Wabasha County, Minnesota - Chapter 7: County Representation, 1920

On July 7, 1849, Governor Alexander Ramsey by proclamation divided the territory of Minnesota into council districts. District 1, the St. Croix Precinct of St. Croix County, and the settlements on the west bank of the Mississippi south of Crow village (South St. Paul) to the Iowa line, included the settle¬ ments in Wabasha County. Under the apportionment of 1851, the counties of Wabasha and Washington, with the precincts of St. Paul and Little Canada, were constituted the Fourth District; and it was further ordained that Wabasha County, owing to its isolated position with respect to the occupied portions of the rest of the district should elect one of the two representatives to which the district was entitled. The apportionment of 1855 constituted Winona, Olmstead and Wabasha Counties the Ninth Disrict, with one member, in the council and three representatives.

Under territorial government, James S. Norris, of Cottage Grove, repre¬ sented the district in the council in 1849 and 1851; Lorenzo A. Babcock, of Sauk Rapids and St. Paul, in 1852 and 1853; William Freeborn, of Red Wing, in 1854 and 1855; and St. A. D. Balcombe, of Winona, in 1856 and 1857.

The representatives in the house from this district during the same period were: Joseph W. Furber, of Cottage Grove, and James Wells, from the head of Lake Pepin^ 1849; John A. Ford, of Red Rock, and James Wells, 1851; Fordyce S. Richards, of Read's Landing, 1852; James Wells, 1853; 0. M. Lord, of Min¬ nesota City, 1854; Clark W. Thompson, of what is now Houston County, 1855; John H. Hartenbauer, Cornelius F. Buck and James Kirkman, 1856; and Eli B. Barrows, Ephraim L. King and Alonzo P. Foster (the last mentioned from Plainview) in 1857.

On March 3, 1857, congress passed an act authorizing the people of Min¬ nesota to form a state constitution. Each council district was to be represented in this convention by two representatives for each councilman and representa¬ tive to which it was entitled. The ninth district, which consisted of Winona, Olmsted and Wabasha Counties, was entitled to eight delegates, but for some reason ten members from this district were seated. The constitutional con¬ vention, consisting of 108 members, was authorized to meet at the capital on the second Monday in July, to frame a state constitution and submit it to the people of the territory. The election was held on the first Monday in June, 1857. July 13 the delegates met, but a disagreement arising in the organiza¬ tion, the Republican members organized one body and the Democrats another, 59 members having seats in the former, and 53 in the latter, making 112 in all. Each of these bodies, claiming to be the legally constituted convention, pro¬ ceeded with the work of formulating an instrument to be submitted to the people. After some days an understanding was effected between them, and by means of a committee of conference the same constitution was framed and adopted by both bodies. On being submitted to the people, October 13, 1857, it was ratified.

All the delegates from the Ninth District sat in the Republican wing. They were: St. A. D. Balcombe, of Winona; William H. Mills, of Olmsted County; Charles Gerrish, of Saratoga, Winona County, later of St. Charles; Simlow Harding; Nathan B. Robbins; William J. Duley; Samuel A. Kemp;

St. A. D. Balcombe, a newspaper man of Winona, was president of the Republican wing, and Thomas Wilson, also of Winona, was one of its most prominent members. Benjamin C. Baldwin was among the seventeen in the Republican wing who favored a clause in the constitution granting negro suffrage.

By the apportionment of 1857, set forth in the state constitution adopted October 13, 1857, Wabasha County was constituted the Twelfth District, with one senator and three representatives. The apportionment of 1860 made Wabasha County the Tenth District, with one senator and one representative. It still constituted the Tenth District under the apportionment of 1866, with one senator, but was granted two represenatives. Under the apportionment of 1871 Wabasha County was constituted the Fifteenth District, with one senator and four representatives. The apportionment of 1881 made Wabasha County the Twenty-third District, with one senator and three representatives. By the apportionment of 1889 Wabasha County became the Twenty-second District, with one senator and two representatives. The apportionment of 1897 made Wabasha County the Third District, with one senator and one rep¬ resentative, and no change was made with respect to this county and district under the last apportionment, of 1913.

The first state legislature assembled December 2, 1857. On March 2ff 1858, it took a recess until June 2, and finally adjourned August 12. The state was admitted May 11, 1858. It will, therefore, be seen that, although this legislature is called the first state legislature, it assembled in territorial times. No session was held in the winter of 1858-59, mainly owing to the protracted session of 1857-58, which was believed to render unnecessary another one fol¬ lowing so soon, the legislature of that year having so provided by enactment.

In 1862, on account of the Indian outbreak, an extra session was called by the governor, which assembled September 9 and adjourned September 29. The officers and members were the same as at the regular session, with one exception not affecting Wabasha County. The next extra session occurred in 1881, commencing October 11 and closing November 13. It was called for the purpose of considering the legislation of the regular session relating to the state railroad bonds, which was declared unconstitutional by the supreme court. In 1902 an extra sesson was called for the purpose of considering the report of the tax commission created by Chapter 13, General Laws of A. D. 1901. It convened February 4, 1902, and adjourned March 11, 1902. The offi¬ cers and members were the same as at the regular session. In 1912 an extra session Was called for the purpose of enacting a state-wide direct primary law applicable to all state officers, a corrupt practices act and a reapportionment law. It convened June 4, 1912, and adjourned June 18, 1912. The officers and members were the same as at the regular session, with two omissions, due to deaths, not directly affecting Wabasha County.

The representatives in the house from the district containing or com¬ prising Wabasha County, since the organization of the state, have been as follows: Ira O. Seeley and N. S. Teft, 1857-58; J. W. Burnham, W. J. Arnold