G. H. Oury | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Delegate to the U.S. House of Representatives from theArizona Territory's at-large district | |
| In office March 4, 1881 – March 3, 1885 | |
| Preceded by | John G. Campbell |
| Succeeded by | Curtis C. Bean |
| Delegate fromArizona Territory to theProvisional Congress of the Confederate States | |
| In office January 24, 1862 – February 17, 1862 | |
| Preceded by | New constituency |
| Succeeded by | Constituency abolished |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Granville Henderson Oury (1825-03-12)March 12, 1825 Abingdon, Virginia, U.S. |
| Died | January 11, 1891(1891-01-11) (aged 65) |
| Resting place | Adamsville Cemetery, Adamsville, Arizona, U.S. 33°01′25.8″N111°24′31.4″W / 33.023833°N 111.408722°W /33.023833; -111.408722 |
| Party | Democratic |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  Confederate States |
| Branch/service |  Confederate States Army |
| Years of service | 1862–1865 |
| Rank |  Captain |
| Commands | Oury's Company,Herbert's Battalion, Arizona Cavalry |
| Battles/wars | American Civil War: |
Granville Henderson Oury (March 12, 1825 – January 11, 1891) was a nineteenth-century American politician, lawyer, judge, soldier, and miner.
Born inAbingdon, Virginia; Granville Henderson Oury and his family moved toBowling Green, Missouri, in 1836 where he pursued his academic studies, studied law, and was admitted to thebar in 1848. That year, he moved toSan Antonio, Texas, and in 1849 toMarysville, California, where he engaged in mining. He then moved toTucson, Arizona, in 1856 and began a law practice and was appointed adistrict judge forNew Mexico Territory inMesilla. Oury was involved in the infamousCrabb Massacre of April 1857, during which no more than 100 Americans were killed after an eight-day battle with Mexican forces atCaborca,Sonora. The Americans were under the command ofGeneral Henry A. Crabb, a formerCaliforniasenator, who was allegedly trying to take over Sonora like thefilibusterWilliam Walker. Oury was one of the men General Crabb had recruited in Tucson, and he was given the rank ofcaptain and ordered to follow the general into Mexico after recruiting more men. However, when news reached Tucson that a superior force of Mexicans was besieging Crabb's expedition,Major R. N. Wood and Captain Oury were sent across theinternational border to help their compatriots. Just after crossing the border, the rescue party encountered about 200 Mexicans. A skirmish ensued which forced the Americans back across the border into Arizona. There were no casualties on the Americans' side. Of the Crabb party, all were killed except a fourteen-year-old boy and possibly one other man depending on varying sources.[1][2][3]
At the outbreak of theAmerican Civil War in 1861, Oury was elected to theProvisional Congress of the Confederate States representing theArizona Territory. Around this time, hostileApaches attacked the town ofTubac, located south of Tucson. Over the course of a few days the Apachesbesieged to oldPresidio until the settlers were rescued by Oury and a small band ofConfederatemilitia from Tucson. Tubac was destroyed and abandoned but the settlers were saved due to Oury and his men. Oury later resigned his seat in the Confederate Congress to serve as a captain inHerbert's Battalion of Arizona cavalry of theConfederate States Army. He also served as a colonel on the staff of GeneralHenry Hopkins Sibley inTexas andLouisiana from 1862 to 1864. He took theoath of allegiance at Fort Mason in Arizona on October 8, 1865.
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After the end of the war, Oury returned to his law practice in Tucson. He was elected to the3rd Arizona Territorial Legislature in 1866, serving asSpeaker of the House that year, and was appointedArizona Territory Attorney General in 1869. He moved toPhoenix in 1871 and was appointeddistrict attorney forMaricopa County serving from 1871 to 1873. That year his brother, William S. Oury, was involved in theCamp Grant Massacre in which over 140 Apache men, women, and children were killed.[4][5] Granville was elected in 1873 and 1875 to the7th and8th Arizona Territorial Legislature, serving as Speaker during the 1873 session.
Oury unsuccessfully ran as aDemocrat for theUnited States House of Representatives in 1878 and was appointeddistrict attorney forPinal County in 1879. He was elected aDemocrat to theUnited States House of Representatives in 1880, reelected in 1882, serving from 1881 to 1885, not running for reelection in 1884. He served as a delegate to the1884 Democratic National Convention inChicago, returned toAdamsville in 1885, and resumed practicing law. He once again served as district attorney for Pinal County in 1889 and 1890. He died ofthroat cancer in Tucson on January 11, 1891, and was interred in theAdamsville Cemetery atAdamsville, Arizona.
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| New constituency | Delegate fromArizona Territory to the Provisional Congress of the Confederate States 1862 | Constituency abolished |
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
| Preceded by | Delegate to theU.S. House of Representatives from theArizona Territory's at-large congressional district 1881–1885 | Succeeded by |
| International | |
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| National | |
| People | |
| Other | |
