Josiah Williams Begole (January 20, 1815June 5, 1896) was an American politician serving as a

U.S. Representative 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 chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...

from 1873 to 1875 and the 19th governor of Michigan from 1883 to 1885.

Early life in New York

Begole was born in

Groveland, New York Groveland is a town in Livingston County, New York, United States. The population was 3,249 at the 2010 census. The town is centrally located in the county, south of Geneseo. History The Sullivan Expedition (1779) reached its farthest exten ...

. His ancestors were French

Huguenot The Huguenots ( , also , ) were a religious group of French Protestants who held to the Reformed, or Calvinist, tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, the Genevan burgomaster Be ...

s who emigrated to the United States in the last quarter of the 18th century to escape religious persecution and settled in Hagerstown, Maryland. Josiah's father, William (1788–1862) was born there and moved to Livingston County, New York in 1802. William served in the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States, United States of America and its Indigenous peoples of the Americas, indigenous allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom ...

and married the daughter of an

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...

veteran. Three of Williams sons, including Josiah, the eldest, eventually moved to

Genesee County, Michigan Genesee County ( ) is a county in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 Census, the population was 406,211, making it the fifth-most populous county in Michigan. The county seat and population center is Flint (birthplace of General Motors) ...

. He attended the public schools in Mount Morris and Temple Hill Academy in

Geneseo, New York Geneseo is a town in Livingston County in the Finger Lakes region of New York, United States. It is at the south end of the five-county Rochester Metropolitan Area. The population of the town was 10,483 at the 2010 census. The English name ...

Life and politics in Michigan

Begole moved to Flint, Michigan in August 1836 and taught school in 1837 and 1838. In the spring of 1839, he married Harriet A. Miles. He engaged in agricultural pursuits from 1839 to 1856 and was school inspector, justice of the peace and

township A township is a kind of human settlement or administrative subdivision, with its meaning varying in different countries. Although the term is occasionally associated with an urban area, that tends to be an exception to the rule. In Australia, C ...

treasurer. Being an anti-slavery man, he became a member of the

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

party at its organization. He was county treasurer 1856–1864. He was briefly engaged in the lumber business in 1863. His eldest son was killed during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states ...

near

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

, Georgia in 1864, and was the greatest sorrow of his life. He was a member of the Michigan Senate in 1870 and 1871, and a member of the Flint

City Council A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, rural counc ...

for three years. During that time, he served on the Committees of Finance and Railroads, and was Chairman of the Committee on the Institute for the Deaf and Dumb and Blind. He was a delegate to the Republican National Convention at

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...

in 1872 to re-nominate U.S. President

Ulysses S. Grant Ulysses S. Grant (born Hiram Ulysses Grant ; April 27, 1822July 23, 1885) was an American military officer and politician who served as the 18th president of the United States from 1869 to 1877. As Commanding General, he led the Union Ar ...

and to nominate

Henry Wilson Henry Wilson (born Jeremiah Jones Colbath; February 16, 1812 – November 22, 1875) was an American politician who was the 18th vice president of the United States from 1873 until his death in 1875 and a senator from Massachusetts from 1855 to ...

as the new

Vice President A vice president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vice president is on ...

Congress

Begole was elected as a Republican from

Michigan's 6th congressional district Michigan's 6th congressional district is a United States congressional district in southeast Michigan. In 2022, the district was redrawn to be centered around Ann Arbor and Washtenaw County, as well as western and southern Wayne County, small ...

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 chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

for the

43rd Congress The 43rd 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, 1873, ...

, serving from March 4, 1873 to March 3, 1875. During that time, he was a member of the Committee on Agricultural and Public Expenditures. He was an unsuccessful candidate for re-election in 1874 and resumed the lumber business, Begole Fox & Co. He later engaged in the manufacture of wagons founding

Flint Wagon Works Flint Wagon Works of Flint, Michigan, manufactured wagons from the early 1880s. One of the world's most successful horse-drawn vehicle makers they formed with their Flint neighbours a core of the American automobile industry. In 1905 Flint was p ...

and also engaged in banking.

Governor

In 1882, Begole was

gubernatorial A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

candidate of the Greenback and Democratic parties, defeating the Republican incumbent David Jerome by over 7,000 votes. He served one term from 1883 to 1885. As a former Republican who ousted a Republican incumbent, Begole faced many obstacles with a Republican-dominated legislature. As a result, the establishment of the state bureau of labor statistics was one of the few acts that was approved. He ran for re-election in 1884, but was defeated by Republican

Russell Alger Russell Alexander Alger (February 27, 1836 – January 24, 1907) was an American politician and businessman. He served as the 20th Governor of Michigan, U.S. Senator, and U.S. Secretary of War. He was supposedly a distant relation of author H ...

, after which he resumed his former business activities. He was an early activist for

women's suffrage Women's suffrage is the right of women to vote in elections. Beginning in the start of the 18th century, some people sought to change voting laws to allow women to vote. Liberal political parties would go on to grant women the right to vot ...

, and in 1884 Begole became vice president of the first statewide suffrage organization, the Michigan Equal Suffrage Association.

Retirement and death

Begole died at the age of eighty-one in Flint and is interred in Glenwood Cemetery there.

References

The Political Graveyard
from the public domain ''Portrait & Biographical Album of Ingham and Livingston Counties, Michigan'', published Chicago: Chapman Bros., 1891
National Governors Association
{{DEFAULTSORT:Begole, Josiah 1815 births 1896 deaths American Presbyterians City and town treasurers in the United States County treasurers in Michigan Governors of Michigan Michigan Democrats Michigan Greenbacks Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Michigan Michigan state senators People from Groveland, New York Politicians from Flint, Michigan Burials at Glenwood Cemetery (Flint, Michigan) Democratic Party governors of Michigan 19th-century American politicians