Idaho Territory
Territory of Idaho | |||||||||||||||||
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Organized incorporated territory of the United States | |||||||||||||||||
1863–1890 | |||||||||||||||||
Capital | Governor | | |||||||||||||||
• First | William H. Wallace | ||||||||||||||||
• Last | George L. Shoup | ||||||||||||||||
History | |||||||||||||||||
March 3, 1863 | |||||||||||||||||
• Montana Territory split off & land ceded to Dakota Territory | May 28, 1864 | ||||||||||||||||
• Wyoming Territory formed | July 25, 1868 | ||||||||||||||||
July 3, 1890 | |||||||||||||||||
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The Territory of Idaho was an
History
Year | Pop. | ±% |
---|---|---|
1870 | 14,999 | — |
1880 | 32,610 | +117.4% |
1890 | 88,548 | +171.5% |
Source: 1870–1890;[2] |
1860s
The territory was officially organized on March 3, 1863, by Act of
The original newly organized territory covered all of the present-day states of
The first territorial capital was at Lewiston[3] from the inception in 1863 to 1866. Boise was made the territorial capital from 1866 by a one-vote margin of the Territorial Supreme Court. Congress failed to provide official criminal or civic codes for the Idaho territory upon its inception. It was not until January 4th, 1864 that the territory's original laws were adopted.[4]
The upheaval caused by the Civil War and
In 1864, the Montana Territory was organized from the northeastern section of the territory east of the Bitterroot Range. Most of the southeastern area of the territory was made part of the Dakota Territory.
In the late 1860s, Idaho Territory became a destination for displaced Southern Democrats who fought for the Confederate States of America during the Civil War. These people were well represented in the early territorial legislatures, which often clashed with the appointed Republican territorial governors. The political infighting became particularly vicious in 1867 when Governor David W. Ballard asked for protection from federal troops stationed at Fort Boise against the territorial legislature. By 1870, however, the political infighting had decreased considerably.
In 1868, the areas east of the 111th meridian west were made part of the newly created Wyoming Territory. Idaho Territory assumed the boundaries of the modern state at that time. The discovery of gold, silver and other valuable natural resources throughout Idaho beginning in the 1860s, as well as the completion of the Transcontinental Railroad in 1869, brought many new people to the territory, including Chinese laborers who came to work the mines. As Idaho approached statehood, mining and other extractive industries became increasingly important to its economy. By the 1890s, for example, Idaho exported more lead than any other state.
1870s
Construction began on the Idaho Territorial Prison in 1870 and was completed by 1872. The prison was in use by the territory, then the state until 1973. The Old Idaho State Penitentiary was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974 for its significance as a Territorial Prison. The site currently contains museums and an arboretum.[5]
Almost immediately after Idaho Territory was created, a public school system was created and
Although forming a sizable minority, members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Idaho were held in suspicion by others in Idaho. By 1882, notable and powerful Idahoans successfully disenfranchised members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints voters in Idaho Territory, citing their illegal practice of polygamy. Idaho was able to achieve statehood some six years before Utah, a territory which had a larger population and had been settled longer, but was majority members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints with voting polygamists.
There were four thousand Chinese living in the Idaho Territory from 1869 to 1875. Like many
The Nez Perce War began in the north-central portion of the territory at White Bird Canyon in June 1877, and concluded four months later in eastern Montana Territory at Bear Paw.
1880s
After the capital relocation controversy, proposals to split the two regions became widespread. For the rest of the decade, Idaho Territory was nearly legislated out of existence. In 1885, the Idaho legislature published a bipartisan memorial to Congress asking for northern Idaho to be returned to Washington Territory. There were two attempts during the 49th Congress to accomplish this. On March 1, 1887 Congress sent a bill to President Grover Cleveland which would have returned northern Idaho to Washington Territory. Cleveland, likely as a favor to Governor Edward A. Stevenson, refused to sign the bill and it was pocket vetoed when the session of Congress ended two days later.[8] Nevada and Utah showed interest in acquiring the remainders of southern Idaho.[9][10][11]
In 1889, the
In a bid for statehood, Governor Stevenson called for a constitutional convention in 1889. The convention approved a constitution on August 6, 1889, and voters approved the constitution on November 5, 1889.[12][13][14] President Benjamin Harrison signed the law admitting Idaho as a U.S. state on July 3, 1890.
Territorial change
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The State of Oregon (blue) and Washington Territory (green)—along with the latter's portions ceded to Nebraska Territory on March 2, 1861, and to Idaho Territory on March 3, 1863
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The Idaho Territory in 1863
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The Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming Territories in 1868
See also
- Idaho in the American Civil War
- California Trail
- Historic regions of the United States
- History of Idaho
- Oregon Trail
- Oregon Treaty, 1846
- Territorial evolution of the United States
- State of Deseret, 1849–1850 (extralegal)
- Territory of Jefferson, 1859–1861 (extralegal)
References
- ^ a b 12 Stat. 808
- ^ Forstall, Richard L. (ed.). Population of the States and Counties of the United States: 1790–1990 (PDF) (Report). United States Census Bureau. p. 3. Retrieved May 18, 2020.
- ^ Idaho State Historical Society (1968). ""Territorial Government in Idaho, 1863-1869," Reference Series No. 48" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on October 2, 2013. Retrieved September 29, 2013.
- ^ Schwantes, C. A. (1998). The Pacific Northwest: An Interpretive History. In The Pacific Northwest: An interpretive history (pp. 136-137). Lincoln, Nebraska: Univ. of Nebraska Press.
- ^ "Old Idaho Penitentiary Timeline" (PDF). Education Programs. Idaho State Historical Society. 2007. Archived from the original (PDF) on May 29, 2008. Retrieved June 3, 2007.
- ^ "Visit Boise County – Boise County".
- ISBN 9780791438640– via Google Books.
- JSTOR 40475366. Retrieved September 30, 2021.
- ^ Stapilus, Randy (July 6, 2014). "How Idaho almost was split apart, never to become state". Idaho Press. Retrieved September 30, 2021.
- ^ Just, Rick (November 14, 2020). "Speaking of Idaho: A Nevada Land Grab". Retrieved September 30, 2021.
- ^ Hart, Arthur (May 25, 2015). "Idaho History: North Idaho tried for a generation to be free of Boise". Idaho Statesman. Retrieved September 30, 2021.
- ^ Hart, I. W., ed. (1912). Proceedings and Debates of the Constitutional Convention of Idaho 1889. Vol. 1. p. III.
- ^ Hart, I. W., ed. (1912). Proceedings and Debates of the Constitutional Convention of Idaho 1889. Vol. 2. p. 2037.
- ^ "Official Vote: Adopting the Constitution". The Idaho Statesman. December 4, 1889.
External links
- Idaho State Univ. document (PDF) on origin of name "Idaho" and how Idaho became territory
- COLUMBIA: Fall 1988; Vol. 2, No. 3, The Long Wait for Statehood, Why it took Washington 36 years and Idaho 26 years to achieve their goals.
- Idaho Organic Act 1863 – An Act to provide a temporary Government for the Territory of Idaho
- Laws of the Territory of Idaho (1864)
- Constitution of the state of Idaho, and the act providing for the admission of the state (1891)