lawyer, politician, judge, b. Jerusalem, N.Y. He moved with his parents to Michigan (1832), and settled in New Diggings, Wis. in 1839. In 1843 he moved to Mineral Point, was admitted to the bar, and established a law practice. A Democrat, he was a member of the territorial lower house (1847- 1848) and state senator (1849-1850). In 1852 he was elected judge of the 5th judicial circuit, serving from 1853 to 1865, and was again elected in 1876, serving from 1877 to 1883. Cothren maintained a successful law practice in Mineral Point and was active in politics until his death. P. M. Reed, Bench and Bar of Wis. (Milwaukee, 1882); CoIIs. State Hist. Soc. Wis., 3 (1857); Darlington Republican, Dec. 14, 1888; WPA MS; M. M. Cothren Papers.

The Wisconsin Historical Society has manuscripts related to this topic. See the catalog description of the Montgomery Morrison Cothren Papers for details.

View newspaper clippings at Wisconsin Local History and Biography Articles.

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[Source: Dictionary of Wisconsin biography]