Oswald West | |
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| 14th Governor of Oregon | |
| In office January 11, 1911 – January 12, 1915 | |
| Preceded by | Jay Bowerman |
| Succeeded by | James Withycombe |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1873-05-20)May 20, 1873 Guelph, Ontario, Canada |
| Died | August 22, 1960(1960-08-22) (aged 87) Portland, Oregon, U.S. |
| Party | Democratic |
| Spouse | Mabel West |
| Profession | Banker and lawyer |
Oswald West (May 20, 1873 – August 22, 1960) was an American businessman, lawyer, and politician who served as the 14thgovernor of Oregon from 1911 to 1915. A member of theDemocratic Party, West supported progressive reforms likewomen's suffrage andprohibition. He is also noted for hisconservation policies, including the creation ofstatewide forestry andwildlife management bodies, as well as the protection ofOregon’s ocean beaches for public use.
West was born inGuelph,Ontario, Canada but moved toSalem, Oregon with his family at the age of four where he attended school and eventually went into banking. After several years as a banker in Salem andAstoria, and a six-month stint searching for gold inAlaska, West gained an appointment as theState Land Agent. He proved effective in his position, recovering almost 1 million acres (4,000 km²) of fraudulently held state land.
In 1907, West left his position as land agent and was appointed to theOregon Railroad Commission, where he again found a great deal of success.
In 1910, he gained the Democratic nomination for Governor and went on to defeat his opponent,Jay Bowerman, and take office in 1911. While in office, West defended what he called theOregon System which includedinitiative andreferendum systems still in use in many western American states today. Through these processeswomen's suffrage, variousworkers rights laws[1] and most famouslyprohibition all came into effect during West's administration.
West established Oregon's beach highway law, proclaiming the entire Pacific coastline to the high tide line to be a public highway, thereby preserving scenery and beach access for future generations.[2] The law protecting public access to the high-water line remains in effect on Oregon beaches, which were formally protected by the Oregon Legislature and GovernorTom McCall in 1967 (HB 1601).
West is also credited with establishing Oregon's highway system, when in 1913 the Oregon Highway Commission was created by theOregon Legislative Assembly, levying a tax upon all property to fund the establishment of a state roadway system.[3] The tax raised $700,000 during its first year, money which was targeted to the development of three major road routes — the Coast Highway (US-101), thePacific Highway fromPortland through theWillamette Valley, and theColumbia River Highway connecting Portland withEastern Oregon.[4]
He addressed a national convention of governors inNew Jersey in 1911, on the topic of prison labor.[5]
West was a ferventprohibitionist. He believed so strongly in the idea that he once declaredmartial law on New Year's Eve 1913 in order to shut down liquor-selling establishments in the town ofCopperfield, Oregon.[6] He then dispatchedNational Guard troops, chaperoned by his own personal secretaryFern Hobbs on January 2, 1914 to enforce the order and shut down the saloons.[7]
Known for his moral reforms,[8][9] West pushed[10] the 1913 Oregon legislature to adopt its first eugenicslaw in response to thePortland Vice Scandal of 1912 involving the arrest of gay men in Portland, Oregon. West called for sterilization andemasculation of the "degenerates who slink, in all their infamy, through every city, contaminating the young, debauching the innocent, cursing the State"[11] and others who would come before the state's courts for similar sexual transgressions in the future.
Bend MayorGeorge P. Putnam criticized West in aNew York Times interview shortly after the Copperfield affair. Putnam asserted that the Governor's theatrical methods, and his inordinate attention to the affairs of local communities, detracted from the governance and national image of the state as a whole.[12]
Oregon writerStewart Holbrook described West as "by all odds the most brilliant governor Oregon ever had."[13]
West's time as governor is still felt in Oregon today because of his work to protect the state's natural resources. It was under his administration the beaches bordering the Pacific Ocean were protected for public use; the office of State Forester and the Bureau ofForestry were established; and theFish Commission and Game Commission were created.
West served only one term, opting not to run for re-election in 1914. Instead, he moved his family toPortland where he practiced law. He was the Democratic party's nominee for theUnited States Senate in 1918,[14] but lost toCharles L. McNary. After the run he largely limited his involvement in politics to spirited letters to the editor[15] but was an influential adviser to GovernorCharles H. Martin in the 1930s. He retired from his law practice after suffering a heart attack in 1945.
West died in Portland on August 22, 1960, and is buried in the Mount Crest Abbey Mausoleum in Salem, Oregon.
Oswald West State Park on theOregon Coast is named in his honor, as is West Hall, a student residence hall on the campus ofOregon State University.
| Party political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Democratic nominee forGovernor of Oregon 1910 | Succeeded by C. J. Smith |
| Preceded by | Democratic nominee forU.S. Senator fromOregon (Class 2) 1918 | Succeeded by Milton A. Miller |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Governor of Oregon 1911–1915 | Succeeded by |
| International | |
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| National | |
| Other | |
