37 Facts About Melvin Grigsby

Melvin Grigsby was an American attorney, politician, and military leader from South Dakota.

Melvin Grigsby was born in the town of Potosi, Wisconsin on June 8,1845 to William Etchison Grigsby and Rhoda Grigsby.

Melvin Grigsby was raised to do farm work while he received his early education in the village's public schools.

Melvin Grigsby took part in several of the 2nd Wisconsin's engagements in and around Vicksburg, Mississippi and attained the rank of sergeant.

Melvin Grigsby spent a short amount of time at a prison camp in Canton, Mississippi, then was transferred to Cahaba Prison, followed by transfer to Andersonville Prison, and finally Florence Stockade in South Carolina.

Melvin Grigsby was discharged at the end of the war and returned to Wisconsin.

Melvin Grigsby was principal of the elementary school in Delavan, Wisconsin from 1871 to 1872.

Melvin Grigsby studied law while teaching school, and completed his studies under attorney William Pitt Dewey of Lancaster.

Melvin Grigsby attained admission to the bar in the summer of 1872 and then undertook a trip to find a location in the Northwestern United States where he could establish a legal practice.

In late June 1872, Melvin Grigsby arrived in Sioux Falls, Dakota Territory and decided to remain.

Melvin Grigsby entered into a law practice and land selling partnership with Richard F Pettigrew, which they maintained for four years.

In 1877, Grigsby went into banking as the partner of George M Smith, and they owned and operated the Bank of Egan, and later the Union Bank of Elk Point, both of which Grigsby served as the first president.

Melvin Grigsby became active in politics as a Republican, and served for two years as clerk of the courts for Minnehaha County, and two terms as a Sioux Falls city alderman.

In 1886, Melvin Grigsby nearly won the party's nomination for Delegate to Congress, and later that year he won a term in the territorial House of Representatives.

Melvin Grigsby was an unsuccessful candidate for the South Dakota Senate in 1894, but in 1896, he ran successfully for South Dakota Attorney General, defeating the nominees of the Republican and Prohibition parties.

Melvin Grigsby commanded his regiment as a colonel during May and June 1898, which included its organization and training at Camp Thomas, Georgia.

Melvin Grigsby was then promoted to command of 1st Cavalry Brigade, First Army Corps as an acting brigadier general, and he continued to lead the brigade until the end of the war.

Melvin Grigsby remained interested in military service; in 1900, he offered to re-form his regiment and lead it to China to protect US interests during the Boxer Rebellion.

In May, 1902, President Theodore Roosevelt nominated Melvin Grigsby as United States Attorney for the Territory of Alaska's second judicial district, based in Nome.

Melvin Grigsby was confirmed in June, and served until resigning in May, 1904.

In January 1904, Melvin Grigsby was accused of accepting a $10,000 bribe disguised as a legal fee in exchange for foregoing prosecution of an Alaska oil company.

Melvin Grigsby claimed that he was being supplanted because of favoritism and that he had taken the position in Alaska only to help one his sons, George Barnes Melvin Grigsby, establish a career of his own in Alaska.

Melvin Grigsby continued to practice law in Sioux Falls, and remained interested in politics, including attending Theodore Roosevelt's 1905 inauguration.

In 1912, Melvin Grigsby was a supporter of Theodore Roosevelt's Progressive candidacy for president.

Melvin Grigsby remained in the Republican Party and was a candidate for US Senator, but lost the Republican nomination to Thomas Sterling, a fellow Roosevelt Republican who went on to win the general election.

When conflict between factions in the Mexican Civil War led to the possibility of US military action to defend the US-Mexico border, Melvin Grigsby offered to raise a volunteer force and lead it to Texas, but the federal government relied on mobilized National Guard units rather than volunteers to perform this mission.

In 1916, Melvin Grigsby was again a supporter of Roosevelt for president, and ran unsuccessfully for delegate to the Republican National Convention.

In 1916, Melvin Grigsby was diagnosed with anemia, and he spent time at a sanitorium in Battle Creek, Michigan to receive treatment.

In January 1917, Melvin Grigsby announced a new law firm with his son John as his partner, and published accounts indicated he was active in founding and managing the Stockyards Bank of Sioux Falls.

Melvin Grigsby became ill later that month, and was diagnosed with pneumonia in addition to his anemic condition.

Melvin Grigsby decided to travel to Birmingham, Alabama in the hopes that a warmer climate might prove restorative, but his health continued to decline, and he died in Birmingham on February 15,1917.

Melvin Grigsby was buried at Mount Pleasant Cemetery in Sioux Falls.

In March 1873, Melvin Grigsby married Fannie Lou Kingsbury in Delavan, Wisconsin.

Sioux K Grigsby served in both houses of the South Dakota legislature, and was lieutenant governor from 1945 to 1949.

Melvin Grigsby was a professional musician, and after graduating from Chicago Musical College, she taught at Wheaton College and was the piano accompanist for the Chicago Opera Company.

John T Grigsby was a South Dakota attorney and politician, and served as lieutenant governor from 1929 to 1931.

In 1888, Melvin Grigsby authored a work on his Civil War experiences:.