Former Republican governor, businessman, and philanthropist Oscar Rennebohm was born in the town of Leeds, Columbia County, Wisconsin on May 25, 1889. When he was ten years old, his father sold the family farm and moved to Milwaukee. There young Rennebohm's first employment was as a newsboy, but he still found time for participation in sports at East Division High School. After graduation, he was employed for a year in a Milwaukee drug store in order to pay for his college education. He apparently enjoyed this work, for he enrolled in the pharmacy program at the University of Wisconsin. Rennebohm worked his way through school and graduated in 1911. His first professional employment was in the Madison pharmacy of Claude Luckey. After a year the bankrupt Badger Pharmacy located on the corner of University and Randall Avenues was offered for sale, and Rennebohm bought it. Exhibiting the dedication to hard work that consistently marked his career, Rennbohm was able to reverse the economic picture for this pharmacy and it rapidly became the most popular and profitable pharmacy in Madison.
In 1917 Rennebohn enlisted in the Navy and served as an ensign until 1920. Upon his return to Madison, Rennebohm's drug business began to grow rapidly. He established new stores in rapid succession, and by 1944 he owned fourteen Madison drug stores.
Despite the demands of his business, Rennbohm had time for many civic involvements. He was active in the American Cancer Society, the Community Chest, the American Red Cross, and the American Legion. In 1947 he was awarded the American Druggist citation for outstanding community service. Professional organizations in which he participated included the Wisconsin Pharmaceutical Association, the American Pharmaceutical Association, and the National Association of Retail Druggists. He also served as a member for twenty years of the Wisconsin Board of Pharmacy.
It was this membership on the pharmacy board which apparently led Rennebohm to his interest in electoral politics. Although his 1944 announcement that he was a candidate for lieutenant governor surprised Wisconsin political observers, Rennebohm's announcement was in the tradition of businessmen who successfully sought elective office in Wisconsin during the 1940s and 1950s.
Because the incumbent governor in 1944 was the elderly Walter S. Goodland, the competition to serve as lieutenant governor was fierce. Although Rennebohm was not the endorsed candidate of the Republican Party, he was the winner in the primary election and then again in the general election. At the time it was seen as part of his political naivete that Rennebohm believed his 1944 victory made him a likely Republican candidate for the presidency in 1948. In 1946 Rennebohm was reelected lieutenant governor by a large margin.
Goodland died in March, 1947, and Rennebohm was named acting governor. In 1948 he was elected governor in his own right after winning in the Republican primary against Ralph Immell. Rennebohm's administration was primarily characterized by his desire to apply businesslike procedures to government. As a political outsider, Rennebohm's decisions and actions were little affected by the Republican Party leadership. Because of ill health, Rennebohm chose not to run for reelection in 1950.
After his return to private life, Rennebohm devoted himself to his philanthropic interests through the Rennebohm Foundation. He also served as a member of the Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin from 1952 to 1961, and he was a charter member of the UW Foundation. Rennebohm was largely responsible for the Hill Farms/Hilldale development project undertaken by the University in 1962.
Oscar Rennebohn died on October 15, 1968. He was survived by his wife Mary Fowler Rennebohm and his daughter Carol Rennebohm Dawson.
