Frank W. Webb Biography


	This biography appears on pages 1428-1429 in "History of South 
	Dakota" by Doane Robinson, Vol. II (1904) and was scanned, 
	OCRed and edited by Maurice Krueger, mkrueger@iw.net.

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	FRANK W. WEBB, farmer and stock raiser and ex-member of the South 
Dakota general assembly, was born April 22, 1851, in Green Lake county, 
Wisconsin, being the son of Erastus and Jane Webb, the latter before her 
marriage having borne the family name of Clute. These parents, who were 
natives of New York, migrated to Wisconsin in 1846 and lived in the 
latter state until the year 1884, when they removed to Brown county, 
South Dakota. where the father entered land and developed a good farm on 
which he spent the remainder of his days, departing this life in the 
month of October, 1894. 

	Frank W. Webb spent his childhood in his native county and 
attended the public schools of the same at intervals until his sixteenth 
year. At that age he went to Nevada where he spent some time at farm 
work, was also employed for a period in a quartz mill and furnace, after 
which he devoted his attention to different kinds of manual labor, the 
meanwhile finishing his educational training in a normal school and 
giving one year to teaching. On September 28, 1879, he contracted a 
marriage with Miss Ellen Wilson and in the spring of the year following 
came to Brown county. South Dakota, locating in Aberdeen township, of 
which he and a gentleman by the name of C. F. Holms were the first 
settlers west of Aberdeen. Mr. Webb took up land, built a sod house and 
for several years lived the life of a pioneer, experiencing the 
vicissitudes peculiar to this country in an early day. Two years after 
his arrival the angel of death invaded his home and took therefrom his 
faithful wife and the tender, loving mother of his three young children. 
Later, in January, 1884, he chose a second companion in the person of 
Miss Penila Wilson, who has borne him one child, a son by the name of 
Roy W. The offspring by his first marriage, three in number, are Sadie, 
Flossie and Frantie, all at home and, with the other members of the 
family, constituting a happy and contented domestic circle. 

	Mr. Webb's career as a farmer has been creditable in every respect 
and he is today one of the enterprising and successful men of the 
county, owning a fine tract of land, and in addition thereto his wife 
has a desirable place of four hundred and eighty acres, which he also 
manages. He raises abundant crops of grain, which he makes a specialty, 
and on his place may be seen herds of fine Holstein cattle, also a 
number of valuable blooded horses, while the splendid condition of his 
home bespeaks the industry and deep interest with which he prosecutes 
his labors. Mr. Webb has been an active participant in political and 
public affairs ever since becoming a resident of Brown county, and in 
1896 he was elected a member of the state senate. He entered that body 
as a Populist, served during the sessions of 1897-8 and became an 
influential factor in legislative matters, as well as a party leader. 
During his incumbency he was chairman of the committee on military 
affairs, also served in several other important committees, besides 
taking a prominent part in the general deliberations. When the great 
political reform was inaugurated throughout the west, Mr. Webb threw 
himself into the movement and since then he has given his allegiance and 
active support to the People's party. He has held several local 
positions, spending twelve years as chairman of the board of supervisors 
for his township and eight years as township clerk, and has also filled 
the office of school treasurer ever since the township organization went 
into effect. During the early days of the Farmers' Alliance he was 
active and influential in disseminating its principles and organizing 
local societies in different parts of the country, and he was honored at 
one time by being elected president of the organization in Brown county, 
the duties of which position he discharged in an able manner.