On this day: January 23

1845 - Angela Josephine King Born

On this date Angela Josephine King was born in Trumbull County, Ohio. She moved to Janesville in 1848 and graduated from the Janesville Ladies' Seminary in 1867. King obtained a job as a clerk at the Janesville Post Office. In 1868 President U.S. Grant announced he would appoint a new postmaster in Janesville. A special election was held in February of 1869, with the understanding that the candidate who won the election would be endorsed by Congressman Benjamin Hopkins. King won the race by 42 votes and traveled to Washington to receive her appointment. Hopkins balked at the idea of appointing a woman and innstead he gave the runner up, and his political rival James Burgess, his endorsement. As a result, King requested an interview with President Grant, but Grant refused to make the appointment without Hopkins' endorsement. In the fall of 1871, Angela King attended Chicago Law School and returned home to Janesville to continue her study of the law. In January of 1879, she was admitted to practice law in Rock County Circuit Court. Shortly thereafter, she and Rhoda Lavinia Goodell formed the partnership of Goodell and King, located next to the Janesville Post Office. Angela Josephine King continued to practice law in Janesville and served as an advocate for the women's suffrage movement until her death in 1913. [Source: State Bar of Wisconsin]

1864 - (Civil War) Reconnaissance of the Matagorda Peninsula begins

The 23rd Wisconsin Infantry continued its reconnaissance mission on the Matagorda Peninsula, Texas.

1957 - Edward Bulwar Cochems Dies

On this date Edward Bulwar Cochems died. Cochems is credited with developing football's forward passing attack. He was also considered one of the University of Wisconsin's finest athletes at the turn of the century. In response to a 1906 mandate from football's rule committee that allowed forward passing and required a team to gain ten yards in 3 downs, Cochems invented an aggressive forward passing strategy that revolutionized the sport. He coached at North Dakota, Clemson, and St. Louis University. He is buried in Madison's Resurrection Cemetery. [Source: Bishops to Bootleggers: A Biographical Guide to Resurrection Cemetery, pg. 218]
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