John Gabriel Halland had a tumultuous end of the century in the years leading up to 1900. Originally the head of the History Department at Fargo’s Agricultural College, he ran for Superintendent of Public Instruction in 1898. As often happens in campaigns, every detail of his personal life was dragged into the spotlight.
One major story circulating was that Halland had been seen leaving a woodshed with his neighbor’s wife. As gossip grew, the allegations of immorality eventually led to his being called to court. The uproar was so great that the Devils Lake Newspaper wrote him off for future re-election, saying campaign managers “would have been spared a lot of grief had they tossed him overboard early,” and predicting he would never run again.
In court, Halland, his wife Leonora, and the woman at the center of the rumor, Mrs. Mary Hanson, all testified. Together they proved the charges false, refuting the accusations of immorality that had been used against them. Many newspapers reported that the entire proceeding had been nothing “but an attempt to blacken Halland’s character for political purposes.”
Despite the seriousness of the charges, Halland’s successful defense was enough to carry him through the election. He was chosen as Superintendent of Public Instruction for that term and even won the majority of the women’s vote in Fargo.
On this date in 1900, Halland received what was called “a token of regard” from his peers, a diamond stud. It was a symbolic reward after months of slander, public scrutiny, and pressure to withdraw from the ballot.
The presentation praised him “for the kindly aid and the business promptness...the zeal he has shown in reducing to a system the many phases of educational work in the state; for the fairness with which he has treated both individual and institutional, regardless of creed or party; [and] for the masterly manner in which he has conducted the affairs of his office.”
Dakota Datebook by Gabriel J. Mitchell
Sources:
- November 4th, 1898, Oakes ND
- November 10th, 1898, Jamestown weekly alert
- November 11th, 1898, Devils Lake inter-ocean
- November 11th, 1898, the pioneer express (Pembina)
- November 17th, 1898, Griggs courier
- December 31st, 1900, Bismarck daily tribune
- January 8th, 1901, Bismarck daily tribune
- December 29th, 1906, Fargo forum and daily republican