Joseph L. Barber

Joseph Lanning Barber (March 24, 1864 – April 6, 1940) was an American medical doctor and a Republican politician from Marathon County, Wisconsin. He was a member of the Wisconsin Senate and State Assembly. His daughter, Mildred Barber Abel, was one of the first female members of the Wisconsin Legislature.

Biography Barber was born on March 24, 1864, in Hayton, Wisconsin. He attended the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. In 1899, he married Ella Webb. Their daughter, Mildred Barber Abel, became a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly. It marked the first time a father and daughter served together in a state legislature in the history of the United States. Barber was a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, as well as Modern Woodmen of America.

After Barber first began practicing medicine, he became Health Officer of Greenwood, Wisconsin, and Coroner of Clark County, Wisconsin, before moving to Collins, Wisconsin. He moved to Marathon City, Wisconsin, in 1906 and opened a practice and later a pharmacy.

After serving as President of Marathon, Wisconsin, Barber was elected to the Senate in 1922, where he served two terms. He was also a delegate to the 1920 Republican National Convention. Barber was first elected to the Assembly in 1925 and was re-elected in 1928 and 1934. He was a member of the Progressive Party.