Blaine

Named for James G Blaine (1830-1893), an American Statesman.
Established 5 March 1885.

James G. Blaine's Scrapbook on the Internet
A history in pictures of Blaine County, Nebraska's namesake

Taken from Nebraska in the Making by Mike Parks
Published by the World Publishing Company
Omaha, Nebraska
Copyright 1966

Blaine, James Gillespie

Politician (1830-1893)

After graduating from Washington College in 1847, he studied law, taught school and edited a newspaper before entering the world of politics. A lifelong Republican, he served two terms in the Maine state legislature (1859-1863), then seven terms in the House of Representatives (1863-1876), the last four as speaker of the House. He was intelligent and well-informed, a dynamic speaker, a relentless campaigner and a skillful behind-the-scenes negotiator: in short, a consummate politician.

James G. Blaine, "The Plumed Knight"
© 1997 State Historical Society of Wisconsin

He was the early frontrunner for the Republican presidential nomination in 1876, but revelations of influence-peddling damaged his reputation. Instead, he ran successfully for the Senate, where he served from 1877-1881. In 1884, he won the Republican presidential nomination but lost the general election by a slim margin. Nonetheless, he remained a powerful leader of the national Republican party. He served two tenures as secretary of state in the Garfield (1881-1883) and Harrison (1889-1893) administrations. In that role, he sought to extend U.S. political and economic influence in Latin America under the slogan "Pan-Americanism."
SOURCE: Encyclopedia of American Biography.

James Gillespie Blaine, the "Plumed Knight" (1830-189)

The above biography, including the Thomas Nast's 1880 cartoon, and the photograph of
James Gillespie Blaine,
were developed in connection the University of Wisconsin, Madison, History Department,
Stanley K. Schultz, Professor of History, and William P. Tishler, Producer,
in conjunction with American History 102.,"Civil War to the Present."
More great American History can be viewed at their above linked website.