Marshall Strong

Strong was born in Amherst, Massachusetts, on September 3, 1813. His first American ancestor, Elder John Strong, had come to Dorchester, Massachusetts in 1630 from England, and the next five generations in the Strong lineage remained in that state. His father was Hezekiah Wright Strong, a lawyer and the son of Simeon Strong (a Justice of the Supreme Court of Massachusetts). Marshall Strong spent two years at Amherst College from 1830–1832. In late 1832, his father had moved to Troy, New York; Marshall entered Union College in nearby Schenectady, New York, and studied there for an unknown period. He later read the law in Troy, and was admitted to the bar there.

In 1838 he and Lorenzo Janes were among those who combined to found the newspaper the Racine Argus, the first newspaper in Racine County; and he and Janes served as its first editors. Strong was one of the first pair of Councillors from Racine County in 1838–1839. When the Legislature in its 1838 session passed a law incorporating a "University of the Territory of Wisconsin", Strong was among those who were appointed to its Board of Visitors; however, this body (the predecessor of the U.W. board of regents) never actually accomplished anything before statehood.[3]

He resigned from the Council in 1839, and Janes was elected to succeed him.[4]

He served again from 1843–1847, serving as President of the Council from December 5, 1843 to January 6, 1845.[5] He was a delegate to the 1st Wisconsin Constitutional Convention, but resigned from that body and acted as a leader of the successful movement to reject the ratification of the Constitution it had drafted, one he considered too radical in its provisions.[6]

When the Racine, Janesville and Mississippi Railroad Company, later the Racine and Mississippi Rail Road Company) was incorporated by the legislature April 17, 1852, Strong was one of the incorporators. From 1854–56 he was the corporation's attorney. This line was later merged into the Western Union Railroad Company.[7]