Benjamin F. Gue

Benjamin F. Gue (December 25, 1828 – June 1, 1904) was an American newspaper editor, writer and politician in Iowa. He served as a member of Iowa House of Representatives (1858–1862); member of Iowa Senate (1862–1866), and as the Lieutenant Governor of Iowa (1866–1868). He wrote the four-volume History of Iowa From the Earliest Times to the Beginning of the Twentieth Century.

He married Elizabeth Parker on November 12, 1855, and they had four children. Elizabeth died on July 3, 1888. Gue died on June 1, 1904, and the funeral took place at his home. In the Senate, Gue participated in an act that prohibited foreign bank bills from being circulated in Iowa. Gue co-founded and helped fund Iowa State University in 1858, then known as Iowa Agricultural College. He became the editor and publisher of the Iowa Republican newspaper titled Iowa North West. He was elected president of the board of trustees of Iowa Agricultural College in 1866. Gue served as Lieutenant Governor from 1866 to 1868.

Despite much opposition, Gue advocated for and allowed women to attend Iowa State University. He helped select Adonijah Welch as President of the college. Gue moved from Fort Dodge to Des Moines to be the editor of the Iowa Homestead. Ulysses S. Grant appointed Gue as Pension Agent of Iowa and Nebraska and Gue had that role for eight years. Gue and his son bought The Homestead in 1880. He founded the Pioneer Law-Makers Association of Iowa. Gue co-founded the First Unitarian Church of Des Moines and the Iowa Unitarian Association. He worked on the four-volume History of Iowa for over 17 years. In 1881, Gue continued as editor of Iowa Homestead and published Origin and Early History of Iowa State College.