# David Marston Clough *Republican governor of Minnesota, 1895–1899* David Marston Clough (December 27, 1846 – August 28, 1924) was a Republican lumberman and officeholder who served as the 13th [[Governor of Minnesota]] from January 31, 1895 to January 2, 1899.[^1] Before that he sat in the [[Minnesota Senate]] from January 1887 to January 1893. He was then the state's 12th lieutenant governor from January 9, 1893 to January 31, 1895.[^1] Clough rose from the state Senate to the lieutenant governorship under Republican [[Knute Nelson]]. Nelson's election to the U.S. Senate placed Clough in the governor's office.[^2] He won a second term narrowly in 1896.[^3] During his first administration, amendments to the state constitution were ratified. They created the [[Minnesota Board of Pardons]], ended the right of aliens to vote, and allowed municipalities to frame "home rule" charters.[^3] In his second term the [[Legislature]] raised taxes on several private industries and passed child-labor laws.[^3] After 1900 he lived in Everett, Washington, until his death.[^4] ## Life and career Clough was born in Lyme, New Hampshire, in 1846. He was the fourth of the fourteen children of Elbridge G. Clough and Sarah C. (Brown) Clough, farmers from New England who later moved to land near the Rum River.[^5] The family lived on the crops it grew and the timber it cut.[^5] At 20 he started a logging business, his first venture. The Wikipedia account credits it with bringing him out of poverty.[^5] In 1872 he relocated to [[Minneapolis]]. Eleven years later he won a seat on the city council, and afterward a seat in the Minnesota Senate.[^5][^2] In 1900 the railroad executive James J. Hill encouraged Clough to set up a lumber business near Puget Sound.[^4] Clough then made his home in Everett, Washington. According to the Wikipedia account, he took the side of mill owners there against their workers' efforts to unionize.[^4] He died in Everett on August 28, 1924, aged 77, and was interred at the city's Evergreen Cemetery.[^4] Culdrum Township in [[Morrison County, Minnesota]] is named for him.[^4] ## External links The [[Minnesota Historical Society]] holds Clough's biographical information and gubernatorial records for research use.[^6] ## In the Minnesota record ### Who - Clough, a Republican, was Minnesota's 13th governor and its 12th lieutenant governor.[^1] - He served as lieutenant governor under Republican Knute Nelson. Nelson's election to the U.S. Senate made Clough governor.[^2] ### What - In his first administration, constitutional amendments were ratified that established the Board of Pardons, withdrew the right of aliens to vote, and authorized municipal home-rule charters.[^3] - In his second term, which he won narrowly in 1896, the Legislature raised taxes on several private industries and enacted child-labor laws.[^3] ### When - Minnesota Senate: January 1887 – January 1893.[^1] - Lieutenant governor: January 9, 1893 – January 31, 1895.[^1] - Governor: January 31, 1895 – January 2, 1899.[^1] - Minneapolis city council: elected eleven years after his 1872 move to the city.[^5] ### Where - Minneapolis was his home from 1872. Culdrum Township, Morrison County, bears his name.[^5][^4] ## Notes [^1]: Wikipedia contributors, *David Marston Clough* (revision 1369549520, retrieved 2026-10-25), lead section. Establishes his offices, tenures, party, and dates of birth and death. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Marston_Clough [^2]: Wikipedia contributors, *David Marston Clough* (revision 1369549520, retrieved 2026-10-25), "Life and career". Establishes his rise from the Minnesota Senate to lieutenant governor under Knute Nelson, and his succession after Nelson's election to the U.S. Senate. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Marston_Clough [^3]: Wikipedia contributors, *David Marston Clough* (revision 1369549520, retrieved 2026-10-25), "Life and career". Establishes the constitutional amendments of the first administration, the 1896 re-election, and the tax and child-labor legislation of the second term. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Marston_Clough [^4]: Wikipedia contributors, *David Marston Clough* (revision 1369549520, retrieved 2026-10-25), "Life and career". Establishes the 1900 Hill proposal, his residence in Everett, his stance on mill unionization, his death and burial, and the Culdrum Township namesake. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Marston_Clough [^5]: Wikipedia contributors, *David Marston Clough* (revision 1369549520, retrieved 2026-10-25), "Life and career". Establishes his birth, family, first logging venture, 1872 move to Minneapolis, and city council election. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Marston_Clough [^6]: Wikipedia contributors, *David Marston Clough* (revision 1369549520, retrieved 2026-10-25), "External Links". Establishes that his biographical information and gubernatorial records are held at the Minnesota Historical Society. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Marston_Clough