Alonzo Albert Skinner (January 16, 1814 – April 30, 1877) was an American judge and Whig party politician in

Oregon Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...

. He was the 16th justice of the

Oregon Supreme Court The Oregon Supreme Court (OSC) is the highest State court (United States), state court in the U.S. state of Oregon. The only court that may reverse or modify a decision of the Oregon Supreme Court is the Supreme Court of the United States.

and unsuccessful candidate for the office of governor. He also served as a circuit court judge for the state of Oregon, was a customs collector, a judge in the

Provisional Government of Oregon The Provisional Government of Oregon was a popularly elected settler government created in the Oregon Country (1818-1846), in the Pacific Northwest region of the western portion of the continent of North America. Its formation had been advanced ...

, and a commissioner on a Native American treaty commission.

Early life

Skinner was born in

Portage County, Ohio Portage County is a county in the U.S. state of Ohio. As of the 2020 census, the population was 161,791. Located in Northeast Ohio, Portage County is part of the Akron Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is also included in the Cleveland–A ...

in 1814.Corning, Howard M. ''Dictionary of Oregon History''. Binfords & Mort Publishing, 1956. There in the community of

Ravenna Ravenna ( ; , also ; ) is the capital city of the Province of Ravenna, in the Emilia-Romagna region of Northern Italy. It was the capital city of the Western Roman Empire during the 5th century until its Fall of Rome, collapse in 476, after which ...

read law Reading law was the primary method used in common law countries, particularly the United States, for people to prepare for and enter the legal profession before the advent of law schools. It consisted of an extended internship or apprenticeship un ...

and passed the

bar Bar or BAR may refer to: Food and drink * Bar (establishment), selling alcoholic beverages * Candy bar ** Chocolate bar * Protein bar Science and technology * Bar (river morphology), a deposit of sediment * Bar (tropical cyclone), a laye ...

in 1840.Judicial History.
Yamhill County Court. Retrieved on February 2, 2008. He then settled in

Putnam County, Ohio Putnam County is a county located in the northwestern part of the U.S. state of Ohio. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 34,451. Its county seat is Ottawa. The county was created in 1820 and later organized in 1834. Its na ...

in 1842 and served as a part-time prosecutor in the county before losing the election for county judge. Then in 1845 Skinner set out over the

Oregon Trail The Oregon Trail was a east–west, large-wheeled wagon route and Westward Expansion Trails, emigrant trail in North America that connected the Missouri River to valleys in Oregon Territory. The eastern part of the Oregon Trail crossed what ...

on a seven-month journey to immigrate to

Oregon Country Oregon Country was a large region of the Pacific Northwest of North America that was subject to a long Oregon boundary dispute, dispute between the United Kingdom and the United States in the early 19th century. The area, which had been demarcat ...

. He arrived later in 1845 in

Oregon City, Oregon Oregon City is the county seat of Clackamas County, Oregon, United States, located on the Willamette River near the southern limits of the Portland metropolitan area. As of the 2020 census, the city population was 37,572. Established in 1829 ...

. Alonzo then set up farming in the Tuality District while still practicing law.

Political career

Beginning in December 1846 Skinner served as a circuit judge for the

. In that position he would travel from March through November to the county courts as a circuit rider. He was paid a salary of $800 per year for the job and served until 1849 when the Territorial Government arrived and judge

Orville C. Pratt Orville Charles Pratt (April 24, 1819 – October 1891) was an American jurist and attorney. He served as the 2nd Associate Justice of the Oregon Supreme Court serving from 1848 to 1852. He wrote the lone dissenting opinion in the controversy over ...

took over for Skinner. Later in 1849 Native Americans attacked and killed an American settler at Fort Steilacoom in Lewis County, after which chief justice William P. Bryant traveled to the fort for a trial of six defendants. Bryant brought along Skinner to serve as the prosecutor, and two of the six defendants were convicted and executed. After this in June 1850 he became a member of an Indian Commission set up by the United States government to negotiate treaties with the tribes west of the

Cascade Mountains The Cascade Range or Cascades is a major mountain range of western North America, extending from southern British Columbia through Washington and Oregon to Northern California. It includes both non-volcanic mountains, such as many of those in the ...

in Oregon.SuAnn M. Reddick and Cary C. Collins
Medicine Creek to Fox Island: Cadastral Scams and Contested Domains.
''Oregon Historical Quarterly'', Vol. 106, No. 3. Retrieved on February 2, 2008. This commission was created because of the

Donation Land Act The Donation Land Claim Act of 1850, sometimes known as the Donation Land Act, was a statute enacted by the United States Congress in late 1850, intended to promote homestead settlements in the Oregon Territory. It followed the Distribution-Pre ...

in 1850 allowed citizens to settle up to and the government wanted the lands west of the Cascades for settlement and to move the Native Americans to

Eastern Oregon Eastern Oregon is a region of the U.S. state of Oregon. It is not an officially recognized geographic entity; thus, the boundaries of the region vary according to context. It is sometimes understood to include only the eight easternmost countie ...

. However, Skinner and his fellow commissioners

John P. Gaines John Pollard Gaines (September 22, 1795 – December 9, 1857) was a U.S. military and political figure. He was a Whig member of the United States House of Representatives, representing Kentucky from 1847 to 1849, and he served as Governor of ...

and Beverly S. Allen were only able to get treaties signed that allowed the tribes to remain on the west side and in the foothills of the

Willamette Valley The Willamette Valley ( ) is a valley in Oregon, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. The Willamette River flows the entire length of the valley and is surrounded by mountains on three sides: the Cascade Range to the east, the ...

. The commission ratified 19 treaties and was then disbanded in February 1851. In 1851, Alonzo Skinner was appointed as an

Indian agent In United States history, an Indian agent was an individual authorized to interact with American Indian tribes on behalf of the U.S. government. Agents established in Nonintercourse Act of 1793 The federal regulation of Indian affairs in the Un ...

by the government for

Southern Oregon Southern Oregon is a region of the U.S. state of Oregon south of Lane County and generally west of the Cascade Range The Cascade Range or Cascades is a major mountain range of western North America, extending from southern British Columbia thr ...

. In 1853 he ran against former governor

Joseph Lane Joseph Lane (December 14, 1801 – April 19, 1881) was an American politician and soldier. He was a state legislator representing Evansville, Indiana, and then served in the Mexican–American War, becoming a general. President James K. Polk ap ...

for the position of territorial delegate to Congress for the

Oregon Territory The Territory of Oregon was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from August 14, 1848, until February 14, 1859, when the southwestern portion of the territory was admitted to the United States, Union as the Oreg ...

. As a Whig party candidate Skinner lost to Lane the Democrat while calling for a transcontinental railroad in his campaign. Next in 1856 after moving to Pacific City, Washington, he married Elizabeth Hopkins Lincoln on May 22. Hopkins was a teacher in

Vermont Vermont () is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, New York (state), New York to the west, and the Provinces and territories of Ca ...

sent by Governor Slade to Oregon City. The two would then teach in

Astoria, Oregon Astoria is a Port, port city in and the county seat of Clatsop County, Oregon, United States. Founded in 1811, Astoria is the oldest city in the state and was the first permanent American settlement west of the Rocky Mountains. The county is the ...

. Two years later the couple had moved to

Willamina, Oregon Willamina is a city in Polk County, Oregon, Polk and Yamhill County, Oregon, Yamhill Counties in the U.S. state of Oregon. The population was 2,239 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. The Yamhill County portion of Willamina is part of ...

in the

Yamhill Valley The Yamhill River is an tributary of the Willamette River, in the U.S. state of Oregon. Formed by the confluence of the South Yamhill River and the North Yamhill River about east of McMinnville, it drains part of the Northern Oregon Coast ...

where Alonzo had set up a land claim in 1850. The Skinners then moved to

Eugene, Oregon Eugene ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Lane County, Oregon, United States. It is located at the southern end of the Willamette Valley, near the confluence of the McKenzie River (Oregon), McKenzie and Willamette River, Willamette rivers, ...

where Alonzo returned to law practice. While in Eugene he served as the city's recorder and as a clerk for the county, elected to the latter as a Republican in 1862.Larson, Tony
Alonzo Skinner.
genealogy.com. Retrieved on February 2, 2008. During the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

Skinner was an assistant provost marshal for the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

as a civilian. Then in 1866, he was appointed by Oregon Governor

George Lemuel Woods George Lemuel Woods (July 30, 1832 – January 7, 1890) was an American lawyer, judge, and politician. A member of the Republican Party, Woods served as the third Governor of Oregon from 1866 to 1870. Failing to win renomination, Woods was the ...

to the

to replace Riley E. Stratton who had died in office.Oregon Blue Book: Elections Process and History.
Oregon Secretary of State. Retrieved on February 2, 2008.Oregon Blue Book: Supreme Court Justices of Oregon.
Oregon Secretary of State. Retrieved on February 2, 2008. Skinner served on the state's highest court until 1867 when he was replaced by

John Kelsay John Kelsay is an author and a Research Professor and Richard L. Rubenstein Professor of Religion at Florida State University. He received his Ph.D. in 1985 in Ethics from University of Virginia. He mainly focuses on religious ethics, particularly ...

who had won the election.

Later life

After serving on the Supreme Court he then served as a circuit court judge for the state from 1867 to 1870. Skinner was then appointed as a customs collector for the United States at Empire City, Oregon. However, he suffered from bad health and moved to California in 1877 to attempt to improve his health, but died that year on April 30 in

Santa Barbara, California Santa Barbara (, meaning ) is a coastal city in Santa Barbara County, California, of which it is also the county seat. Situated on a south-facing section of coastline, the longest such section on the West Coast of the United States excepting A ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Skinner, Alonzo A. Justices of the Oregon Supreme Court Oregon state court judges 1814 births 1877 deaths People from Ravenna, Ohio Members of the Provisional Government of Oregon United States Indian agents Oregon pioneers Oregon Whigs 19th-century American politicians Politicians from Eugene, Oregon Oregon Republicans California Republicans Lawyers from Eugene, Oregon U.S. state supreme court judges admitted to the practice of law by reading law 19th-century American judges 19th-century American lawyers