A former State Assemblyman has died

A former State Assemblyman has died. David O. Martin, 93 of rural Muscoda, died January 22 at home. He was born in Appleton, graduated from Neenah High School in 1949, attended the University of Wisconsin-Madison and attained a degree in Forestry from the University of Michigan. After receiving his degree, he served in the Army Corps of Engineers from 1954 to 1956 and was stationed in Germany where he led a unit in rebuilding numerous bridges throughout the war-torn country. Upon his return to the United States, he began working as a forester for the Kimberly Clark Corporation.

In 1960, Dave was elected to the Wisconsin Assembly and represented Neenah-Menasha from 1961-1971. He ran as the Republican candidate for Lt. Governor on the ticket with Jack Olson against Patrick Lucey and Martin Schreiber. During his tenure in the Legislature, Dave was known for his ability to work in a bipartisan manner to achieve passage of important legislation. Issues related to the environment, education, economic development and good government were important to him. Two signature legislative initiatives attributed to Representative Martin were the Wisconsin Wild Rivers law, which passed both houses of the Legislature unanimously, and establishment of the Wisconsin Vocational Technical System, which he co-authored with former Representative David Obey. He held numerous leadership roles and committee chairs, including Assistant Majority Leader. He worked with former Governors Gaylord Nelson and Warren Nelson during the 1960’s, which he termed “the environmental decade” in Wisconsin, on a number of important bills that laid the foundation for future initiatives to establish Wisconsin as a national leader in environmental protection and outdoor recreation.

Following his career at the State Capitol, Dave returned to work for Kimberly Clark as Manager of Government Relations. Then, he moved to Associate Vice-President of Business/University Relations position with the University of Wisconsin System until his retirement in 1993.

Dave remained active in Republican politics throughout his life, including the 2024 elections. He also served on the board of several organizations and supported many other groups. He served on the board of Common Cause of Wisconsin, he served as Richland County representative to the Lower Wisconsin State Riverway Board, was President of the Three Eagles Foundation, Inc., was a strong supporter of Southwest Wisconsin Technical College, and the River Alliance of Wisconsin.

A celebration of life for former Assemblyman, David O. Martin, will be held in the spring.