Alexander John McKenzie (1851–1922) was a lawman and

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

in early

North Dakota North Dakota () is a U.S. state in the Upper Midwest, named after the Native Americans in the United States, indigenous Dakota people, Dakota Sioux. North Dakota is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the north a ...

. As the Republican national committeeman from

, he directed a highly successful political machine, and was known as the "senator-maker." He was highly influential in

and in neighboring

Montana Montana () is a state in the Mountain West division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota and South Dakota to the east, Wyoming to the south, and the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columbi ...

and

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

. He served time in prison for corruption, and became the first North Dakotan to receive a presidential pardon.

Biography

Life

McKenzie was born April 13th, 1850, in

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

, the son of

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

immigrants. It was rumored that he was born in Scotland or in Canada, but these rumors are not substantiated by the records. At age 17 McKenzie arrived in

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 No ...

in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. He worked as part of the construction crew on the

Northern Pacific Northern Pacific may refer to: * Northern Pacific Airways, an upcoming airline * Northern Pacific Field Hockey Conference The Northern Pacific Field Hockey Conference (NorPac) was an NCAA Division I conference that only sponsored women’s fiel ...

railroad between Fargo and Bismarck. and in 1873 decided to settle in Bismarck, marrying Maryanne Hayes from Brainerd,

. Together they bore three children, May, Mary Anne, and John Alexander. John Alexander died at the age of nine.

Political career

After the sheriff drowned in the Missouri River, McKenzie was appointed as the sheriff of

Burleigh County, North Dakota Burleigh County is a county in the U.S. state of North Dakota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 98,458, making it the second-most populous county in North Dakota. Its county seat is Bismarck, the state capital. The county was named fo ...

. He served as sheriff from 1874 to 1886, being elected five times. During this time he was also a deputy U.S. marshal. In 1883 he became an influential figure in Dakota Territory, becoming a confidant of many leading political figures of the territory, including Governor Nehemiah Ordway. In the new state of

, he personally selected many Republican candidates for the state legislature, the U.S. Senate, and the U.S. House of Representatives. He was the Republican National Committeeman for

for 21 years. McKenzie built and ran a powerful political organization in

. However, the "McKenzie machine" was widely accused of stealing votes, intimidating voters, and physically beating opponents.

Alaska gold mines and a jail sentence

In 1900, McKenzie secured the appointment of his hand-picked candidates for the federal judge, federal district attorney, and other government posts in the gold-rush boom town of

Nome, Alaska Nome (; ik, Sitŋasuaq, ) is a city in the Nome Census Area in the Unorganized Borough of Alaska, United States. The city is located on the southern Seward Peninsula coast on Norton Sound of the Bering Sea. It had a population of 3,699 recorded ...

. He then traveled to Nome with the federal law-enforcement apparatus at his command where his obedient judge Noyes took gold mines from their rightful owners and illegally appointed McKenzie as the receiver to operate the mines while the owners appealed. While McKenzie mined their gold, the original owners of the gold mines took their case to the

Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (in case citations, 9th Cir.) is the U.S. federal court of appeals that has appellate jurisdiction over the U.S. district courts in the following federal judicial districts: * District o ...

in far-away

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

. The appeals court finally reversed the federal judge in Nome and ordered McKenzie to return the gold he had received. McKenzie refused to comply with the order of the appeals court, and continued taking and keeping gold out of the mines. The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals had McKenzie arrested, found him guilty of contempt of court, and sentenced him to one year in jail, of which he served three months. He was pardoned by President

William McKinley William McKinley (January 29, 1843September 14, 1901) was the 25th president of the United States, serving from 1897 until his assassination in 1901. As a politician he led a realignment that made his Republican Party largely dominant in ...

(R) in May, 1901.

Later years

voted out the McKenzie machine in 1906. McKenzie retired from his position as party national committeeman in 1908. McKenzie died June 22, 1922, in St. Paul, Minnesota. He had six children from two marriages.

McKenzie County, North Dakota McKenzie County is a county in the U.S. state of North Dakota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 14,704. Its county seat is Watford City. The county lies immediately adjacent to the Williston Micropolitan Statistical Area, although th ...

was named for him, as were the towns of

Alexander, North Dakota Alexander is a city in McKenzie County, North Dakota, United States. The population was 319 at the 2020 census. Alexander was founded in 1905 and is named after early North Dakota politician Alexander McKenzie. Geography According to the Unite ...

and

McKenzie, North Dakota McKenzie is an unincorporated community in Burleigh County, North Dakota, United States. It lies approximately 20 miles east of Bismarck along I-94/US 83 U.S. Route 83 (US 83) is a major north–south United States Numbered Highwa ...

Alexander McKenzie in fiction and film

Rex Beach Rex Ellingwood Beach (September 1, 1877 – December 7, 1949) was an American novelist, playwright, and Olympic water polo player. Early life Rex Beach was born in Atwood, Michigan, but moved to Tampa, Florida, with his family where his father ...

's 1906 novel '' The Spoilers'' fictionalized McKenzie's attempted theft of gold mines in Nome. The novel portrayed McKenzie as the fictional character Alexander MacNamara. The novel was made into a stage play, and into five film versions.

Randolph Scott George Randolph Scott (January 23, 1898 – March 2, 1987) was an American film actor whose career spanned the years from 1928 to 1962. As a leading man for all but the first three years of his cinematic career, Scott appeared in a variety of ...

played the McKenzie/Macnamara character in the 1942 film.

James A. Michener James Albert Michener ( or ; February 3, 1907 – October 16, 1997) was an American writer. He wrote more than 40 books, most of which were long, fictional family sagas covering the lives of many generations in particular geographic locales and ...

's novel ''Alaska'' bases a key fictional character of chapter 9 on McKenzie's Nome dealings .

Biography

Life

Political career

Alaska gold mines and a jail sentence

Later years

Alexander McKenzie in fiction and film

See also

References

External links