Hi Art, I don't know if this is the same man as Wisconsin's Edgerton, but Sidney Edgerton, Montana's first territorial governor, was an abolitionist from Ohio. Alot of southerners (Democrats) settled in Montana, and the Irish mining immigrants and the Germans were mostly Democrats as well. Montana's first years were at the close of the Civil War, and there was conflict over loyalties as well as racism. When Edgerton, a Republican, won the first election, the legislature, went Unionist (republican) by one vote in the Council, and Democratic by one vote in the House. When Edgerton addressed the legislature, he offended the Confederate veterans and also called former Democratic president Buchanan an "imbecile". When General Meagher came on the scene, he confused matters even more by switching from being a Union Democrat to a Republican, and then back to being a Democrat. He saw that most of the Irish were Democrats, so he knew that was where his political future could be built. The Republicans felt betrayed, and they sent letters back to Washington complaining about Meagher. From the original letters they charged..." he has been in fact drunk nearly every day since coming to the territory" and "that the executive office is a place of rendezvous for the vilest prostitutes and they state the fact publickly [sic] and boast of their profitable intercourse with him" (italics in original letter).

And that is probably more about General Meagher than anyone here wants to know!

alice