Elmer Addison Morse

Class of 1893: U.S. Representative

Elmer Addison Morse was a lawyer and politician, and he served as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Wisconsin’s 10th District from March 4, 1907, through March 3, 1913.

He was born May 11, 1870, in Franksville, Wisconsin, and attended the common and public schools of Racine County. He studied the scientific course at Ripon College. He later served as alumni secretary of the Class of 1893.

He was elected county superintendent of schools of Racine County in 1893 and re-elected in 1895, He then attended the law school of the University of Wisconsin at Madison in 1899 and was admitted to the bar in 1900. He opened a practice in Antigo and also was in the insurance and real estate businesses until his death.

After serving as city attorney of Antigo from 1900 to 1906, he was elected to Congress.

In the 1913 Crimson, it was stated: “Congressman Elmer A. Morse, ’93, of Antigo, Wis., has the honor of being Ripon’s only Representative in Congress. He is now serving his third term in the House to the satisfaction of his supporters and all of like political faith. A leader in the Republican Progressive movement, he is taking a prominent part in public speaking tours and knows how to tell what he is trying to do in Congress in a way to interest the rank and file of his hearers.”

After his terms in Congress, he returned to his businesses in Antigo. He also was a delegate to the Republican State conventions in 1934 and 1940.

He died Oct. 4, 1945, at age 75.