Francis Brown Stockbridge (April 9, 1826April 30, 1894) was a

U.S. Senator The United States Senate is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and House have the authority under Article One of the ...

in the

state State most commonly refers to: * State (polity), a centralized political organization that regulates law and society within a territory **Sovereign state, a sovereign polity in international law, commonly referred to as a country **Nation state, a ...

Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

Biography

Stockbridge was born in

Bath, Maine Bath is a city in Sagadahoc County, Maine, United States. Bath is included in the Brunswick, Maine, Brunswick Micropolitan statistical area, micropolitan area. Bath has a 2024 population of 8,870. It is also the county seat of Sagadahoc County ...

, the son of a physician, Dr. John Stockbridge, and attended the common schools there. He clerked at a wholesale house in

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

from 1843 to 1847. He then moved to

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

and opened a lumber yard. In 1851 he moved to

Saugatuck, Michigan Saugatuck ( ) is a city in Allegan County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 865 at the 2020 census. The city is within Saugatuck Township, but is administratively autonomous. Originally a lumber town and port, Saugatuck, alo ...

, and engaged in the operation of sawmills. He was also interested in mercantile pursuits. In 1863 he moved to

Kalamazoo Kalamazoo ( ) is a city in Kalamazoo County, Michigan, United States, and its county seat. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, Kalamazoo had a population of 73,598. It is the principal city of the Kalamazoo–Portage metropolitan are ...

and there engaged in the lumber business. That same year he married Bessie, a schoolteacher and sister of George Thomas Arnold, a lumberman and business associate there (and later at Mackinac Island). In 1869 Stockbridge became a member of the

Michigan State House of Representatives Michigan ( ) is a peninsular state in the Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, Indiana and Illinois to the southwest, Ohio ...

from

Allegan County Allegan County ( ) is a county in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 120,502. The county seat is Allegan. The name was coined by Henry Rowe Schoolcraft to sound like a Native American word. All ...

's first district and in 1871 a member of the

Michigan State Senate The Michigan Senate is the upper house of the Michigan Legislature. Along with the Michigan House of Representatives, it composes the state legislature, which has powers, roles and duties defined by Article IV of the Constitution of Michigan, Mi ...

from the 17th district. He was appointed ambassador to the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

on July 12, 1875, took the oath of office but never proceeded to the post. In 1882, Stockbridge purchased the site of the famous

Grand Hotel A grand hotel is a large and luxurious hotel, especially one housed in a building with traditional architectural style. It began to flourish in the 1800s in Europe and North America. Grand Hotel may refer to: Hotels Africa * Grande Hotel Beir ...

Mackinac Island Mackinac Island ( , ; ; ; ) is an island and resort area, covering in land area, in the U.S. state of Michigan. The name of the island in Odawa is Michilimackinac and "Mitchimakinak" in Ojibwemowin, meaning "Great Turtle". It is located in ...

and arranged financing for its construction from the three major transportation companies that rendered service to the island at the time: the

Michigan Central Railroad The Michigan Central Railroad (reporting mark MC) was originally chartered in 1832 to establish rail service between Detroit, Michigan, and St. Joseph, Michigan. The railroad later operated in the states of Michigan, Indiana, and Illinois in th ...

, the

Grand Rapids and Indiana Railroad The Grand Rapids and Indiana Railroad at its height provided passenger and freight railroad services between Cincinnati, Ohio, and the Straits of Mackinac in Michigan, USA. The company was formed on January 18, 1854. Beginnings After grapp ...

, and the

Detroit and Cleveland Navigation Company Detroit and Cleveland Navigation Company, often abbreviated as D&C, was a shipping company on the Great Lakes. Operations The main route was between Detroit, Michigan, and Cleveland, Ohio. Routes also lead to Buffalo, New York with the purchase ...

. Together, they formed the Mackinac Island Hotel Company, which then built the Grand Hotel in 1887. He was elected as a Republican to the

United States Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and ...

in 1887 and was reelected in 1893. He served from March 4, 1887, until his death on April 30, 1894. He was chairman of the

Committee on Fisheries The Committee on Fisheries (PECH) is a committee of the European Parliament. Chris Davies was the chairman (2019 – 2020) - until the United Kingdom left the European Union. Committee mandate PECH is the European Parliament committee responsi ...

in the Fiftieth through Fifty-second Congresses. While visiting his nephew James Houghteling in Chicago he died soon after he was hit and injured by a Chicago cable car. Although the accident itself was not fatal, his associates attributed his death to the mental stress he endured from it. He and his wife are interred in Mountain Home Cemetery in Kalamazoo, Michigan. Stockbridge was the last person to have served in the

Michigan State Legislature The Michigan Legislature is the legislature of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is organized as a bicameral body composed of the Senate (the upper chamber) and the House of Representatives (the lower chamber). Article IV of the Michigan Constituti ...

and in the

until

Debbie Stabenow Deborah Ann Stabenow ( ; née Greer; born April 29, 1950) is an American politician who served from 2001 to 2025 as a United States senator from Michigan. A member of the Democratic Party, she was Michigan's first female U.S. senator. Before he ...

was elected in 2000.

References

External links

Grand Hotel
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Stockbridge, Francis Brown 1826 births 1894 deaths People from Bath, Maine American people of English descent Republican Party United States senators from Michigan Republican Party members of the Michigan House of Representatives Republican Party Michigan state senators People from Saugatuck, Michigan 19th-century members of the Michigan Legislature 19th-century United States senators

Biography

See also

References

External links