Frank M. Ziebach
Encyclopedia
Frank M. Ziebach was a noted political figure in the Dakota Territory
during the territorial period from 1861 to 1889. He was a pioneer newspaperman, founding a number of newspapers in the Iowa and Dakota Territories, including the Yankton
"Weekly Dakotan" (also referred to as the "Weekly Dakotian") in 1861, which is still published today as the Yankton "Press and Dakotan". He was known as the "squatter governor" of the Dakota Territory. Ziebach County, South Dakota
was created in 1911, and is named for him.
Frank M. Ziebach was born in 1830 in Pennsylvania, and died in 1929 in Yankton, South Dakota
at the age of 99. His life spanned the period from the presidency of Andrew Jackson
to that of Herbert Hoover
.
. He entered the newspaper business by publishing the Lewistown (Pa.) Argus. He married Elizabeth Fisher, of Danville, Pa, and over the course of their married life they had four sons and two daughters.
. In 1858 Frank bought out his partner, and moved the equipment to Sioux City, where he commenced publication on July 22, 1858 as the weekly "Sioux City Register". The "Register" declared itself to be a "Democratic" newspaper. In 1859, Frank sold an interest to William Freney and the "Register" was consolidated with the "Sioux City Eagle". The partnership of Ziebach and Freney continued to publish the "Register" until 1862, but in 1861 Frank transferred his interests to Yankton, South Dakota.
The papers Ziebach had formed in Iowa were self proclaimed Democrat newspapers and in early editions the Yankton Weekly Dakotian similarly proclaimed itself to be a "Douglas Democrat" newspaper. However, after the elections brought the Republicans to power in the territorial legislature in the fall of 1861, the newspaper switched sides. The newspaper became inactive for a short period, during which Ziebach sold the newspaper to J.C. Trask in March 1862. The Dakotian now re-emerged and declared itself a Republican newspaper, and the Dakotian Printing Company was rewarded by becoming the first "Public Printer" in Dakota, doing the printing for the first Legislative Assembly.
After the first legislative session the Dakotian was sold to George W. Kingsbury, and Frank M. Zieback subsequently rejoined the newspaper as a partner of Kingsbury. Since the Dakotian had been a declared Democrat newspaper when published by Frank Ziebach in 1861, but now had switched its allegiance to the Republicans in 1862, when Ziebach rejoined Kingsbury in the newspaper business "political party prudence" dictated that Ziebach be a silent partner and Kingsbury, a Republican, be the official editor and manager of the paper. These political machinations had their reward, and during the second session of the territorial legislature Ziebach and Kingsbury retained the position of "Public Printer".
After 1863, the paper passed into the sole possession of Kingsbury. Yankton was the territorial capitol of the Dakota Territory from 1861 until 1883 (when the capitol was moved to Bismarck
) and during this period the Dakotian grew swiftly with its reporting of the early political wars of Dakota Territory. The paper passed through a number of different ownership entities, and in the following decades other area newspapers become consolidated with the Dakotian so that it eventually became known as the Press and Dakotan and is still published under that name today in Yankton, South Dakota.
There is a debate about the "first newspaper" in the Dakota Territory. On March 2, 1861 Congress passed the Organic Act that brought the Dakota Territory into being, with Yankton as its capitol. The Weekly Dakotian was the first newspaper that was published in the Dakota Territory after the passage of the organic act. However it was the second newspaper in the area that became South Dakota. The first newspaper in what is now South Dakota was the Dakota Democrat published in Sioux Falls for about four years starting in 1858.
He returned to Yankton in 1870, where he again became engaged in the newspaper business. In 1873, he was elected to the office as Superintendent of Schools, but since he did not qualify, another was appointed to fill his place. He was elected mayor of Yankton serving for three terms from 1876 through 1880.
He served as a member of the territorial legislature 1877-78 and 1883-84. When in the 1877-78 territorial legislature, Mr. Ziebach resided in Yankton, and represented Yankton County. When he was in the 1883-84 territorial legislature he resided in Scotland, and represented Bon Homme County.
He was a delegate to the South Dakota state constitutional convention, in 1883. He served as a member of first Yankton’s Board of Education, formed in 1875. He has also held other minor offices in city and territorial government.
From 1861 to 1889, Dakota Territory elected a single non-voting Territorial Delegate for a two year term to the United States House of Representatives. Each party held bi-annual conventions to nominate their candidate for the office. Frank M. Ziebach attended the Democratic Party Territorial Convention in 1874, and in 1882, serving each time on the influential "Committee on Resolutions". Though not chosen as the Democratic candidate for territorial delegate to the U.S. Congress, in each convention he was nominated for the position and received a substantial number of votes.
, a Democrat
was elected President of the United States
, and in 1886, it fell to him to appoint a governor for the Dakota Territory. Frank M. Ziebach was the overwhelming choice of 90% of the rank and file Democrats in the territory, and extensive petitions were prepared and sent to the President. Frank M. Ziebach went to Washington, and met all the right people, and the Democratic faithful and the candidate confidently expected that he would be appointed governor. However, Frank M. Ziebach was a "two state Democrat" with a reputation as a "pronounced divisionist" and President Cleveland favored a "one state" admission. In 1886 President Cleveland awarded Frank M. Ziebach the consolation prize of appointment as receiver/commissioner of the U.S. Land Office, and in 1887 the President appointed a "one state" candidate as governor. Nevertheless, Frank M. Ziebach continued to advocate for a two state admission, and in 1889 the United States Congress
resolved the issue by passage of the Enabling Act of 1889
which admitted North Dakota
and South Dakota
, along with Montana
and Washington.
"History of Southeastern Dakota", published in 1881 by the Western Publishing Company, Sioux City Iowa, on line at Internet Archives
"History of the Dakota Territory", George W. Kingsbury, S.J. Clark Publishing Company, 1918, on line at Internet Archive
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 North and South Dakota.The Dakota Territory consisted of...
during the territorial period from 1861 to 1889. He was a pioneer newspaperman, founding a number of newspapers in the Iowa and Dakota Territories, including the Yankton
Yankton, South Dakota
Yankton is a city in, and the county seat of, Yankton County, South Dakota, United States. The population was 14,454 at the 2010 census. Yankton was the original capital of Dakota Territory. It is named for the Yankton tribe of Nakota Native Americans...
"Weekly Dakotan" (also referred to as the "Weekly Dakotian") in 1861, which is still published today as the Yankton "Press and Dakotan". He was known as the "squatter governor" of the Dakota Territory. Ziebach County, South Dakota
Ziebach County, South Dakota
As of the census of 2000, there were 2,519 people, 741 households, and 594 families residing in the county. The population density was 1.3 people per square mile . There were 879 housing units at an average density of 0.4 per square mile...
was created in 1911, and is named for him.
Frank M. Ziebach was born in 1830 in Pennsylvania, and died in 1929 in Yankton, South Dakota
Yankton, South Dakota
Yankton is a city in, and the county seat of, Yankton County, South Dakota, United States. The population was 14,454 at the 2010 census. Yankton was the original capital of Dakota Territory. It is named for the Yankton tribe of Nakota Native Americans...
at the age of 99. His life spanned the period from the presidency of Andrew Jackson
Andrew Jackson
Andrew Jackson was the seventh President of the United States . Based in frontier Tennessee, Jackson was a politician and army general who defeated the Creek Indians at the Battle of Horseshoe Bend , and the British at the Battle of New Orleans...
to that of Herbert Hoover
Herbert Hoover
Herbert Clark Hoover was the 31st President of the United States . Hoover was originally a professional mining engineer and author. As the United States Secretary of Commerce in the 1920s under Presidents Warren Harding and Calvin Coolidge, he promoted partnerships between government and business...
.
Early life and marriage
Frank M. Ziebach was born in 1830 in Union County, Pennsylvania, near Lewisburg, PennsylvaniaLewisburg, Pennsylvania
Lewisburg is a borough in Union County, Pennsylvania, United States, south by southeast of Williamsport and north of Harrisburg. In the past, it was the commercial center for a fertile grain and general farming region. The population was 5,620 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Union...
. He entered the newspaper business by publishing the Lewistown (Pa.) Argus. He married Elizabeth Fisher, of Danville, Pa, and over the course of their married life they had four sons and two daughters.
Iowa 1856 to 1862
Frank M. Zieback moved from Pennsylvania to Iowa and in August 1856 he began publication of the "Western Independent" with J. N. Cummings in Sargeants Bluff, eight miles south of Sioux City, IowaSioux City, Iowa
Sioux City is a city in Plymouth and Woodbury counties in the western part of the U.S. state of Iowa. The population was 82,684 in the 2010 census, a decline from 85,013 in the 2000 census, which makes it currently the fourth largest city in the state....
. In 1858 Frank bought out his partner, and moved the equipment to Sioux City, where he commenced publication on July 22, 1858 as the weekly "Sioux City Register". The "Register" declared itself to be a "Democratic" newspaper. In 1859, Frank sold an interest to William Freney and the "Register" was consolidated with the "Sioux City Eagle". The partnership of Ziebach and Freney continued to publish the "Register" until 1862, but in 1861 Frank transferred his interests to Yankton, South Dakota.
The Yankton Weekly Dakotian newspaper
In 1861, Frank M. Ziebach freighted his printing outfit from Sioux City, Iowa to Yankton by team and wagon. He and his partner from Sioux City, William Freney, formed the Dakotian Printing Company in Yankton, and printed the first edition of the "Weekly Dakotian" at Yankton on June, 6, 1861. Frank Ziebach was the editor and did a good portion of the practical work besides. He was a master printer and a good journalist.The papers Ziebach had formed in Iowa were self proclaimed Democrat newspapers and in early editions the Yankton Weekly Dakotian similarly proclaimed itself to be a "Douglas Democrat" newspaper. However, after the elections brought the Republicans to power in the territorial legislature in the fall of 1861, the newspaper switched sides. The newspaper became inactive for a short period, during which Ziebach sold the newspaper to J.C. Trask in March 1862. The Dakotian now re-emerged and declared itself a Republican newspaper, and the Dakotian Printing Company was rewarded by becoming the first "Public Printer" in Dakota, doing the printing for the first Legislative Assembly.
After the first legislative session the Dakotian was sold to George W. Kingsbury, and Frank M. Zieback subsequently rejoined the newspaper as a partner of Kingsbury. Since the Dakotian had been a declared Democrat newspaper when published by Frank Ziebach in 1861, but now had switched its allegiance to the Republicans in 1862, when Ziebach rejoined Kingsbury in the newspaper business "political party prudence" dictated that Ziebach be a silent partner and Kingsbury, a Republican, be the official editor and manager of the paper. These political machinations had their reward, and during the second session of the territorial legislature Ziebach and Kingsbury retained the position of "Public Printer".
After 1863, the paper passed into the sole possession of Kingsbury. Yankton was the territorial capitol of the Dakota Territory from 1861 until 1883 (when the capitol was moved to Bismarck
Bismarck, North Dakota
Bismarck is the capital of the U.S. state of North Dakota and the county seat of Burleigh County. It is the second most populous city in North Dakota after Fargo. The city's population was 61,272 at the 2010 census, while its metropolitan population was 108,779...
) and during this period the Dakotian grew swiftly with its reporting of the early political wars of Dakota Territory. The paper passed through a number of different ownership entities, and in the following decades other area newspapers become consolidated with the Dakotian so that it eventually became known as the Press and Dakotan and is still published under that name today in Yankton, South Dakota.
There is a debate about the "first newspaper" in the Dakota Territory. On March 2, 1861 Congress passed the Organic Act that brought the Dakota Territory into being, with Yankton as its capitol. The Weekly Dakotian was the first newspaper that was published in the Dakota Territory after the passage of the organic act. However it was the second newspaper in the area that became South Dakota. The first newspaper in what is now South Dakota was the Dakota Democrat published in Sioux Falls for about four years starting in 1858.
The Yankton Dakota Militia in the 1862 Indian uprising
In August 1862 raiding Sioux killed Judge Amedon and his son near Sioux Falls, and shortly thereafter Yankton got news of the massacre in Minnesota by Little Crow. Settlers panicked and came pouring into Yankton with their goods and livestock. A sod stockade was thrown up around the printing offices of the Dakotian. The stockaded newspaper building became known as "Fort Yankton". The governor called for militia volunteers, and four hundred citizens responded. Frank M. Ziebach was elected Captain of Company A of the Dakota Militia, and George W. Kingsbury, the co-editor at the Dakotian became the company orderly sergeant. Frank M. Ziebach became known by the tongue in cheek title of Commander in Chief of the Army at Fort Yankton. Although for Yankton there was almost no fighting (excepting a short clash in the late fall on the outskirts of Sioux Falls), historical memory now recalls dashing images from "the exciting and perilous weeks of the Indian outbreak of 1862, when Yankton was besieged."Public offices in Iowa and the Dakota Territory, 1868 to 1889
Frank M. Ziebach went to Dubuque Iowa in 1863 and purchased an interest in the Dubuque Herald. He returned to Sioux City, Iowa in 1866 and in the fall of that year was appointed register of the land office at Sioux City. He was mayor of Sioux City for two terms 1868-69 and 1869-70.He returned to Yankton in 1870, where he again became engaged in the newspaper business. In 1873, he was elected to the office as Superintendent of Schools, but since he did not qualify, another was appointed to fill his place. He was elected mayor of Yankton serving for three terms from 1876 through 1880.
He served as a member of the territorial legislature 1877-78 and 1883-84. When in the 1877-78 territorial legislature, Mr. Ziebach resided in Yankton, and represented Yankton County. When he was in the 1883-84 territorial legislature he resided in Scotland, and represented Bon Homme County.
He was a delegate to the South Dakota state constitutional convention, in 1883. He served as a member of first Yankton’s Board of Education, formed in 1875. He has also held other minor offices in city and territorial government.
From 1861 to 1889, Dakota Territory elected a single non-voting Territorial Delegate for a two year term to the United States House of Representatives. Each party held bi-annual conventions to nominate their candidate for the office. Frank M. Ziebach attended the Democratic Party Territorial Convention in 1874, and in 1882, serving each time on the influential "Committee on Resolutions". Though not chosen as the Democratic candidate for territorial delegate to the U.S. Congress, in each convention he was nominated for the position and received a substantial number of votes.
The squatter governor
Frank M. Ziebach is known to history as the “squatter governor” of Dakota Territory. During the first territorial legislative session he presided as the mock "governor" over an informal caucus of territorial leaders who formed a mock legislature. This caucus was known as the "third house". This incident caused Frank M. Ziebach to be referred to as the "squatter governor" (a squatter being a frontier term for a person who holds land by possessing it, or "squatting" on it, without having any formal legal title to the land). The mock leglislature sessions continued sporadically in later years, and Frank M. Ziebach was often called to preside. These mock legislature sessions afforded a good deal of entertainment during the formal legislative sessions. Because he had become known as the "squatter governor" Frank M. Ziebach was popularly referred to as “governor” throughout the latter half of his life.Candidate for territorial governor, commissioner of U.S. land office, 1886 - 1889
When Dakota sought admission as a state, an intense debate arose whether the territory would be admitted as the single state of Dakota, or admitted as two states. Politicians became known as "one state" advocates, or "two state” advocates, also called "divisionists". In 1884 Grover ClevelandGrover Cleveland
Stephen Grover Cleveland was the 22nd and 24th president of the United States. Cleveland is the only president to serve two non-consecutive terms and therefore is the only individual to be counted twice in the numbering of the presidents...
, a Democrat
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
was elected President of the United States
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
, and in 1886, it fell to him to appoint a governor for the Dakota Territory. Frank M. Ziebach was the overwhelming choice of 90% of the rank and file Democrats in the territory, and extensive petitions were prepared and sent to the President. Frank M. Ziebach went to Washington, and met all the right people, and the Democratic faithful and the candidate confidently expected that he would be appointed governor. However, Frank M. Ziebach was a "two state Democrat" with a reputation as a "pronounced divisionist" and President Cleveland favored a "one state" admission. In 1886 President Cleveland awarded Frank M. Ziebach the consolation prize of appointment as receiver/commissioner of the U.S. Land Office, and in 1887 the President appointed a "one state" candidate as governor. Nevertheless, Frank M. Ziebach continued to advocate for a two state admission, and in 1889 the United States Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
resolved the issue by passage of the Enabling Act of 1889
Enabling Act of 1889
The Enabling Act of 1889 is a United States statute that enabled North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana, and Washington to form state governments and to gain admission as states of the union....
which admitted North Dakota
North Dakota
North Dakota is a state located in the Midwestern region of the United States of America, along the Canadian border. The state is bordered by Canada to the north, Minnesota to the east, South Dakota to the south and Montana to the west. North Dakota is the 19th-largest state by area in the U.S....
and South Dakota
South Dakota
South Dakota is a state located in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is named after the Lakota and Dakota Sioux American Indian tribes. Once a part of Dakota Territory, South Dakota became a state on November 2, 1889. The state has an area of and an estimated population of just over...
, along with Montana
Montana
Montana is a state in the Western United States. The western third of Montana contains numerous mountain ranges. Smaller, "island ranges" are found in the central third of the state, for a total of 77 named ranges of the Rocky Mountains. This geographical fact is reflected in the state's name,...
and Washington.
Later life, and becoming the namesake for Ziebach County
In 1911, Frank M. Ziebach was honored when Ziebach county in South Dakota was created and named for him. When aged 99, he was elected a "Life Member" of the South Dakota State Historical Society because, "His long residence in the State... (and) his activities on behalf of the growth and development of South Dakota, from earliest territorial days to the present time make him one of the marked figures on the list of our most prominent citizens."Death and burial
Frank M. Ziebach died on September 20, 1929, at age 99. His wife predeceased him, dying at Winner on August 8, 1917. Frank M. Ziebach is buried in the Yankton Cemetery at Yankton, South Dakota.Further reading
"A Brief History of South Dakota", by Doane Robinson, American Book Company, 1905, on line at Google books"History of Southeastern Dakota", published in 1881 by the Western Publishing Company, Sioux City Iowa, on line at Internet Archives
"History of the Dakota Territory", George W. Kingsbury, S.J. Clark Publishing Company, 1918, on line at Internet Archive