George E. Chamberlain | |
|---|---|
 | |
| United States Senator fromOregon | |
| In office March 4, 1909 – March 3, 1921 | |
| Preceded by | Charles W. Fulton |
| Succeeded by | Robert N. Stanfield |
| 11th Governor of Oregon | |
| In office January 15, 1903 – February 28, 1909 | |
| Preceded by | T. T. Geer |
| Succeeded by | Frank W. Benson |
| 1stAttorney General of Oregon | |
| In office May 20, 1891 – January 14, 1895 | |
| Governor | Sylvester Pennoyer |
| Preceded by | Inaugural holder |
| Succeeded by | Cicero M. Idleman |
| Member of theOregon House of Representatives | |
| In office 1880–1882 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1854-01-01)January 1, 1854 Natchez, Mississippi, U.S. |
| Died | July 9, 1928(1928-07-09) (aged 74) Washington, DC, U.S. |
| Resting place | Arlington National Cemetery |
| Party | Democratic |
| Spouses | |
| Profession | Lawyer |
| Signature |  |
George Earle Chamberlain Sr. (January 1, 1854 – July 9, 1928) was an American attorney, politician, and public official inOregon. A native ofMississippi and member of theDemocratic Party, Chamberlain's political achievements included appointment followed by election as the firstattorney general of Oregon, a stint as the state's11th governor, and two terms in theUnited States Senate inWashington, D.C.
George Earle Chamberlain was born inNatchez, Mississippi, on January 1, 1854. The Chamberlain family were early immigrants to North America from England, helping to pioneer in the state ofMassachusetts.[1] His father, Dr. Charles Thomson Chamberlain, was born inDelaware and attended medical school inPhiladelphia before moving to the small southern town of Natchez in 1837, attracted by the prospects offered there for a newly coined medical practitioner.[1]
Dr. Chamberlain quickly built a large and prosperous practice, which enabled him to maintain hisMaryland-born wife, the former Pamelia H. Archer, and family in comfort.[1] Pamelia Archer herself hailed from an illustrious pioneer family, being the granddaughter of Maryland CongressmanJohn Archer, the daughter of Maryland CongressmanStevenson Archer Sr., and the sister of Maryland CongressmanStevenson Archer Jr.[1] George Earle Chamberlain was the couple's third child.[1]
George Earle Chamberlain attended public schools in Natchez, completing his secondary education in 1870 at the age of 16.[1] Following graduation he first worked two years as a clerk in a general merchandise store before leaving forWashington and Lee University in 1872.[1] Chamberlain successfully complete the course of work there, graduating with dual degrees ofBachelor of Arts andBachelor of Law in July 1876,[1] gaining membership inPhi Kappa Psi fraternity in the process.
Following graduation from Washington and Lee, Chamberlain briefly returned home to Natchez but decided that professional prospects in the post-bellum South were marginal at best and he departed for a new life inOregon, arriving on December 6, 1876.[1]
Chamberlain's first job in the west was a brief and poor-paying stint as the teacher of a country school inLinn County, Oregon.[1] Late in 1877 he was appointed deputyclerk of Linn County, remaining in that position until the summer of 1879.[1] In the interim he passed the Oregon state bar, enabling him to practice law in the state. In 1879, Chamberlain married Sallie Newman Welch, with whom he would have seven children. He was widowed on May 26, 1925.[2]
In 1878 he served in theLinn County Rifles, a volunteer militia formed to fight against belligerents from theBannock,Shoshone, andPaiute peoples in the so-calledBannock War.
A member of theDemocratic Party, Chamberlain ran for theOregon House of Representatives in November 1880, winning election to a two-year term.
In 1884, Chamberlain was nameddistrict attorney for Oregon's 3rd judicial district.[1] His skill in that position gained the notice of Democratic GovernorSylvester Pennoyer and when in 1891 thestate legislature established the new position ofOregon Attorney General, Chamberlain was appointed in May as the first to serve that position.[1] He stood for election to the position in the fall, winning at the polls despite being the candidate of the minority party in the state.[1] Chamberlain would remain Oregon's Attorney General until January 1895, following the expiration of his term. He would be the only Democrat to serve that position for 58 years, untilRobert Y. Thornton was elected in 1952.
After leaving the Oregon Attorney General's position, Chamberlain went into the banking business, taking positions with the First National Bank and later the Linn County National Bank in his new hometown ofAlbany.[1]
Chamberlain next moved north to Portland and in 1900 stood for election as the district attorney forMultnomah County.[1] He won by more than 1,000 votes, despite the county's 4,000 vote Republican majority.[1] This again put Chamberlain in the public eye for a run at statewide office.
In 1902, he was nominated by theDemocratic Party of Oregon for Governor by acclamation at the party's nominating convention.[1] Chamberlain was electedgovernor of Oregon in a tight election by just 256 votes, this in a state which delivered 15,000 more votes to the Republicans in the concurrent congressional elections.[1]
Chamberlain was reelected in 1906, resigning his term when elected to the Senate.
In 1908 he was elected as a Democrat to the U.S. Senate; he was reelected in 1914 and served from March 4, 1909, to March 3, 1921. He was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection in 1920. He was chairman of the Committee on Geological Survey (Sixty-second Congress) and a member of the Committee on Military Affairs (Sixty-third through Sixty-fifth Congresses), the Committee on Public Lands (Sixty-third Congress), and the Committee on Expenditures in the War Department (Sixty-sixth Congress).
TheChamberlain Military Preparedness Bill of 1918, which he wrote, bears his name.
He was a member of theUnited States Shipping Board from 1921 to 1923 and engaged in the practice of law in Washington, D.C.
Chamberlain married his longtime personal secretary,Carolyn B. Shelton, on July 12, 1926, inNorfolk, Virginia.[3]
Chamberlain died there on July 9, 1928, and interment was inArlington National Cemetery.[4]
During his life Chamberlain was a member of theIndependent Order of Odd Fellows,Knights of Pythias, and was a 32nd degreeMason in Portland.[1] He was also a member of theCommercial Club of Portland, theMultnomah Athletic Club, theOregon Historical Society, and was a life member of theBenevolent and Protective Order of Elks.[1]
| Party political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by W. R. King | Democratic nominee forGovernor of Oregon 1902,1906 | Succeeded by |
| First | Democratic nominee forU.S. Senator fromOregon (Class 3) 1914,1920 | Succeeded by |
| Legal offices | ||
| Preceded by Office established | Attorney General of Oregon 1891–1895 | Succeeded by Cicero M. Idleman |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Governor of Oregon 1903–1909 | Succeeded by |
| U.S. Senate | ||
| Preceded by | U.S. Senator (Class 3) from Oregon 1909–1921 | Succeeded by |
| Class 2 |  | |
|---|---|---|
| Class 3 | ||
Chairs of theUnited States Senate Committee on Armed Services | ||
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| Military Affairs Committee (1816–1947) |  | |
| Naval Affairs Committee (1816–1947) | ||
| Armed Services Committee (1947–present) | ||
| Public Lands (1816–1921) | | |
|---|---|---|
| Public Lands and Surveys (1921–1947) | ||
| Interior and Insular Affairs (1947–1977) | ||
| Energy and Natural Resources (1977–) | ||
| International | |
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| National | |
| People | |
| Other | |
