Dr. Vespasian Smith was the third mayor of Duluth. Born Oct. 21, 1818 in Mt. Vernon, Ohio, he earned a medical degree from Western Reserve College in 1851 and practiced in Ohio and Superior, Wisconsin before moving to Duluth. In 1860 he received a government appointment to serve as physician to the Indians at the Bayfield Agency. It is said that there were no votes opposing his first election to mayor, in 1873, except his own. He was re-elected the following year. The financial panic of 1873 and dire financial circumstances of Duluth itself made for difficult mayoral terms, but he was said to have been a man of great common sense who was well suited to lead during such times. He also served on the State Board of Health for twenty years. Dr. Smith died in Duluth on Oct. 11, 1897.
John Drew, a successful businessman, was born in Connecticut in April 1817 and moved to Duluth in 1869. By the time he was elected mayor in 1876, Duluth was in a grave financial state. The city's debt was so large that in order to get any settlement, the city itself had to be dissolved and replaced by the village of Duluth. John Drew presided over this transition in 1877, and once the city had become a village he resigned his post as mayor. In 1879 Drew was again elected to office, this time as president of the village, and used his one year of office to help get Duluth back on its feet. He later enjoyed a successful furnishing and clothing business until his death on September 1, 1909. He had three children with his wife Emma H. Drew and was believed to be one of the oldest residents of Duluth when he died.
This photograph shows the construction of the Nicollet County Courthouse in St. Peter, which is located on the east side of the 500 block of South Minnesota Avenue. Construction began in 1880 and was completed in July of 1881.
This photograph shows the Nicollet County Poor Farm in Granby Township, which was located on the north side of Swan Lake, south of the Fort Road, which is today's County Road 5. It was on the west side of County Road 4.
Peter Dean was born in New York City in 1828 and worked in a number of professions in several towns around Michigan before moving to Duluth. He was elected to office twice, once as Mayor of the City of Duluth (1875) and again as President of the Village of Duluth (1880). Though neither of his terms lasted more than a year, he was well-remembered as an eccentric and good-hearted man who cared deeply for the community and its financial troubles. When he died on January 4, 1884, he willed most of his property to Duluth itself, however it was organized at the time.
Group portrait of the Pope County Commissioners of 1882. Back row: Jared Emerson, Peder Engebretson, M. A. Wollan, auditor. Front row: Harold Irgens, George Brown, Gunder Tharaldson. Their terms only overlapped in 1882.
This photograph shows soldiers from St. Peter's Company I of the Second Regiment of the Minnesota National Guard at their mess tent at an encampment in Winona.