Arthur Calvin Mellette (June 23, 1842 – May 25, 1896) was the last Governor of Dakota Territory, the first Governor of the State of South Dakota, and an American Civil War veteran. He is the namesake of Mellette, South Dakota, and Mellette County, South Dakota.

Early life, education, and Civil War

Mellette was the son of Charles Mellette and was born in Henry County, Indiana. He was educated at Marion Academy in Marion, Indiana. In 1862, Mellette entered

Indiana University Bloomington Indiana University Bloomington (IU Bloomington, Indiana University, IU, or simply Indiana) is a public research university in Bloomington, Indiana. It is the flagship campus of Indiana University and, with over 40,000 students, its largest camp ...

as a sophomore and graduated in 1863. On October 6, 1864, he enlisted in Company H of the 9th Indiana Volunteers, serving as a conscripted soldier until mustering out on September 28, 1865. He served in the army as a substitute for his older invalid brother and experienced many humiliations as a result. In 1866, Mellette graduated from the School of Law at the Indiana University and went to

Muncie, Indiana Muncie ( ) is an incorporated city and the seat of Delaware County, Indiana. Previously known as Buckongahelas Town, named after the legendary Delaware Chief.http://www.delawarecountyhistory.org/history/docs/lenape-villages.pdf It is located in ...

, where he began practicing law with

Thomas J. Brady Thomas Jefferson Brady (February 12, 1839 – April 22, 1904) was an American Republican politician and Civil War officer. Early life Brady was born in Muncie, Indiana in 1839, the son of John Brady, the first mayor of Muncie, and his wife, Mary ...

. On May 26, 1866, he married Margaret Wylie.

Career

Mellette was elected as district attorney for Delaware County, Indiana. In 1870, Mellette purchased the ''Muncie Times,'' a newspaper which became influential and prosperous under his tutelage. During that same year, Mellette was elected the county superintendent of schools. When his wife became ill, Mellette visited western states to find a climate that would be more beneficial to her. Mellette's family eventually settled in Springfield,

Dakota Territory The Territory of Dakota was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 2, 1861, until November 2, 1889, when the final extent of the reduced territory was split and admitted to the Union as the states of ...

, for two years; and, Mellette served as register of the United States Land Office in Springfield until the land office was moved to Watertown, Dakota Territory, in 1880.

Political career in the Dakotas

In October 1885, the Republicans nominated Mellette for governor of Dakota Territory. In November 1885, Mellette ran unopposed for the office of governor; and, voters selected Huron as the temporary capitol of Dakota Territory. In 1889, voters approved the new constitution for South Dakota and elected Arthur C. Mellette as South Dakota's first Governor. On November 2, 1889, President

Benjamin Harrison Benjamin Harrison (August 20, 1833March 13, 1901) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 23rd president of the United States from 1889 to 1893. He was a member of the Harrison family of Virginia–a grandson of the ninth pr ...

signed the proclamation to make

South Dakota South Dakota (; Sioux language, Sioux: , ) is a U.S. state in the West North Central states, North Central region of the United States. It is also part of the Great Plains. South Dakota is named after the Lakota people, Lakota and Dakota peo ...

the fortieth state. Mellette County, South Dakota, is named in his honor.

Personal life

MELLETTE HOUSE, WATERTOWN, CODINGTON COUNTY, SD

Mellette built a mansion on the bluffs of the

Big Sioux River The Big Sioux River is a tributary of the Missouri River in eastern South Dakota and northwestern Iowa in the United States. It flows generally southwardly for ,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataTh ...

in Watertown, South Dakota. He was an advocate of bringing the capitol to the area. He summered on Lake Kampeska.

Death and legacy

The family made what was meant to be a temporary move from Watertown to Pittsburg, Kansas, in 1895. Mellette died May 25, 1896, while in Pittsburg. His body was sent back to Watertown and interred in Mount Hope Cemetery. The Trail of Governors statue of Mellette, by sculptor John Lopez, was unveiled in 2012 and installed in

Pierre, South Dakota Pierre ( ; lkt, Čhúŋkaške, lit=fort) is the capital city of South Dakota, United States, and the seat of Hughes County. The population was 14,091 at the 2020 census, making it the second-least populous US state capital after Montpelier ...

in front of the Hughes County Courthouse. Mellette's former home in Watertown is maintained as a museum. In 2012, a statue of Mellette was unveiled in

and installed in front of the Hughes County Courthouse; it was the first statue placed on the city's Trail of Governors.

References

External links

Arthur C. Mellette's "Dakota Profile" biography
at th
Historical Society of North Dakota website
*

, - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Mellette, Arthur C. 1842 births 1896 deaths 19th-century American politicians 19th-century Lutherans American Lutherans District attorneys in Indiana Governors of Dakota Territory Governors of South Dakota Indiana Republicans Indiana University Bloomington alumni Mellette County, South Dakota People from Henry County, Indiana People from Muncie, Indiana People from Springfield, South Dakota People of Indiana in the American Civil War Republican Party governors of South Dakota South Dakota Republicans Writers from Indiana Writers from South Dakota Union Army soldiers Indiana lawyers School superintendents in Indiana 19th-century American newspaper publishers (people) 19th-century American newspaper editors Editors of Indiana newspapers