R. Richard “Dick” Wagner, who was instrumental in establishing some of the state’s first anti-discrimination laws against gays and lesbians, and mentored local LGBT candidates throughout a half-century of civil service to the Madison area, died Monday. He was 78.
Wagner was found dead at about 1:30 p.m. Monday at tiny Kerr-McGee Triangle Park, 728 Jenifer St., which he helped create in the late 1970s, as he was taking a bag of food that been mistakenly delivered to his Near East Side home to the correct address, a close friend said. The cause of death appeared to be a heart attack.
Wagner, who served as a leader in the gay community and local politics for decades, served on the Dane County Board from 1980 to 1994, including four years as chair, as well as numerous city and county committees and as a volunteer for other organizations. He was instrumental in endeavors ranging from the creation of Monona Terrace to recent improvements at Olbrich Botanical Gardens.
His work as a leader in the gay community helped lead to a city gay rights ordinance in 1974 and a county ordinance in 1980 prohibiting discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation; co-founding UW-Madison’s LGBT Alumni association; and the New Harvest Foundation, the LGBT foundation for south-central Wisconsin. He mentored many political candidates and elected officials, including U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Madison, and U.S. Rep. Mark Pocan, D-Black Earth.
He was the first recipient of the city’s Jeffrey Clay Erlanger Civility in Public Discourse Award in 2007.
Wagner authored two groundbreaking books on the state’s gay history, “We’ve Been Here All Along” in 2019 and “Coming Out, Moving Forward: Wisconsin’s Recent Gay History” in mid-2020. He was known as a generous host of political and fundraising dinners and events at his home.
The news of his passing triggered an outpouring of tributes on social media.
“He was beloved,” longtime Ald. Mike Verveer, 4th District, one of Wagner’s closest friends, said in an interview. “Dick mentored a lot of LBGTQ candidates when it was unheard of. He couldn’t say no to public service. He just epitomized public service in the volunteer sense.”
A native of Dayton, Ohio, Wagner came to UW-Madison for graduate school in 1965, earning a master’s degree in American history the following year and a Ph.D in American history in 1971. He worked for the state in various budget, policy and management positions for 33 years.
Inspired by Harvey Milk, a member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors and the first openly gay elected official in California, who had been assassinated two years earlier, Wagner ran and was elected as the first openly gay member of the Dane County Board in 1980. Three years later, at the request of then-Gov. Tony Earl, he joined another board member on a fact-finding mission to meet with members of the gay community throughout the state. Based on their findings, Earl appointed the Governor’s Council on Lesbian and Gay Issues and asked Wagner to be co-chair.
“Dick Wagner was a deeply inspiring person in my life as a role model, mentor and lifelong friend,” Baldwin said. “I may not have entered pubic service if not for the guidance and encouragement he provided me to walk the path he paved. Dick lived a life that showed us all that history only moves in one direction: forward.”
Wagner also served on the Wisconsin Arts Board, Downtown Madison Inc., Historic Madison Inc., Madison Trust for Historic Preservation, Olbrich Botanical Society, Friends of UW Libraries, Wisconsin Humanities Committee, and on Dane County Regional Planning and Airport commissions, where he championed the Starkweather Water Quality Plan and airport noise abatement efforts. He also chaired the city’s Plan, Urban Design, and Landmarks commissions, and worked with other organizations. He lived in several landmark homes and helped create Period Garden Park, 110 E. Gorham St., in the historic Mansion Hill neighborhood.
“Dick Wagner served our community with passion and integrity,” County Executive Joe Parisi said in a statement. “Dick brought a unique perspective to the table, informed by his love and knowledge of history and public policy, and his experiences as an early, openly gay elected official. His courage and skill as a statesman and mentor helped countless people navigate their own difficult waters.”
A strong supporter of ecumenical Christianity and social justice, he organized a rally in Dayton for civil rights after marchers were beaten in Selma, Alabama, and marched with the Rev. James Groppi for open housing in Milwaukee. He was a campus organizer for the Moratorium Against the War in Vietnam.
The city declared June 25, 2019, R. Richard Wagner Day, when Wagner published his first book during Pride Month that year. Verveer hopes to rename the city’s Kerr-McGee Triangle Park, which Wagner not only helped create but also tended to its gardens before dying there Monday, in his memory.
“Dick Wagner was a Madison icon, a true public servant and a pillar of our community,” Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway said. “He was an outstanding leader in the LGBTQ community, and a personal inspiration for me. He was a trailblazer and a mentor for many.
“Most importantly he was a kind and generous man who treated everyone with respect and dignity,” the mayor said. “His loss will be felt for many years.”
Friends are planning a memorial service to be held Jan. 8 at Holy Wisdom Monastery in the town of Westport.
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R. Richard Wagner was chairman of the Dane County Board in 1989 and a mentor to fellow board member and future U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin. The pair were instrumental in bringing the fifth annual International Conference of Gay and Lesbian Officials to Madison that year.