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Walter A. Duffy

Walter Aloysies Duffy (June 17, 1889 – August 11, 1961) was an American farmer, government administrator, and Republican politician. He was a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly, representing Bayfield County during the 1915 and 1917 sessions, and was commissioner of the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture during the administration of Governor Fred R. Zimmerman. He later served as a regional director of the Farm Security Administration for the northwestern states, and was state director of the Farmers Home AdministrationinPortland, Oregon, near the end of his life.

Walter A. Duffy was born in Washburn, Wisconsin, in 1889. He received his education at the common schools in Washburn, then taught school in the county for four years. In 1911 he established a farm and was a member of the county board of supervisors.^[1]

He ran for Wisconsin State Assembly in 1914, seeking the Republican Party nomination in the heavily Republican district. He defeated former state representative Lorenzo Clausen in the Republican primary^[2] and went on to win the general election. His district comprised all of Bayfield County.^[1] He was re-elected in 1916, but was defeated in the Republican primary in 1918, when he was seeking a third term.^[3]

After leaving office, Duffy attended the University of Wisconsin–Madison, graduating in 1920. He was then appointed a state agriculture agent for Barron and Rusk counties, and was then appointed the commissioner of the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture in 1927, under Governor Fred R. Zimmerman. In 1929, the Department of Agriculture was transformed into the Department of Agriculture and Markets, overseen by a new board of commissioners. Duffy's position was abolished during the transition in 1929. He was subsequently appointed to serve again as a state agriculture agent, this time serving several years in Douglas County.

In 1936, he received a federal appointment as regional director of the Resettlement Administration, and moved to Portland, Oregon. His region comprised Oregon, Washington, Idaho, and Alaska.^[4] In 1937, the Resettlement Administration became the Farm Security Administration, and Duffy continued in his role as regional director until 1946, when the Farm Security Administration was replaced by the Farmers Home Administration. At that time, Duffy was appointed state director of the Farmers Home Administration for Oregon. He served another 8 years in that role, retiring finally in 1954.

He took one further government job, acting part time as an agriculture agent in Fairbanks, Alaska, during 1955 and 1956. He ultimately retired to Portland, where he died in August 1961.^[4]

Walter Duffy married Bertha M. Roll of Terre Haute, Indiana, in 1919. They met while Duffy was a member of the Assembly and Bertha was an employee in the state legislative reference library.^[5] Duffy was survived by his wife and two adult children.^[4]

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