GOVERNORS OF MINNESOTA
Horace Austin
 
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Sixth State Governor
January 9, 1870 - January 7, 1874
Born: October 15, 1831
in Canterbury, Connecticut
Died: November 7, 1905
in Minneapolis, Minnesota
Married to: Mary Lena Morrill (1859)
Ethnic Background: English
Occupation: Teacher, lawyer, U.S. Treasury auditor, railroad commissioner, judge
Party: Republican
Biography
A reputation for clearheaded objectivity and disdain for contentious party politics enhanced the appeal of Judge Horace Austin as a gubernatorial candidate in 1869. Minnesota's sixth governor was determined to bring legislative power to bear against the railroad barons. His advocacy of strictly regulated passenger and freight rates and his opposition to the wholesale allocation of state lands to railroad development earned him a second term. But he was unable to resolve completely the problems inherent in controlling a booming transportation industry and curbing the excesses of its owners.
Son of a prosperous Connecticut farmer and graduate of a private academy, Austin taught school briefly before studying law. He was 25 when he moved to Minnesota and began practicing law in St. Peter. Six years later he joined the local Frontier Guards at the outbreak of the Dakota War of 1862. In 1869, while judge of the Sixth Judicial District, Austin impressed state Republican leaders with his fair-mindedness and won the gubernatorial nomination.
Remaining in the public sphere after leaving the governor's office, Austin served as third auditor of the U.S. Treasury in Washington, as register of the U.S. Land Office in Fargo, and finally as a railroad commissioner. He devoted his last 16 years to travel and relaxation at his Lake Minnetonka home.
