John Lind was born on March 25, 1854 in Kanna, Smaland, Sweden, the son of Gustav and Catherine (Jonason) Lind. His family came to the United States in 1867 and settled in Goodhue County, Minnesota, and Lind remained a resident of that state throughout his life.
Lind attended the schools of his native and adopted countries. He later graduated from the University of Minnesota Law School.
From 1872-1873 Lind taught in a district school in Sibley County. He was admitted to the bar in 1877, and while he was gaining experience as a lawyer he served for two years as superintendent of schools in Brown County and for four years as receiver of the United States land office at Tracy, Lyon County. His election to Congress in 1886 marked the inception of three successive terms as a Republican (1887 - 1893) and one as a Democrat (1903 - 1905). He had already won a reputation for simplicity of manner and directness of speech and as a legislator showed a disposition to belittle extreme partisanship and to shy at blind party loyalty.
In 1896 he was the gubernatorial candidate of the Silver Republicans, Democrats, and Populists but was defeated. As governor (1899 - 1901) Lind was the first to interrupt the succession of Republican incumbents since 1859. He remained until his death a leader and oracle of independent and progressive thought. In 1910 he declined the Democratic nomination for the governorship.
During the first days of August 1913, the country was surprised at the appointment of Lind to be the personal representative of President Wilson in Mexico. The object of his mission was to help effect the peaceful overthrow of Huerta and the return of stable government. He remained in Mexico for several months but was unable to accomplish the object of his mission. From the beginning of December 1913 he consistently advocated the recognition of Carranza and after his return was active and influential in his favor.
During the interim in his political career he served in the Spanish-American War. The pension which he received from this service formed the basis of a trust fund to be used to aid crippled students at the University of Minnesota, an act prompted, perhaps, by the fact that he had lost his left hand in his youth.
(Sovereign to defcend to altercation with revolted fubje&s...)
Although regarded as a "good" Republican during his first three terms in legislature, Lind was a believer in the free coinage of silver, tempering his course, however, with a statement on the floor of the House that something ought to be yielded to expediency and that the Sherman Silver Purchase Act for the time being was an effective substitute.
He was an admirer of William Jennings Bryan, and he gave support to the foreign and domestic policies of Woodrow Wilson. In 1924, however, he deserted the Democratic party in favor of the Progressive candidate, Robert M. La Follette, and in 1928 he refused to support Alfred E. Smith.
Quotations: "I have not been a Populist, and I cannot say that I have become a Populist. To be frank with you, my friends, I will say to you that I don't know that I have any party. Perhaps it might be said of me that I am a political orphan".
Physically Lind was unmistakably Swedish, tall, wiry, sandyhaired, and blue-eyed. He possessed the industry, initiative, bent for controversy, and facility of expression of his race, but he was intensely American and in the heat of political campaigns made no appeal to racial or nationalistic prejudice.
Lind married, on September 1, 1879, Alice A. Shepard of Mankato, Minnesota.
