lawyer, politician, newspaperman, b. Amherst, Mass. He attended Amherst College (1830-1832) and Union College, Schenectady, N.Y. (1832-1834), studied law, and was admitted to the bar in N.Y. state about 1835. In 1836 he moved to Wisconsin settling in Racine, where he set up a law practice, and for a time operated a general store. A Democrat, and later a member of the Free Soil party, Strong served in the upper house of Wisconsin's territorial legislature (1839) and again from 1845 to 1846. Strong helped draft the constitution of the local land claim protective association, and in 1846 served as a delegate to the state constitutional convention, but resigned his position before the end of the session and helped lead the fight which resulted in the defeat of the 1846 constitution. Strong was state assemblyman from Racine County (1849) and held numerous local offices in Racine and Racine County. He was an incorporator of the Racine Seminary in 1842, a founder and editor of the Racine Argus (1838) and from 1843 to 1845 was editor of the Racine Advocate. After 1849 Strong retired from active political life, and devoted the remainder of his career to his business interests in Racine. Wis. Mag. Hist., 5; M. M. Quaife, ed., Convention of 1846 (Madison, 1909); WPA MS.

The Wisconsin Historical Society has manuscripts related to this topic. See the catalog description of the Marshall M. Strong Miscellany for details.

View a related article at Wisconsin Magazine of History Archives.

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[Source: Dictionary of Wisconsin biography]