Solomon Gilman Comstock (May 9, 1842 – June 3, 1933) was an American attorney and politician who served as a member of the

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

for

Minnesota's 5th congressional district Minnesota's 5th congressional district is a geographically small urban and suburban congressional district in Minnesota. It covers eastern Hennepin County, Minnesota, Hennepin County, including the entire city of Minneapolis, along with parts ...

from 1889 to 1891.

Early life and education

Born in

Argyle, Maine Argyle is an unorganized territory (township) in Penobscot County, Maine, United States. The population was 255 at the 2020 census. Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the unorganized territory has a total area of 26.7 ...

, Comstock moved to

Passadumkeag, Maine Passadumkeag is a town on the east bank of the Penobscot River at the confluence with the Passadumkeag River in Penobscot County, Maine, United States. The population was 356 at the 2020 census. ''Passadumkeag'' is a word of the Penobscot peopl ...

, with his parents in 1845. He attended rural schools, East Corinth (Maine) Academy,

Maine Wesleyan Seminary Kents Hill School (also known as Kents Hill or KHS) is a co-educational, independent college-preparatory school for boarding and day students. Kents Hill is located in Kents Hill, Maine, 12 miles west of the state capital of Augusta, Maine, Aug ...

at Kents Hill, and

Hampden Academy Hampden Academy is a public high school located at 89 Western Avenue in Hampden, Maine, United States. The school is a part of Regional School Unit #22 (R.S.U. 22), with approximately 708 students from Hampden, Newburgh, Frankfort and Winterp ...

. Comstock studied law in

Bangor, Maine Bangor ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Penobscot County, Maine, United States. The city proper has a population of 31,753, making it the state's List of municipalities in Maine, third-most populous city, behind Portland, Maine, Portland ...

under the Honorable Samuel F. Humphrey. In 1868, he continued his studies at the

University of Michigan The University of Michigan (U-M, U of M, or Michigan) is a public university, public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest institution of higher education in the state. The University of Mi ...

Ann Arbor Ann Arbor is a city in Washtenaw County, Michigan, United States, and its county seat. The 2020 United States census, 2020 census recorded its population to be 123,851, making it the List of municipalities in Michigan, fifth-most populous cit ...

Career

He moved to

Nebraska Nebraska ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Ka ...

in 1869 and settled in

Omaha Omaha ( ) is the List of cities in Nebraska, most populous city in the U.S. state of Nebraska. It is located in the Midwestern United States along the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's List of United S ...

, where he was admitted to the bar the same year and commenced practice. He moved to

Minneapolis, Minnesota Minneapolis is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 429,954 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the state's List of cities in Minnesota, most populous city. Locat ...

, in 1870 and to

Moorhead, Minnesota Moorhead ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Clay County, Minnesota, Clay County, Minnesota, United States, on the banks of the Red River of the North. Located in the Red River Valley, an extremely fertile and active agricultural region, Moo ...

, in 1871, where he became a railroad construction laborer. When Clay County government was established in April 1872 in response to the killing of Slim Jim Shumway by

Shang Stanton Charles "Shang" Stanton (died 1889) was a gambler of the American frontier, whose killing of Slim Jim Shumway on April 25, 1872 provided the impetus for establishing Clay County, Minnesota government in Moorhead, Minnesota. Stanton's real name ...

, Comstock was the only man in town with a law degree. Consequently Comstock was Clay County attorney from 1872 to 1878. He was elected a member of the

Minnesota House of Representatives The Minnesota House of Representatives is the lower chamber of the U.S. state of Minnesota's Minnesota Legislature, legislature. It operates in conjunction with the Minnesota Senate, the state's upper chamber, to write and pass legislation, whic ...

in 1875, 1876, 1878, and 1881. He served in the

Minnesota Senate The Minnesota Senate is the upper house of the Minnesota Legislature, Legislature of the U.S. state of Minnesota. At 67 members, half as many as the Minnesota House of Representatives, it is the largest upper house of any State legislature (Unite ...

from 1882 to 1888. Comstock was an unsuccessful candidate for

attorney general of Minnesota The attorney general of Minnesota is a constitutional officer in the executive branch of the U.S. state of Minnesota. Thirty individuals have held the office of Attorney General since statehood. The incumbent is Keith Ellison, a Democratic-F ...

in 1882 and as lieutenant governor in 1884. He retired from law practice in 1884 and engaged in the real estate business. Comstock was elected as a Republican to the

in the

51st United States Congress The 51st United States Congress, referred to by some critics as the Billion Dollar Congress, was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Rep ...

, (March 4, 1889 – March 3, 1891). He was unsuccessful candidate for reelection in 1890 to the 52nd Congress and served as a delegate to the

1892 Republican National Convention The 1892 Republican National Convention was held at the Industrial Exposition Building, Minneapolis, Minnesota, from June 7 to June 10, 1892. The party nominated President Benjamin Harrison for re-election on the first ballot and Whitelaw Reid ...

. Comstock donated land to build the Bishop Whipple School in 1882, which later became Concordia College. He also sponsored a bill and donated six acres of land in 1885 to help create the Moorhead Normal School, now

Minnesota State University Moorhead Minnesota State University Moorhead (MSUM) is a public university in Moorhead, Minnesota, across the Red River of the North from Fargo, North Dakota. The school has an enrollment of 7,534 students in 2019 and 266 full-time faculty members. MSUM ...

. After resuming his real estate business in Moorhead, Comstock also engaged in manufacturing farm implements in 1893. He was a member of the state normal school board from 1897 to 1905, and retired from business pursuits and resided in Moorhead, Minnesota, until his death on June 3, 1933. He was buried at Prairie Home Cemetery in Moorhead, Minnesota.

Personal life

Solomon Comstock married Sarah Ann Ball on May 27, 1874 in Fargo, North Dakota. The couple had three children: Ada Louise Comstock Notestein (1876–1973), Jessie May Comstock (1879–1951), and George Madison Comstock (1886–1966). He is the namesake of Comstock, Minnesota, as well as Comstock Township, Marshall County, Minnesota. His residence, the Historic Solomon G.

Comstock House The Comstock House is a historic house museum in Moorhead, Minnesota, United States. It was built for Solomon Comstock and his family from 1882 to 1883 in a mix of Queen Anne and Eastlake style. Comstock (1842–1933) was one of Moorhead's ...

in Moorhead, operates as a

historic house museum A historic house museum is a house of historic significance that is preserved as a museum. Historic furnishings may be displayed in a way that reflects their original placement and usage in a home. Historic house museums are held to a variety of ...

References

Minnesota Legislators Past and Present
{{DEFAULTSORT:Comstock, Solomon 1842 births 1933 deaths People from Penobscot County, Maine Republican Party members of the Minnesota House of Representatives Republican Party Minnesota state senators Politicians from Bangor, Maine Politicians from Omaha, Nebraska University of Michigan alumni People from Moorhead, Minnesota Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Minnesota 19th-century members of the United States House of Representatives 19th-century members of the Minnesota Legislature