Joseph M. Beck moved to Fort Madison in 1850. He was a locally prominent lawyer who was elected mayor and county attorney. In addition to the law he was also involved in banking, railroad development, and organizing First Baptist Church. Initially a Whig, he helped establish the Republican Party. Beck served as a justice of the Iowa Supreme Court from 1868 to 1891. For five of those years he served as chief justice. On the court he was a supporter of civil rights for Blacks and the prohibition of alcohol.
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