Frank G. Higgins

Frank G. Higgins
Frank G. Higgins, 1891
4th Lieutenant Governor of Montana
In office January 7, 1901 – October 15, 1905
Governor	Joseph Toole
Preceded by	Archibald E. Spriggs
Succeeded by	Edwin L. Norris
Member of the Montana House of Representatives
Personal details
Born	December 28, 1864 Hell Gate, Montana
Died	October 15, 1905(1905-10-15) (aged 40) Portland, Oregon
Citizenship	United States
Alma mater	University of Michigan
Known for	Football player/Politician

Francis Grant "Frank" Higgins (December 28, 1864 – October 15, 1905) was an American football player, lawyer and politician. He played college football at the University of Michigan. He was the first native-born person from Montana to become a member of the state's bar and of the state's legislature. He served in the Montana House of Representatives and was elected as the mayor of Missoula, Montana in 1892. He was the fourth Lieutenant Governor of Montana from 1901 to 1905.

Higgins was born in 1864 at Hell Gate, Montana, near the site of what would become Missoula, Montana. He was the son of Julia Grant and Christopher Powers Higgins (1830–1889), an early Montana pioneer and the founder of the city of Missoula. He attended the public schools of Missoula and graduated in 1881 from the military school in Faribault, Minnesota. He was sent east to attend the Phillips Exeter Academy at Exeter, New Hampshire.

Higgins subsequently enrolled at the University of Michigan where he studied law and played college football as a forward for the undefeated 1885 Michigan Wolverines football team.

After graduating from Michigan in 1886, Higgins returned to Missoula where he practiced law. He was the first person born in Montana to be admitted to the Montana state bar. In the late 1880s, he gave up the practice of law to become president of the Higgins Bank in Missoula. He subsequently began a political career and became the first native-born person from Montana to be elected to the Montana state legislature and as a mayor. He served in the Montana House of Representatives upon Montana's admission to the United States starting in 1889. He served in both the first and second sessions of the Montana legislature.