Melvin Clark George
Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromOregon'sAt-large district
In office March 4, 1881 – March 3, 1885
Preceded by	John Whiteaker
Succeeded by	Binger Hermann
Member of theOregon Senate
In office 1876–1880
Personal details
Born	May 13, 1849 Caldwell, Ohio
Died	February 22, 1933 (aged 83) Portland, Oregon
Political party	Republican
Spouse	Mary Eckler

Melvin Clark George (May 13, 1849 – February 22, 1933) was an American politician who served two terms as aU.S. Representative fromOregon from 1881 to 1885.

He was born nearCaldwell, Ohio to Presley and Mahala Nickerson George.^[1] He moved with his parents over theOregon Trail in 1851 and settled on a homestead nearLebanon inLinn County, Oregon. In Oregon he attended country schools, thenSantiam Academy, and finallyWillamette University inSalem.

He served as principal of theAlbany schools and the Jefferson Institute in what would becomeJefferson. He studied law, and wasadmitted to the bar and commenced practice inPortland in 1875.^[1][2]

In 1873, he married Mary Eckler, with whom he had three children.^[1][3]

George served as member of theOregon State Senate fromMultnomah County from 1876 to 1880.^[1][2] In 1880, he was elected as aRepublican toOregon's at-large congressional district in theUnited States House of Representatives, defeating incumbentJohn Whiteaker by 1,397 votes.^[2][4] In 1882, he defeated Democrat William D. Fenton by 3,365 votes to become the first Oregon congressman to be re-elected to a second term.^[4] During his term in Congress, George promoted construction of jetties at the mouth of theColumbia River.^[1] He did not seek a third term in 1884.^[2]

Following his term in Congress, George served as a professor ofmedical jurisprudence at Willamette University from 1885 to 1889.^[1] He then served on thePortland Public Schools board from 1889 to 1894,^[5] and in 1891 was appointed chairman of the Portland bridge commission, which sought to provide free bridges throughout the city.^[1][2][3] In this capacity, George oversaw the construction of theBurnside Bridge. George Park in theSt. Johns neighborhood of Portland is named in his honor,^[6] as is George Middle School.^[7]

George also served as a state circuit court judge for Multnomah County from 1897 to 1905, and then practiced law in Portland until his death in Portland on February 22, 1933. He is interred atLone Fir Cemetery.^[2]

• United States Congress."Melvin Clark George (id: G000128)".Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
• Political History of Oregon from 1876 to 1898 Inclusive, an article by George published in theOregon Historical Quarterly

 This article incorporatespublic domain material fromBiographical Directory of the United States Congress.Federal government of the United States.

• 1849 births
• 1933 deaths
• Willamette University alumni
• Republican Party Oregon state senators
• People from Caldwell, Ohio
• Burials at Lone Fir Cemetery
• Educators from Oregon
• Oregon state court judges
• Willamette University faculty
• Medical jurisprudence
• School board members in Oregon
• Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Oregon
• 19th-century United States representatives
• 19th-century members of the Oregon Legislative Assembly

• Articles with short description
• Short description is different from Wikidata
• Wikipedia articles incorporating text from the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress