Roy Porter Wilcox, a life-long resident of Eau Claire, Wisconsin, was born there in June, 1873. After attending Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, and gaining admission to the Wisconsin Bar in 1896, Wilcox practiced law in his hometown until his death in 1946. He served as president of the State Bar Association in 1925-1926.
Active all his life in the Republican party, he was originally a Progressive but later split with Robert LaFollette on the issue of American intervention in World War I which Wilcox enthusiastically supported. From 1917 to 1920, he served as a state senator. Twice, in 1918 and 1920, he conducted unsuccessful primary campaigns for the Republican gubernatorial nomination. Finally, in 1925 he ran in the Republican primary for the U.S. Senate seat vacated by the death of Robert LaFollette, Sr., but was defeated by Robert M. LaFollette, Jr.
