Basil Moreland
Basil Moreland | |
|---|---|
 Moreland c. 1858 | |
| Postmaster of Mankato, Minnesota | |
| In office 1856–1860 | |
| Member of the Minnesota Senate from the 16th District | |
| In office December 2, 1857 – December 6, 1859 | |
| Sheriff of Blue Earth County, Minnesota | |
| In office August 27, 1853 – September 4, 1854 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1829 Belmore, Ohio U.S. |
| Died | May 26, 1910 (aged 80–81) Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Resting place | Calvary Cemetery |
Basil Moreland (c. 1829 – May 26, 1910) was an American businessman, surveyor, politician, and early citizen of Mankato, Minnesota.
Early life
[edit]Moreland was born around 1830 in Belmore, Ohio. Moreland arrived in Minnesota Territory on April 16, 1853[1]:141[2]:47 and in March 1854 settled on 160 acres of unsurveyed public land on the Blue Earth River near Rapidan, Minnesota.[2]:69,281 The land Moreland settled on was on the same territory as the Indian reservation constructed for the Ho-Chunk living in Minnesota.[2]:69 Moreland was later evicted by the territorial government in 1856 for living on public land and he settled in Mankato, Minnesota.[2]:69[3] Moreland was never originally compensated for his lost property.[3]
Political career
[edit]Moreland's first political office was his election as the sheriff of Blue Earth County on August 27, 1853,[2]:48 Moreland would resign as sheriff a year later on September 4, 1854.[4]:533 Moreland was also elected as the treasurer of Blue Earth County on September 12, 1853,[2]:48 Moreland served twice as the County Surveyor of Blue Earth County in 1856 and 1857.[2]:305 From 1856 to 1860 Moreland served as the postmaster of Mankato.[2]:47
Minnesota Senate
[edit]In 1857 Moreland campaigned for a seat in the Minnesota Legislature as a representative of Minnesota's 16th Senate District which included Blue Earth County and Le Sueur County, Minnesota.[2]:302[5] Moreland won the election on October 13, 1857, and would serve a single term in the 1st Minnesota Legislature from December 2, 1857, to December 6, 1859.[5] During his term Moreland was the chairman of the Credentials Committee and Indian Affairs Committee and was a member of the Engrossments Committee and the Public Lands Committee.[5]
During his term Moreland was responsible for incorporating the Minnesota and Northwestern Railroad in 1857 alongside William R. McMahan, Matthew Thompson, Francis Baasen, and William Pfaender.[2]:170
Later life
[edit]Following his term in the Minnesota Senate, Moreland continued to live and work in and around Mankato. In 1865 Moreland and W.F Lewis built a sawmill on the Cobb River.[2]:224
In 1894 United States representative James McCleary introduced a bill to the 53rd United States Congress in order to compensate Moreland for his property he was evicted from in 1854, Moreland was compensated $2,200 for his lost property.[6]
Moreland died on May 26, 1910, at the age of 81 in Los Angeles, California, he is buried in Calvary Cemetery.[7]
References
[edit]- ↑ Mankato: Its First fifty Years. Containing Addresses, Historic Papers and Brief Biographies of Early Settlers and Active Upbuilders of the City. Mankato: Free Press Printing Co. 1903.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Hughes, Thomas (1901). History of Blue Earth County and Biographies of its Leading Citizens. Chicago: Middle West Publishing Company.
- 1 2 Harren, Heather (December 30, 2015). "A Brief History of Rapidan Township". Blue Earth County Historical Society. Retrieved September 21, 2026.
- ↑ Neill, Edward Duffield (1882). History of the Minnesota Valley : including the Explorers and pioneers of Minnesota. Minneapolis: North Star Publishing Company.
- 1 2 3 "Basil Moreland". Minnesota Legislators Past & Present. Retrieved September 21, 2026.
- ↑ "Moreland in Luck: The President Signs a Bill Allowing Him $2,200". The Mankato Free Press. March 5, 1897. p. 2. LCCN sn83016589. Retrieved September 21, 2026.
- ↑ "DEATHS". Los Angeles Herald. May 28, 1910. p. 14. LCCN sn85042462. Retrieved September 21, 2026.