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Sanborn, John Benjamin "Jno., J.B."

House 1859-60 (District 2); Senate 1861 (District 21); House 1872 (District 23); House 1881-82 (District 23); Senate 1891-94 (District 25)

Party when first elected:  Republican

Counties Served:  Ramsey

BIOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION

Date of Birth: 12/5/1826
Birth Place: Epsom, New Hampshire
Birth County: Merrimac
Birth Country: United States
Date of Death: 5/6/1904
Gender: Male
Religion:
Reported Minority: None Reported
Other Names: Jno., J.B.
City of Residence (when first elected): Saint Paul
Occupation (when first elected): Lawyer, Sanborn and French Law Office

EDUCATION

Common Schools; Elementary School;
Thetford Academy, New Hampshire; Secondary;
Pembroke Academy, New Hampshire; Secondary;
Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire; Attended College; One Term, Fall 1851
Studied Law; Judge Fowler's Law Office, Concord, New Hampshire; Admitted to the Bar, 1854

OTHER GOVERNMENT SERVICE

Military: Minnesota Adjutant General and Acting Quartermaster General (Appointed by Governor Ramsey); 04/23/1861 to 01/01/1862 [Appointed]
Military: 4th Minnesota Regiment Infantry Volunteers (United States Civil War/War of the Rebellion, Army of the Mississippi, Southwest District of Missouri, Colonel; Brigadier General Volunteers, August 4, 1863; Brevet Major General Volunteers, February 10, 1865); 11/05/1861 to 06/01/1866
Military: United States Indian Expeditions, District of the Upper Arkansas (Commander); 06/07/1865 to 05/31/1866
U.S. Executive Branch: United States Indian Peace Commission (Treaties with Cheyennes, Comanches and Other Tribes; Commissioner to Tribes West of the Rocky Mountains); 02/1867 to 1868 [Appointed]
State Board/Commission/Council: Minnesota Historical Society (President); 05/1903 to 05/06/1904

FAMILY RELATIONSHIPS

Spouse: Catharine Hall (married in March 1857; she died in 1860); Widower; Anna Nixon (remarried in 1865, she died in June 1878); Widower; Rachel Rice (remarried on April 15, 1880)
Children: Four children (with Rachel): John B. (son)
Family Members Who Have Served in the Minnesota Legislature:
John B. Sanborn, Jr.  - Son

GENERAL NOTES

The Minnesota Legislative Manual, 1872 lists New York as his birth state. The others list New Hampshire.

He was born on a farm.

He moved to St. Paul, Minnesota in December 1854.

His party affiliation when first elected was provided by Minnesota in Three Centuries.

"I was a Republican member of the House." (Sanborn, Gen. John B. "The Work of the Second Legislature, 1859-60." Collections of the Minnesota Historical Society, St. Paul: the Society, 1905, Vol. 10, Part 2, p. 621)

He fought in numerous battles during the United States Civil War including Iuka, Corinth, Port Gibson, Champion Hills, Vicksburg, Jefferson City, Boonville, Independence, Mine Creek, and Newtonia.

He ran unsuccessfully for the United States Senate in 1860.

He died in St. Paul, Minnesota.

Total Days Served: 3324

SESSIONS SERVED

28th Legislative Session (1893-1894) (second half of Senate term)

  Session Details
Body: Senate
District: 25
Elected: 11/4/1890
Residence: Saint Paul
Term of Office: 1/6/1891 to 1/7/1895
Counties Represented: Ramsey
Occupation: Engaged in the Practice of Law
Party: Republican
Committees:
  • Judiciary
  • Military Affairs (Chair)
  • Municipal Corporations
  • Rules (Chair)
  • State Prison
  • State Soldiers Home (Chair)
Leadership Position: President Pro Tempore

27th Legislative Session (1891-1892)

  Session Details
Body: Senate
District: 25
Elected: 11/4/1890
Residence: Saint Paul
Term of Office: 1/6/1891 to 1/7/1895
Counties Represented: Ramsey
Occupation: Lawyer
Party: Citizen's-Republican
Committees:
  • Judiciary
  • Local Legislation
  • Military Affairs (Chair)
  • Soldiers Home
  • Taxes and Tax Laws
Leadership Position: President Pro Tempore

22nd Legislative Session (1881-1882)

  Session Details
Body: House
District: 23
Elected: 11/2/1880
Residence: Saint Paul
Term of Office: 1/4/1881 to 1/1/1883
Counties Represented: Ramsey
Occupation: Lawyer
Party: Not Available
Committees:
  • Finance (Chair)
  • Judiciary

14th Legislative Session (1872)

  Session Details
Body: House
District: 23
Elected: 11/7/1871
Residence: Saint Paul
Term of Office: 1/2/1872 to 1/6/1873
Counties Represented: Ramsey
Occupation: Attorney
Party: Not Available
Committees:
  • Joint Apportionment (Chair)
  • Judiciary
  • Rules and Joint Rules (Chair)

3rd Legislative Session (1861)

  Session Details
Body: Senate
District: 21
Elected: 11/6/1860
Residence: Saint Paul
Term of Office: 1/8/1861 to 1/6/1862
Counties Represented: Ramsey
Occupation: Lawyer
Party: Republican Party Notes: His party affiliation was determined by A History of the City of Saint Paul and of the County of Ramsey, Minnesota, 1876; it lists him as a member of the Republican Party in the 1860 election.
Committees:
  • Judiciary
  • Militia (Chair)
  • Public Lands

2nd Legislative Session (1859-1860)

  Session Details
Body: House
District: 02
Elected: 10/11/1859
Residence: Saint Paul
Term of Office: 12/7/1859 to 1/7/1861
Counties Represented: Ramsey
Occupation: Lawyer, Sanborn and French Law Office
Party: Republican Party Notes: His party affiliation when first elected was provided by Minnesota in Three Centuries. "I was a Republican member of the House." (Sanborn, Gen. John B. "The Work of the Second Legislature, 1859-60." Collections of the Minnesota Historical Society, St. Paul: the Society, 1905, Vol. 10, Part 2, p. 621)
Committees:
  • Constitution and Constitutional Reform
  • Judiciary (Chair)
Articles & Books About
Shutter, Marion Daniel. "John B. Sanborn." Progressive Men of Minnesota, Minneapolis: The Minneapolis Journal, 1897, p. 426-427.


Archive Collections
John B. Sanborn Papers, 1854-1898 - Available in the Minnesota Historical Society's Collections.
These files are available in the Legislative Reference Library.