Governor of Minnesota (1870-1874) who authorized the posse that attempted to kidnap Lord Gordon-Gordon from Canada — nearly causing an international incident.
Minor but colorful figure in the Lord Gordon-Gordon affair: Austin authorized Minnesota agents to cross into Canada and arrest Gordon-Gordon without extradition proceedings — an act that required the Canadian government to arrest the Minnesota posse and that briefly threatened the U.S.-Canada relationship. Documents how local political actors in Gilded Age America could precipitate international incidents through impetuous action.
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