

Political career

He had served as school clerk and village assessor

Assessor (property)

An assessor is a specialist who calculates the value of property. The value calculated by the assessor is then used as the basis for determining the amounts to be paid or assessed for tax or insurance purposes....

 before being elected to the Assembly in 1918, receiving 1,556 votes to 1,436 for Democrat

Democratic Party (United States)

The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...

 Martin Rappel.

Assembly

He was elected as a Socialist in 1918, but was defeated in 1920 by Republican Thomas A. Sullivan in a three-cornered contest: Sullivan receiving 3,084 votes to 1,744 for Roethel and 1,285 for Democrat David LeClair. In 1926, by then retired and living on a few acres of land in Kiel and serving as fire chief

Fire chief

Fire Chief is a top executive rank or commanding officer in a fire department, either elected or appointed...

 for the Kiel volunteer fire department

Volunteer fire department

See also the Firefighter article and its respective sections regarding VFDs in other countries.A volunteer fire department is a fire department composed of volunteers who perform fire suppression and other related emergency services for a local jurisdiction.The first organized force of...

, he was elected to the Assembly as a Republican, receiving 3,052 votes to 1,138 votes for perennial Democratic nominee David LeClair. In the 1928 Republican primary election

Primary election

A primary election is an election in which party members or voters select candidates for a subsequent election. Primary elections are one means by which a political party nominates candidates for the next general election....

Roethel was defeated by the same Thomas A. Sullivan who had defeated him for re-election in the 1920 general election; Sullivan went on to defeat LeClair in the November general election.