Charles Martin Scanlan

Born in New York in May 1854, he moved with his family to Wisconsin in 1859 and grew up on a farm in Grant County. He attended the State Normal School at Platteville, graduating in 1878, then studied law at the University of Wisconsin and received his degree in 1881.

He practiced law in Boscobel and Janesville, and later worked in the Office of the Comptroller of the Treasury during Grover Cleveland’s administration before returning to private practice in Milwaukee. Alongside his legal career, he wrote several books, including The Clergyman's Hand-book of Law (1909) and Indian Creek Massacre and Captivity of Hall Girls (1915), as well as other works on law, public procedure, and Wisconsin history.

He died in Milwaukee in February 1940. Records from the Milwaukee County Historical Society show that his papers include correspondence and historical notes, suggesting a lifelong interest in preserving regional stories as well as explaining the law in a practical way.