Michael Katzban was a core molder and insurance

Insurance

In law and economics, insurance is a form of risk management primarily used to hedge against the risk of a contingent, uncertain loss. Insurance is defined as the equitable transfer of the risk of a loss, from one entity to another, in exchange for payment. An insurer is a company selling the...

 salesman from Milwaukee, Wisconsin

Wisconsin

Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...

 who served one term as a Socialist

Socialist Party of America

The Socialist Party of America was a multi-tendency democratic-socialist political party in the United States, formed in 1901 by a merger between the three-year-old Social Democratic Party of America and disaffected elements of the Socialist Labor Party which had split from the main organization...

 member of the Wisconsin State Assembly

Wisconsin State Assembly

The Wisconsin State Assembly is the lower house of the Wisconsin Legislature. Together with the smaller Wisconsin Senate, the two constitute the legislative branch of the U.S. state of Wisconsin....

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Background

Katzban was born in Lemont

Lemont, Illinois

Lemont is a village located in Cook, DuPage, and Will Counties in the U.S. state of Illinois, and is roughly southwest of Chicago. The population was 16,625 at the 2007 Special Census.-History:...

, in Cook County, Illinois

Cook County, Illinois

Cook County is a county in the U.S. state of Illinois, with its county seat in Chicago. It is the second most populous county in the United States after Los Angeles County. The county has 5,194,675 residents, which is 40.5 percent of all Illinois residents. Cook County's population is larger than...

, on September 11, 1876. He came to Milwaukee in 1886, attended public and parochial school

Parochial school

A parochial school is a school that provides religious education in addition to conventional education. In a narrower sense, a parochial school is a Christian grammar school or high school which is part of, and run by, a parish.-United Kingdom:...

s, and learned the trade of core molder, which he continued to practice. He joined the Molders Union

International Molders and Foundry Workers Union of North America

International Molders and Foundry Workers Union of North America is an affiliated trade union of the AFL-CIO. The union traces its roots back to the formation of the Iron Molders' Union of North America, established in 1859 to represent craftsmen who cast wrought iron metal products.-Formation:In...

 around 1898, and held various offices in it.

Legislative service and political activity

He was elected to the Assembly's Fourteenth Milwaukee County district (the 14th Ward

Wards of the United States

In the United States, a ward is an optional division of a city or town, especially an electoral district, for administrative and representative purposes...

 of the City of Milwaukee

Milwaukee, Wisconsin

Milwaukee is the largest city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin, the 28th most populous city in the United States and 39th most populous region in the United States. It is the county seat of Milwaukee County and is located on the southwestern shore of Lake Michigan. According to 2010 census data, the...

 in 1910 to succeed Democrat

Democratic Party (United States)

The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...

 Joseph Domachowski (who was not a candidate for re-election). Katzban earned 1,328 votes, to 1,184 for former Democratic Assemblyman John Szymarek and 440 for Republican

Republican Party (United States)

The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...

 Leo Kelpinski. He was assigned to the standing committee

Standing Committee

In the United States Congress, standing committees are permanent legislative panels established by the United States House of Representatives and United States Senate rules. . Because they have legislative jurisdiction, standing committees consider bills and issues and recommend measures for...

s on city living conditions and on vocational education

Vocational education

Vocational education or vocational education and training is an education that prepares trainees for jobs that are based on manual or practical activities, traditionally non-academic, and totally related to a specific trade, occupation, or vocation...

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In 1912, after a redistricting

Redistricting

Redistricting is the process of drawing United States electoral district boundaries, often in response to population changes determined by the results of the decennial census. In 36 states, the state legislature has primary responsibility for creating a redistricting plan, in many cases subject to...

, he ran for the Assembly in the newly-redrawn Eighth Milwaukee County district, losing to Democrat Jacob Litza, Jr., with 1298 votes for Litza, 1065 for Katzban, and 424 for Republican Charles Strasberger.

He served as a deputy sheriff in Milwaukee County in 1912, and in 1915-1916.

He ran once more for the Assembly from the Eighth District in 1930, coming in second with 1,912 votes to 3,041 for Republican Ben Wiczynski and 1641 for Democratic incumbent Mary O. Kryszak

Mary O. Kryszak

Mary Olszewski Kryszak was a schoolteacher, bookkeeper, librarian and editor from Milwaukee, Wisconsin who served seven terms as a Democratic member of the Wisconsin State Assembly.- Background :...

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In 1945, he was elected to the executive committee

Executive Committee

Executive Committee may refer to:* The Executive Committee of the Privy Council of Northern Ireland, a government body in the United Kingdom 1921–1972* The Northern Ireland Executive, a government body in the United Kingdom...

 of the Milwaukee County Socialist Party. In 1950, he was appointed as a Socialist member of the City of Milwaukee's Election Commission, and served a six-year term. In 1954, he was elected to the Party's state executive committee.

Personal life

At the time of his death in 1962, he had been an insurance salesman for twenty years. He left behind a widow, Rose, and a son, John Katzban, who was village manager

City manager

A city manager is an official appointed as the administrative manager of a city, in a council-manager form of city government. Local officials serving in this position are sometimes referred to as the chief executive officer or chief administrative officer in some municipalities...

 for the Village of Whitefish Bay, Wisconsin

Whitefish Bay, Wisconsin

Whitefish Bay is a village in Milwaukee County in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. The population was 13,508 as of the 2005 census.-Geography:Whitefish Bay is located at ....

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