[1] Stephenson worked in lumbering activities in the eastern U.S. for several years, principally in Maine, close to Canada.

In 1845 he moved to Wisconsin, where for a time he managed absentee timber properties, but soon entered the lumber business for himself.

He was elected to several offices, including town supervisor, county board chairman, and justice of the peace.

Although the national convention refused to accept the credentials of the Progressive delegation, the La Follette forces were recognized as the legal Republican ticket by the Wisconsin Supreme Court (1904).

In 1907 Stephenson sought the U.S. Senate seat made vacant by the resignation of John C. Spooner and, after a brief deadlock, was elected by the Progressive-controlled state legislature.

[4] Stephenson holds the distinction of being the oldest elected freshman United States Senator; he was 77 when he took office.

In 1909 Stephenson purchased a prized Holstein cow as a gift for the 27th President of the United States, William Howard Taft.