Thomas Lawrence Riggs Biography This biography appears on pages 408-411 in "History of Dakota Territory" by George W. Kingsbury, Vol. IV (1915) and was scanned, OCRed and edited by Maurice Krueger, mkrueger@iw.net. This file may be freely copied by individuals and non-profit organizations for their private use. Any other use, including publication, storage in a retrieval system, or transmission by electronic, mechanical, or other means requires the written approval of the file's author. This file is part of the SDGENWEB Archives. If you arrived here inside a frame or from a link from somewhere else, our front door is at http://usgwarchives.org/sd/sdfiles.htm THOMAS LAWRENCE RIGGS. A life devoted to the uplift of mankind and especially to the benefit of those whom our race regards as inferior in civilization and development has given Thomas Lawrence Riggs right to rank with the representative and honored men of the state. His entire life has been spent in the northwest and he has lived among and with the Indians from his earliest boyhood, having Indian boys for playmates and thus early acquiring an intimate knowledge of the Indians. During his youthful days the section in which he lived was the frontier and he has been a factor in the intellectual and moral development which has given high rank to the citizenship of this section of the country. The birth of Mr. Riggs occurred at Lac qui Parle, Minnesota, June 3, 1847, and his ancestral line is traced back to Edward and Elizabeth Riggs, the former born in England in 1590. Their son, Edward Riggs, born in England in 1614, wedded Elizabeth Roosa. The direct ancestors of Thomas Lawrence Riggs, third generation, were Edward and Mary Riggs, the former born at Roxbury, Massachusetts, in 1636. Their son, Joseph Riggs, was born in Newark, New Jersey, in 1675, and he in turn was the father of Gideon Riggs, born in 1713. To Gideon Riggs and his wife Rebecca, at Amity, Pennsylvania, in 1743, was born a son Joseph Riggs, who became the great-grandfather of Dr. Thomas Lawrence Riggs. Joseph Riggs wedded Hannah Cook and their son, Stephen Riggs. born March 3, 1771, married Annie Baird. Their son, Stephen Return Riggs, was born March 23, 1812, in Steubenville, Ohio, and, making his way to the northwest, became a missionary to the Sioux Indians in Minnesota and Dakota. On February 16, 1837, be wedded Mary Ann Clark Longley, who was born in Hawley, Massachusetts, November 10, 1813. Her ancestral line is traced down through Richard Longley, who came from England about 1625 and settled in Lynn, Massachusetts; William Longley I; William Longley II, of Lynn, Massachusetts; John and Sarah (Prescott) Longley, the former born in 1672; Joseph and Mary (Walker) Longley, the former born September 12, 1724; Edmond and Alice (Lawrence) Longley, the former born October 31, 1746; and Thomas and Martha Arms (Taylor) Longley, the former born September 4, 1774. Mary Ann Clark Longley, who was born November 10, 1813, and became the wife of Stephen Return Riggs, engaged actively in missionary work among the Sioux Indians of the northwest in company with her husband. Their last days were spent in Beloit, Wisconsin, where Mrs. Riggs passed away March 22,1869, and Mr. Riggs on the 24th of August, 1883. Dr. Thomas Lawrence Riggs, the fifth in order of birth in a family of eight children, prepared for college at St. Anthony, Minnesota, now East Minneapolis, and entered Beloit College at Beloit, Wisconsin from which he was graduated with the Bachelor of Arts degree in 1868. After teaching school among the negroes for a time he began preparation for the ministry in the Chicago Theological Seminary, from which he was graduated in 1872. The LL. D. degree was conferred upon him by the State University at Vermillion, South Dakota, and the degree of D. D. by Yankton College of Yankton, South Dakota. His early experiences had made him familiar with life in the frontier mission field and yet he did not shrink from the hardships and difficulties therein involved. His parents had done missionary work among the Sioux and he, feeling that there was no more honorable or no more needed work, entered the missionary field in 1872 and devoted his life to work therein. Who can measure the influence of such a career? He has made a close and discriminating study of the Indians their methods of thought as well as their habits of life, and he has brought to them the truths of a higher and more ennobling civilization resulting from Christian teaching. He still continues his labors in the missionary field and while residing in the west has been a witness of the remarkable growth and development of the country along material lines. He has some business interests outside his profession, being a director of the Riggs Irrigation Company and vice president of the Stock Growers, Bank of Fort Pierre. Dr. Riggs has always been active in historical research and was one of the organizers and the first president of the State Historical Society of South Dakota, in which he has always taken a keen interest. He probably has the best and most thorough knowledge of the intimate life and customs of the Dakotahs or Sioux Indians of any man living. He speaks their language perfectly and possesses a complete knowledge of all their jargons and idioms. On the 26th of December, 1872, Dr. Riggs was united in marriage to Miss Cornelia Margaret Foster, a native of Bangor, Maine, who was born March 19, 1848, a daughter of the Honorable John Burt and Catherine (McGaw) Foster. Mrs. Riggs shared in the missionary work among the Sioux to the time of her death, which occurred August 5, 1878. On the 31st of March 1885, Dr. Riggs wedded Louisa M. Irvine, who was born at St. Paul, Minnesota, a daughter of Major J. B. Irvine. The only child of the first marriage, Theodore Foster, was born July 7, 1874. There were four children of the second marriage: Cornelia Margaret, who was born March 11, 1886, and died on the 8th of August, following; Robert Irvine, born September 8, 1887, who was married June 18, 1913, to Miss Florence Moseley of Beloit, Wisconsin; Lawrence Howard, who was born July 16, 1889; and Muriel, who was born July 26, 1892, and passed away June 16, 1901. Dr. Riggs has always been a republican, but the strenuous demands made upon him in connection with his chosen field of work have left him no opportunity for activity in political circles. Reared in the faith of the Congregational church, he early became a member thereof and his devotion thereto has been unfaltering. His, however, is a religion which transcends denominationalism and rises above creed barriers, seeking ever to teach the fundamental truths of Christianity so that they may be fully grasped by the Indians and be a potent force for good and for righteousness in their lives. He makes his home at Oahe, the central mission station located on the Missouri river, fifteen miles above Pierre.