George V. Borchsenius

He had a brother William Carl and a sister Dora H.[3] When Borchsenius was 12 years old, he moved with his parents to Baldwin, Wisconsin.

At a later period, he engaged in the hardware and general mercantile business, and subsequently, with his father and brother, conducted a real estate and loan agency under the firm name of H. Borchsenius & Sons.

He was in Madison in 1899 when the reports of the Eldorado at Nome reached the states, and he determined to try his fortune in the newly discovered gold fields.

In the spring of 1900, he received the appointment of Clerk of the U. S. District Court, and arrived in Nome and entered upon the discharge of his duties July 9.

In a fraudulent scheme to seize rich mining claims, Alexander McKenzie, Republican National Committeeman for North Dakota, had secured the appointment of his hand-picked candidates for the government positions, including that of federal judge.