Thomas Jefferson Graham

Thomas Jefferson Graham (April 17, 1832 – October 1, 1902) was an American cattle rancher, politician, and pioneer of Wisconsin and Montana. He served one term in the Wisconsin State Assembly, representing Grant County during the 1878 session.

Biography Thomas Jefferson Graham was born in Tioga County, New York, in April 1832. He moved west with his parents as a child, stopping in Illinois in 1835, then settling in Platteville, Wisconsin, in 1836. He worked on his father's farm until age 17, when he went to California for the California Gold Rush. He returned to Wisconsin and went to work as a merchant in Richland County. He then relocated to Muscoda, Wisconsin, in 1864 and established a company, known as Graham & Bremer, which operated as general merchants and dealers of grain and livestock for over a decade. In addition to their general store, they operated three warehouses in the town.

During the 1880s, Graham traveled to the Montana Territory and decided to establish a cattle ranch in Custer County. As of 1885, he managed about 700 head of cattle. He served on the county board here in the 1890s, but came to Spokane, Washington, in 1895, looking to permanently relocate.

Graham suffered from Tuberculosis for nearly a year and finally died at his home in Spokane on October 1, 1902.

Personal life and family Thomas J. Graham married Mary E. Sharpe of Indiana in 1853. They had at least four children, two sons and two daughters, though at the time of his death only three children were living. His son, Charles M. Graham, moved to Hot Springs, Arkansas, and managed a furniture company and estate, of which Thomas J. Graham was a part-owner.

Graham was active in Freemasonry throughout his adult life.

Electoral history Wisconsin Assembly (1877, 1878)