John Noble Goodwin (October 18, 1824 – April 29, 1887) was a United States attorney and politician who served as the first Governor of
Arizona Territory
The Territory of Arizona (also known as Arizona Territory) was a territory of the United States that existed from February 24, 1863, until February 14, 1912, when the remaining extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the state of ...
. He was also a
Congressman
A Member of Congress (MOC) is a person who has been appointed or elected and inducted into an official body called a congress, typically to represent a particular constituency in a legislature. The term member of parliament (MP) is an equivalen ...
from
Maine
Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and north ...
and served as Arizona Territory's delegate to the
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the Lower house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being ...
.
Background
Goodwin was born on October 18, 1824, in
South Berwick, Maine
South Berwick is a town in York County, Maine, United States. The population was 7,467 at the 2020 census. South Berwick is home to Berwick Academy, a private, co-educational university-preparatory day school founded in 1791.
The town was s ...
, to John and Mary (Noble) Goodwin. He was educated at
Berwick Academy and graduated from
Dartmouth College
Dartmouth College (; ) is a private research university in Hanover, New Hampshire. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, it is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the American Revolution. Although founded to educate Native A ...
in 1844. Following graduation, Goodwin studied law and was
admitted to the bar
An admission to practice law is acquired when a lawyer receives a license to practice law. In jurisdictions with two types of lawyer, as with barristers and solicitors, barristers must gain admission to the bar whereas for solicitors there are dist ...
in 1848. He then began a law practice in South Berwick. Goodwin married Susan Howard Robinson of
Augusta, Maine
Augusta is the capital of the U.S. state of Maine and the county seat of Kennebec County.
The city's population was 18,899 at the 2020 census, making it the tenth-most populous city in Maine, and third-least populous state capital in the Un ...
, on October 27, 1857. The couple had three children, Susie Robinson, Richard Emery, and Howard Robinson, the youngest born on November 7, 1863.
Maine
Goodwin began his political career in 1854 with his election to the
Maine Senate
The Maine Senate is the upper house of the Maine Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Maine. The Senate currently consists of 35 members representing an equal number of districts across the state, though the Maine Constitution ...
. This was followed in 1860 with a successful run for the U.S. House of Representatives. Though considered hard-working and likable with a moderate approach, Goodwin's single term as a Congressman was described as "undistinguished". He was defeated by 127 votes in his 1862 reelection bid.
Following his defeat, Goodwin began looking for another federal posting. He was supported in the effort by U.S. Senators
William P. Fessenden and
Lot M. Morrill
Lot Myrick Morrill (May 3, 1813January 10, 1883) was an American statesman and accomplished politician who served as the 28th Governor of Maine, as a United States Senator, and as U.S. Secretary of the Treasury under President Ulysses S. Grant ...
, both of Maine, along with several former colleagues from the House of Representatives. On March 6, 1863, following passage of the
Arizona Organic Act
The Arizona Organic Act was an organic act passed in the United States federal law introduced as H.R. 357 in the second session of the 37th U.S. Congress on March 12, 1862, by Rep. James M. Ashley of Ohio. The Act provided for the creation of the ...
, President
Lincoln
Lincoln most commonly refers to:
* Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865), the sixteenth president of the United States
* Lincoln, England, cathedral city and county town of Lincolnshire, England
* Lincoln, Nebraska, the capital of Nebraska, U.S.
* Lincol ...
appointed Goodwin as Chief Justice of Arizona Territory. When
John A. Gurley
John Addison Gurley (December 9, 1813 – August 19, 1863) was a U.S. Congressman from Ohio during the early part of the American Civil War, serving two terms from 1859 to 1863. He was appointed as the first Governor of the Arizona Territory, ...
, Lincoln's initial appointee for Governor of Arizona Territory, died on August 19, 1863, Goodwin was selected to fill the open position.
Governorship
![Prescott-Sharlot Hall Museum-Governors Mansion-1864-2](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a3/Prescott-Sharlot_Hall_Museum-Governors_Mansion-1864-2.jpg)
![Prescott-Sharlot Hall Museum-Governors Mansion-1864-5](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/00/Prescott-Sharlot_Hall_Museum-Governors_Mansion-1864-5.jpg)
![Prescott-Sharlot Hall Museum-Governors Mansion-1864-8](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fa/Prescott-Sharlot_Hall_Museum-Governors_Mansion-1864-8.jpg)
The Governor's party, consisting of most of Arizona's appointed officials, left Washington, D.C., for
Fort Leavenworth
Fort Leavenworth () is a United States Army installation located in Leavenworth County, Kansas, in the city of Leavenworth, Kansas, Leavenworth. Built in 1827, it is the second oldest active United States Army post west of Washington, D.C., an ...
. They then took the
Santa Fe Trail
The Santa Fe Trail was a 19th-century route through central North America that connected Franklin, Missouri, with Santa Fe, New Mexico. Pioneered in 1821 by William Becknell, who departed from the Boonslick region along the Missouri River, th ...
, arriving in
Santa Fe, New Mexico
Santa Fe ( ; , Spanish for 'Holy Faith'; tew, Oghá P'o'oge, Tewa for 'white shell water place'; tiw, Hulp'ó'ona, label=Tiwa language, Northern Tiwa; nv, Yootó, Navajo for 'bead + water place') is the capital of the U.S. state of New Mexico. ...
on November 26, 1863. The party then crossed into Arizona, and on December 29, 1863 held a ceremony at
Navajo Springs to formally establish the Arizona Territory and administer oaths of office to the territorial officials.
As Congress had not specified the location of the territorial capital, it fell to Goodwin to select an initial location.
Tucson
, "(at the) base of the black ill
, nicknames = "The Old Pueblo", "Optics Valley", "America's biggest small town"
, image_map =
, mapsize = 260px
, map_caption = Interactive map ...
as the largest settlement in the territory had been considered a likely location, but based upon the recommendation of General
James H. Carleton
James Henry Carleton (December 27, 1814 – January 7, 1873) was an officer in the US Army and a Union general during the American Civil War. Carleton is best known as an Indian fighter in the Southwestern United States.
Biography
Carleton wa ...
who viewed Tucson as full of Mexicans and Confederate sympathizers,
Fort Whipple was instead selected. The governor and his party reached Fort Whipple on January 22, 1864.
Shortly after establishing the temporary capital, Goodwin set out with a military escort on a tour of the new territory. The purpose of the tour was to familiarize the governor with his new territory and to search for suitable locations for a more permanent capital. The mining district near Fort Whipple was seen first, followed by the areas around the
Verde and
Salinas rivers. In April and May, he was in southern Arizona. Following this tour, Goodwin decided to place the new capital at a site near Granite Creek, roughly 20 miles south of Fort Whipple's location. The military camp was moved and on May 30, 1864 the new capital was named
Prescott at a public meeting.
Goodwin's duties encompassed dividing the territory into judicial districts and appointing a variety of officials to conduct governmental tasks. Following an initial census overseen by U.S. Marshal Milton B. Duffield, the governor proclaimed an election for the selection of a territorial legislature and delegate to Congress would occur on July 18, 1864. When the
1st Arizona Territorial Legislature
The 1st Arizona Territorial Legislative Assembly was a session of the Arizona Territorial Legislature which began on September 26, 1864, in Prescott, Arizona, and ran for forty-three days. The session was responsible for enacting Arizona's first ...
convened, Goodwin called for immediate removal of
peonage
Peon (English language, English , from the Spanish language, Spanish ''wikt:peón#Spanish, peón'' ) usually refers to a person subject to peonage: any form of wage labor, financial exploitation, coercive economic practice, or policy in which th ...
and imprisonment for debt from the set of laws Arizona had inherited from
New Mexico Territory
The Territory of New Mexico was an organized incorporated territory of the United States from September 9, 1850, until January 6, 1912. It was created from the U.S. provisional government of New Mexico, as a result of ''Santa Fe de Nuevo México ...
along with creation of a commission to create a new
legal code
A code of law, also called a law code or legal code, is a systematic collection of statutes. It is a type of legislation that purports to exhaustively cover a complete system of laws or a particular area of law as it existed at the time the cod ...
for Arizona. The governor also asked the legislature to minimize the number of appointed officials, combining multiple part-time positions into a single full-time position where practical. Other topics Goodwin raised with the legislature were taxation and location of the territorial capital.
To deal with the
Apache
The Apache () are a group of culturally related Native American tribes in the Southwestern United States, which include the Chiricahua, Jicarilla, Lipan, Mescalero, Mimbreño, Ndendahe (Bedonkohe or Mogollon and Nednhi or Carrizaleño an ...
and other tribes, Goodwin called for assistance from the U.S. Army along with creation of a volunteer force to combat the hostiles. A force of 350 men and 11 officers was raised and divided into five companies. For peaceful tribes, the governor called for Congress to create reservations along the
Colorado river
The Colorado River ( es, Río Colorado) is one of the principal rivers (along with the Rio Grande) in the Southwestern United States and northern Mexico. The river drains an expansive, arid drainage basin, watershed that encompasses parts of ...
and appropriate funds to build irrigation systems.
Other efforts Goodwin pursued were establishment of postal routes and creation of schools.
Territorial delegate
Goodwin was elected to be
Arizona Territory's delegate to the
39th United States Congress
The 39th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1865, ...
on September 6, 1865, defeating incumbent
Charles D. Poston in the process. Soon after, Goodwin left for Washington D. C. leaving
Richard C. McCormick behind as acting governor. The new delegate did not reach the floor of Congress till January 17, 1866. During the period lasting until McCormick's appointment as governor, Goodwin collected two salaries and did not respond to requests for return of the overpayment for the
U.S. Treasury Department
The Department of the Treasury (USDT) is the national treasury and finance department of the federal government of the United States, where it serves as an executive department. The department oversees the Bureau of Engraving and Printing and ...
.
During his time as a delegate, Goodwin submitted several bills calling for troops to fight hostile Indians, creation of additional postal routes. He also spoke out against the transfer of
Pah-Ute County from Arizona Territory to
Nevada
Nevada ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. N ...
. Goodwin did not seek re-election in 1866.
Later life
Following his time as territorial Delegate, Goodwin moved to New York City to be closer to his business interests. He served as Vice-President of the Tiger Mill and Mining Company of New York by the early 1880s. Goodwin died on April 29, 1887 at Paraiso Springs in
Monterey County, California
Monterey County ( ), officially the County of Monterey, is a county located on the Pacific coast in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, its population was 439,035. The county's largest city and county seat is Salinas.
Monte ...
, where he had gone for health reasons. He was buried in Forest Grove Cemetery in Augusta, Maine.
References
*
*
*
* Curtis, Charles A. ''Army Life in the West (1862–1865)''. CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, 2017. .
External links
{{DEFAULTSORT:Goodwin, John
Maine lawyers
New York (state) lawyers
Dartmouth College alumni
Governors of Arizona Territory
Maine state senators
Delegates to the United States House of Representatives from Arizona Territory
People of Maine in the American Civil War
People from South Berwick, Maine
1824 births
1887 deaths
Arizona Republicans
Arizona pioneers
Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Maine
19th-century American politicians
Berwick Academy (Maine) alumni
19th-century American lawyers