James Fergus (October 8, 1813 – June 5, 1902) was a miner, rancher, businessman and politician in Minnesota and Montana. He immigrated as a young man from

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

and became a naturalized United States citizen. He helped develop the frontier in both territories, founding cities and counties.

Early life

Fergus was born in 1813 in

Lanarkshire, Scotland Lanarkshire, also called the County of Lanark (; ), is a Counties of Scotland, historic county, Lieutenancy areas of Scotland, lieutenancy area and registration county in the Central Lowlands and Southern Uplands of Scotland. The county is no l ...

. As a young man, he immigrated to the United States via Canada in 1835. He was one of the founders of

Little Falls, Minnesota Little Falls is a city and the county seat of Morrison County, Minnesota, United States, near the geographic center of the state. The population was 9,140 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, up from 8,343 in 2010 United States census ...

and

Fergus Falls Fergus Falls ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Otter Tail County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 14,119 at the 2020 census, and was estimated to be 14,258 in 2024. History The falls from which the city gets part of its n ...

in the same state Was named for him. Fergus was naturalized and obtained his citizenship in October 1842. In 1845 Fergus married Pamelia Dillin in

Moline, Illinois Moline ( ) is a city in Rock Island County, Illinois, United States. With a population of 42,985 in the 2020 census, it is the largest city in Rock Island County and the List of municipalities in Illinois, ninth-most populous in Illinois outside ...

. They had four children: Andrew, Mary Agnes, Luella, and Lillie.

Politics

After becoming a US citizen, Fergus became deeply interested in politics. In 1856, he was elected Judge of Probate for Morrison County, Minnesota Territory (Little Falls was in this county). Two years later, he was elected to a two-year term as Morrison County Treasurer.James Fergus
/ref> Fergus moved with his family west to Montana Territory. He became involved in territorial and state politics.Guide to the James Fergus Papers at the University of Montana
/ref>
Rootsweb In 1869, Fergus was appointed to a vacant seat as county commissioner of Lewis and Clark County. In 1873 and in 1875 Fergus served as a precinct chairman in Montana for the Republican Party. In 1879 he was elected to represent Fergus County in the Territorial House of Representatives. Fergus was instrumental to the Republican party in Montana, as chairman and through his writings in local newspapers. In 1884 he participated in the constitutional convention in preparation for seeking admission of the territory as a state. At the same time, he promoted the organization of

Fergus County Fergus County is a county in the U.S. state of Montana. As of the 2020 census, the population was 11,446. Its county seat is Lewistown. The county was founded in 1885 and named for James Fergus, a Montana politician who was instrumental in cr ...

and is considered its founder.

Business

In 1895, James Fergus and his son Andrew Fergus expanded their ranching business operation. They created a family corporation named Fergus Livestock and Land Company. It developed as one of biggest ranching operations in central Montana. Their ranch was located on Armells Creek in northeastern Fergus County. James died in 1902 and Andrew before his time. Due to the loss of these business leaders and the economic strains of the

Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...

, heirs were forced to sell this exceptional ranch.

Death

Fergus died June 5, 1902. Andrew Fergus died in 1928, shortly before the stock market crash and onset of the Great Depression.

Legacy

Fergus was posthumously inducted into the Montana Cowboy Hall of Fame (District 6).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fergus, James 1813 births 1902 deaths Scottish emigrants to the United States County commissioners in Montana Montana Republicans Members of the Montana Territorial Legislature People from Fergus Falls, Minnesota People from Minnesota Territory Naturalized citizens of the United States