Talk:John S. Watrous

Party Affiliation and Speakership

Is there any source stating that Watrous was a Republican? (Other than the "R?" in the Minnesota Legislative Reference Library's list, wherein the question mark seems to indicate that they don't really know what Watrous' or Bradley's party affiliations were, and instead are taking a blind guess that they were Republican.) Minnesota Legislators Past & Present lists his party affiliation as "Not Available," but he was elected Speaker by a majority-Democratic House of Representatives in a vote that appears to be a party-line vote (Democrats backing Watrous, Republicans backing Wakefield), he was elected to the House from the same district as a Democratic state senator at a time when votes were almost exclusively cast by straight ticket, and he received a federal civil service appointment from the Buchanan Administration at a time when the spoils system was the rule. Without a source saying authoritatively that he was a Republican, I'd say that, far from trusting that Watrous was a Republican, I'm about 80 percent certain he was a Democrat.

Also, Watrous was absolutely NOT the Speaker of the Territorial House of Representatives. The source used in this article says as much, as does the official list of Speakers maintained by the Minnesota Legislative Reference Library—he was elected to the 1st session of the STATE Legislature, and that was the only session to which he was elected. The Legislature to which Watrous was elected was not convened in accordance with the Organic Act of 1849, but rather in accordance with the Constitution of the State of Minnesota, which had been adopted by the Minnesota Constitutional Convention on August 29, 1857 and approved by the voters at the very same election at which Watrous was elected, on October 13, 1857. The 8th (and final) Territorial Legislature adjourned its (final) special session on May 25, 1857—it is impossible for Watrous to have been a member of the Territorial Legislature, seeing as he was elected at an election held four months, and took his seat six months, after the Territorial Legislature adjourned for the final time.

The 1st Legislature of the State of Minnesota was elected on October 13, 1857, convened on December 2, 1857, and adjourned on August 12, 1858. It's easy to understand why this might cause confusion, seeing as the United States Senate did not ratify the Minnesota Constitution until May 11, 1858, but Minnesota began organizing its government in pursuance of its Constitution immediately after it was approved by the voters (there was a point of contention at the time—the Republican Party of Minnesota insisted that the Legislature should not enact any legislation until the Constitution was ratified by Congress, while the Democrats insisted on organizing the government immediately). Watrous was Speaker from December 3, 1857 until the Speaker's chair was declared vacant on March 12, 1858, following a prolonged absence during which Watrous was attending to private business; George Bradley, who had been serving as Speaker pro tempore since Watrous took leave on December 22, 1857, was then elected Speaker (i.e., they were Speakers of the same session).--MNTRT2009 (talk) 08:15, 21 November 2016 (UTC)