11. In Which Minnesota Displays a Frankly Rather Pathetic Display of Hyperpartisanship
President James Buchanan appointed an almost completely different set of territorial officers for some reason:
Samuel Medary (OH) as governor
Charles L. Chase (MN) as secretary
Norman Eddy (IN) as district attorney
William H. Welch as chief justice, held over
Rensselaer R. Nelson (NY) as associate justice
Charles E. Flandreau (MN) as associate justice
They would not serve long, however, as the territorial period was swiftly coming to a close. A bill providing for a constitutional convention passed the House 97-75 on January 31, 1857, along mostly geographic lines; the Democrats especially were split, 31 voting yea and 29 voting nay (and 23 not voting). The South opposed it for being a free state, and the Know-Nothings largely opposed it for letting non-citizens vote for convention delegates, an issue which became larger when the bill went to the Senate. An amendment to require citizenship for suffrage was passed by the Senate after much debate on February 21 by a vote of 27 to 24, with only four northern Senators voting yea and only one southern Senator voting nay, after which the bill was passed 47-1. (The sole vote against, Senator John B. Thompson (A-KY), defended his vote against with a ramble arguing that the Founding Fathers did not intend for there to be states west of the Mississippi and that the region should be exploited like the Brits did India, ruled over by proconsuls.) Then, on the 24th, they voted to reconsider the amendment 35-21, and the next day they voted for the House’s text 31-22, all largely along sectional lines.
The enabling act stated that two delegates were to be chosen for every representative in the territorial legislature. In a mix-up, this was taken to include councilors as well, so on June 1, an election was held for 108 delegates, the largest elected body in Minnesota’s history until 1890. Because America, this was a partisan election, and everybody cared extremely much. The results of the election on June 1 were disputed; both parties claimed five seats, (four in St. Anthony where the Republicans alleged that the Democrats had not filed their candidates correctly and one in Mower County where the Democrats alleged fraud), and one seat was won by a Democrat who declined election, resulting in the Republicans quietly seating their runner-up. The Republicans also alleged that the six representatives from Pembina were illegitimate on account of Pembina not being within the proposed state borders; indeed, I have found no evidence of an election being held there, but they sent delegates and they ended up being seated. Giving the seats to whoever won the most votes (and seating the Pembina delegates, and considering Henry C. Waite, a Democrat elected on the Republican ticket, as a Democrat), the convention would have been tied, 54 to 54.
Disputed winners are dual shaded; the left side being the belief of the Democrats, the right being that of the Republicans.
Returns in three southeastern counties not found, substituted with gubernatorial returns.
While I believe this would have been the best way to force the parties to compromise, it did not in fact happen. When the Democrats arrived at or shortly before noon on July 13, the time at which the convention was to come into action, they found the Republicans, who had camped out there since midnight. Both Secretary Chase and Republican delegate John W. North attempted to call the convention to order, and it was then that the seeds were sown for how the convention would proceed henceforth.
North nominated Thomas J. Galbraith as president of the convention, acclaimed by the Republicans with the Democrats pointedly not voting – were they to acknowledge North’s organization, there were more Republicans than Democrats present, and they would control the convention henceforth. Instead, Chase motioned to adjourn for the day, with the Democrats voting in favor and the Republicans abstaining – were they to acknowledge Chase’s organization, Chase was given the legal right to declare delegates elected, and he would ensure that the Democrats controlled the convention henceforth.
Instead of either option prevailing, the next day, when the Democrats arrived, they found the hall blocked off by the Republicans, who had chosen to carry on with their convention. Accordingly, the Democrats decamped to the other side of the building and declared themselves to be the legitimate convention, meaning there were two rival constitutional conventions in the same building. Good job, everybody.
In the broad strokes, there was no need for artsy innovation in the new state’s constitution. There were a few dozen already to use as reference, but of course the hundred-plus delegates were free to tailor things to what their state needed the most. 21 of them (15 Republicans and 6 Democrats) voted in favor of splitting the north half of the state off as Superior, the last gasp of that proposal. The Republican convention voted to leave the question of whether black people could vote up to the people, while the Democrats explicitly barred them. Remarkably, there was only one physical altercation between either side, despite the presence of a hundred men camped on opposite sides of a building all angry at each other – I suppose everyone has standards.
Attempts to compromise started in early August; they were especially common among the Republicans, who weren’t yet getting paid for any of this, but on August 18 the majority of the Democrats finally relented (though two delegates withdrew on the spot, one not returning for the remainder of the proceedings). It took another ten days for both parties to agree on a document, fundamentally based upon the Democratic draft with some compromises towards the Republicans. Refusing to sign the same document, however, two very slightly different copies (thanks to 19th-century copyists’ mistakes) were drawn up, one signed by all but three remaining Democrats and one signed by all the Republicans.
