Joel Funk Asper

Joel Funk Asper (April 20, 1822 – October 1, 1872) was a U.S. Representative from Missouri.

Early life and education Born in Adams County, Pennsylvania, Asper moved to Ohio with his parents, who settled in Trumbull County in 1827. He attended the public schools and the local college in Warren, Ohio. He studied law. He was admitted to the bar in 1844 and commenced practice in Warren, Ohio.

Early career He served as a Justice of the Peace in 1846. He served as prosecuting attorney of Geauga County in 1847. Asper served as a delegate to the Buffalo Free-Soil Convention in 1848. He was editor of the Western Reserve Chronicle in 1849. He moved to Iowa in 1850 and published the Chardon Democrat. He founded the Spectator in 1866. He served as delegate to the Republican National Convention in 1868.

Congress Asper was elected as a Republican to the Forty-first Congress (March 4, 1869 – March 3, 1871). He was not a candidate for renomination in 1870.

Death and legacy Asper practiced law until his death. He died in Chillicothe, Missouri, on October 1, 1872. He was interred in Edgewood Cemetery.