farmer, leader in the farm co-operative movement, politician, b. Dunn County. He graduated from Menomonie High School (1922). From 1922 to 1930, Sanderson farmed in Dunn County and also served as an active organizer of the Farmers Union. In 1930 he was named full time secretary of the Wisconsin Farmers Union with headquarters at Chippewa Falls, serving in this capacity until 1934. He was also instrumental in organizing and incorporating the Farmers Union Central Exchange, a federated regional farm supply cooperative serving six Midwestern states. Sanderson was a member of the board of directors and secretary of the board of this cooperative from the time of its organization in 1931 until his death. In 1934 he was named administrative assistant to Progressive and later Republican Congressman, Merlin Hull (q.v.) and served in this capacity until his death. Sanderson was first president of the Wisconsin Association of Cooperatives (1944), and continued in this capacity until his death. In the primary election of 1950 he was an unsuccessful candidate for the Democratic nomination for U.S. Senator. Madison Wis. State Journal, Oct. 27, 1952; M. Hull Papers.

The Wisconsin Historical Society has manuscripts related to this topic. See the catalog description of the William E. Sanderson Papers for details.

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[Source: Dictionary of Wisconsin biography]