George Law Curry

George Law Curry ( born July 2, 1820 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, † July 28, 1878 in Portland, Oregon ) was an American politician and from 1854 to 1859 Territorial Governor in Oregon Territory.

Early years

Curry spent most of his childhood in Caracas, Venezuela. After his return to the U.S. he settled down first in St. Louis ( Missouri). There he worked as a journalist and as a publisher of a local newspaper. In 1846 he moved to the land in what was then Oregon Territory.

Rise in Oregon

Based on his experiences as a newspaper publisher he found in his new home soon for a new job in this field. He was publisher of the newspaper " Oregon Spectator", which belonged to George Abernethy, who had led 1845-1849, even before the creation of the territory, the Provisional Government of Oregon. Already after one and a half years, Curry gave up this position again, because he had fallen out with Abernethy. This would banish politics from his newspaper while curry just felt as press censorship. Thereupon curry founded in Oregon City the " Oregon Free Press " as a rival to his former employer. This sheet remained until the outbreak of the gold rush in California, which attracted almost all of the staff to the California gold fields, whereupon the newspaper had to close.

Political career

George Curry was a member of the Democratic Party. In 1853 he was appointed by President Franklin Pierce as Secretary of State in the Oregon Territory. He remained in this position until 1855. Process, he had twice as acting ( acting ) Territorial Governor breach. The first time this was in May 1853, the case when Joseph Lane resigned after only three days in office to take his seat in Congress again. Until the arrival of the newly appointed Territorial Governor John Wesley Davis in early December 1853, he was acting governor.

In 1854, he was following the resignation of Davis again acting prime minister before he was appointed by President Pierce as the official territorial governor. This office he held from 1854-1859. He was the last territorial governor of Oregon. As there in 1855 came to an Indian War (Yakima War), presented the governor 2,500 man the federal troops as aid. During his tenure, the transition from an Oregon territory was prepared to a regular state of the USA. It was drafted a constitution and elected John Whiteaker the first regular governor of the new state. After the ratification of the Declaration by the U.S. Congress and signed by President James Buchanan of the accession of territory was completed with the United States on 14 February 1859. This means that the administration of George Curry ended up as territorial governor.

Further CV

In 1860 his candidacy for the U.S. Senate failed on a single voice. George Curry was with Chloe Boone married, which was a direct descendant of Daniel Boone, one of the first pioneers in Kentucky. Curry died in 1878 in Portland.