Republican Party (United States)
Founded in 1854, the GOP originally subscribed to classical liberalism and took ideological stands that were anti-slavery and pro-economic reform. Abraham Lincoln was the first Republican president in the history of the United States. The party was usually dominant over the Democrats during the Third Party System and Fourth Party System. In 1912, Theodore Roosevelt formed the Progressive ("Bull Moose") Party after being rejected by the GOP and ran as a third-party presidential candidate. Roosevelt called for many social reforms, some of which were later championed by New Deal Democrats in the 1930s. He lost the 1912 election, and when most of his supporters returned to the GOP, they were at odds with the party's new conservative economic stance; many left for the Democratic Party, and an ideological shift to the right occurred in the Republican Party. Later in the 20th century, the liberal Republican element was overwhelmed by a conservative surge begun by Barry Goldwater in 1964 and continued during the Reagan Era.
Benjamin Bull
Born in Harper's Ferry, Virginia (now West Virginia), Bull moved with his parents to Xenia, Ohio. He went to school there, studied law and was admitted to the Ohio bar. He then moved to Martinsville, Indiana, in 1824, practiced law, and was a probate judge. In 1848 he moved to Mineral Point, Wisconsin and then to Grant County, Wisconsin where he practiced law. He then moved to Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin and practiced law. He served in the Wisconsin State Senate in 1865–1866 as a member of the National Union Party.