Oswald West

Oswald West
Governor West
14th Governor of Oregon
In office January 11, 1911 – January 12, 1915
Preceded by	Jay Bowerman
Succeeded by	James Withycombe
Personal details
Born	May 20, 1873(1873-05-20) Guelph, Ontario, Canada
Died	August 22, 1960(1960-08-22) (aged 87) Portland, Oregon
Political party	Democratic
Spouse(s)	Mabel West
Profession	Banker and lawyer

Abigail Scott Duniway (seated) with Governor Oswald West, signing the women's suffrage amendment

Oswald West (May 20, 1873 – August 22, 1960) was an American politician, a Democrat, who served most notably as the 14th Governor of Oregon. Called "Os West" by Oregon writer Stewart Holbrook, who described him as "by all odds the most brilliant governor Oregon ever had."^[1]

Early life and career

West was born in Ontario, Canada but moved to Salem, 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 and Astoria and a six month stint searching for gold in Alaska, West gained an appointment as the State Land Agent. He proved effective in his position, recovering almost 1 million acres (4,000 km²) of fraudulently held state land. In 1907 he left his position as Land Agent and was appointed to the Oregon Railroad Commission, where he again found a great deal of success.

Governor of Oregon

In 1910 he gained the Democratic nomination for Governor and went on to defeat his opponent, Jay Bowerman, and take the office in 1911. While in office West defended what he called the Oregon System which included initiative and referendum systems still in use in many western American states today. Through these processes women's suffrage, various workers rights laws and most infamously prohibition all came into effect during West's administration. West established Oregon's beach highway law, which was intended to keep beaches undeveloped while allowing motor vehicles to use Oregon beaches between low and high tide. The law remains in effect on Oregon beaches, which were formally protected by Governor Tom McCall in 1967. West is also credited with establishing Oregon's highway system.^[2]

He addressed a national convention of governors in New Jersey in 1911, on the topic of prison labor.^[3]

In response to a "vice scandal" that broke out in Portland in November 1912 surrounding the city's gay male subculture, West urged the state legislature to pass a sterilization law to penalize "sexual perverts" and "moral degenerates,"^[4] which were defined as "those addicted to the practice of sodomy or the crime against nature, or to other gross, bestial and perverted sexual habits and practices prohibited by statute."^[5] The legislation was subjected to a referendum and repealed by a vote of 56 percent to 44 in November 1913. However, the legislature passed a similar law in 1917, which West's successor, James Withycombe, signed.

Prohibition advocate

See also: Alcohol in Oregon

West was a fervent prohibitionist. He believed so strongly in the idea that he once declared martial law on New Year's Eve 1913 in order to shut down liquor-selling establishments in the town of Copperfield, Oregon.^[6] He then dispatched National Guard troops, chaperoned by his own personal secretary Fern Hobbs on January 2, 1914 to enforce the order and shut down the saloons.^[7] The move made headlines across the country. When his "invasion" of the small town in Baker County failed to garner local support he sought, (but failed) to void the town's incorporation citing that it was "in the hands of a lawless element." He also once declared that he wanted to "shoot a bartender."

Reputation and legacy

Bend Mayor George Palmer Putnam criticized West in a New 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.^[8]

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 of Forestry were established; and the Fish Commission and Game Commission were created.

West served only one term, opting not to run for re-election in 1914. He instead moved his family to Portland where he practiced law. He was the Democratic party's nominee for the United States Senate in 1918,^[9] but lost to Charles L. McNary. After the run he largely limited his involvement in politics to spirited letters to the editor^[10] but was an influential adviser to Governor Charles H. Martin in the 1930s. He retired from his law practice after suffering a heart attack in 1945. He died in Portland on August 22, 1960.

Oswald West State Park on the Oregon Coast is named in his honor.

References

1. ^ Wildmen, Wobblies and Whistle Punks, edited by Brian Booth (Corvallis: OSU Press, 1992), p. 75. Holbrook wrote this before Tom McCall was elected governor.
2. ^ http://arcweb.sos.state.or.us/state/odot/hist/history1843.htm
3. ^ "GOVERNORS TO TALK ON MANY SUBJECTS; Employers' Liability and Workers' Compensation the Principal Topic for Conference.". The New York Times.. August 24, 1911. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=9502E3DB1531E233A25757C2A96E9C946096D6CF&scp=32&sq=%22Oswald+West%22&st=p. 
4. ^ Painter, George. "The Vice Clique Scandal of 1912–1913". Gay and Lesbian Archives of the Pacific Northwest. http://www.glapn.org/604vice.html. Retrieved December 25, 2010. 
5. ^ Boag, Peter (2003). Same-Sex Affairs: Constructing and Controlling Homosexuality in the Pacific Northwest. Berkeley: University of California Press. ISBN 0-520-24048-0. 
6. ^ Oregon State Archives: Martial law order
7. ^ "The Intrepid Miss Hobbs," Willamette Lawyer, Spring 2007
8. ^ "Oregon mayor here attacks Gov. West". New York Times. January 6, 1914. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=9506E6DD1730E733A25755C0A9679C946596D6CF. 
9. ^ "SENATE RACES IN 33 STATES; Partisanship Strongly Evident in Most Primaries—Two Women Are Candidates—Interesting Campaigns in New Jersey, Georgia, and Missouri.". The New York Times. July 14, 1918. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=9E0DEED6173EE433A25757C1A9619C946996D6CF&scp=37&sq=%22Oswald+West%22&st=p. 
10. ^ Holbrook, Wildmen, p. 82

Political offices
Preceded by Jay Bowerman	Governor of Oregon 1911–1915	Succeeded by James Withycombe

Persondata
Name	West, Oswald
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	May 20, 1873
Place of birth	Guelph, Ontario, Canada
Date of death	August 22, 1960
Place of death	Portland, Oregon