Charles William Fulton (August 24, 1853January 27, 1918) was an American lawyer and politician in the state of

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 ...

. A native of Ohio, he grew up in

Iowa Iowa ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the upper Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west; Wisconsin to the northeast, Ill ...

and

Nebraska Nebraska ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Ka ...

before settling 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 ...

. A Republican, he served in the

Oregon State Senate The Oregon State Senate is the upper house of the State legislature (United States), statewide legislature for the US state of Oregon. Along with the lower chamber Oregon House of Representatives it makes up the Oregon Legislative Assembly. Ther ...

, including time as

President of the Senate President of the Senate is a title often given to the presiding officer of a senate. It corresponds to the Speaker (politics), speaker in some other assemblies. The senate president often ranks high in a jurisdiction's Order of succession, succes ...

, before he was elected as

United States Senator The United States Senate consists of 100 members, two from each of the 50 U.S. state, states. This list includes all senators serving in the 119th United States Congress. Party affiliation Independent Senators Angus King of Maine and Berni ...

from Oregon.

Early life

Charles William Fulton was born in

Lima, Ohio Lima ( ) is a city in Allen County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a population of 35,579. It is located in northwest Ohio along Interstate 75 in Ohio, Interstate 75, appr ...

, on August 24, 1853, to Jacob and Eliza A. Fulton.Corning, Howard M. (1989) ''Dictionary of Oregon History''. Binfords & Mort Publishing. p. 94. The family moved to

in 1855 and settled in

Magnolia ''Magnolia'' is a large genus of about 210 to 340The number of species in the genus ''Magnolia'' depends on the taxonomic view that one takes up. Recent molecular and morphological research shows that former genera ''Talauma'', ''Dugandiodendr ...

, Harrison County. Fulton attended the common schools there, and then moved to Pawnee City, Nebraska, in 1870 where he was educated at the Pawnee City Academy. He taught school while he studied law in Nebraska, and passed the bar in April 1875 in that state. Three days after passing the bar he departed for Oregon, arriving in

Portland Portland most commonly refers to: *Portland, Oregon, the most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon *Portland, Maine, the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maine *Isle of Portland, a tied island in the English Channel Portland may also r ...

on April 20. Fulton then taught school for a few months to the south in Linn County at Waterloo. In July 1875, he relocated to Astoria at the mouth of the

Columbia River The Columbia River (Upper Chinook language, Upper Chinook: ' or '; Sahaptin language, Sahaptin: ''Nch’i-Wàna'' or ''Nchi wana''; Sinixt dialect'' '') is the largest river in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. The river headwater ...

where he entered private legal practice.

Political career

In 1878, Fulton was elected to the

to represent Clatsop, Columbia, and Tillamook counties as a Republican. He served his four-year term, remaining through the 1880 legislative session. In 1880, he began working as Astoria's city attorney, keeping the job until 1882. In 1890, he was elected to his old seat in the senate for a four-year term. During the 1893 session he served as President of the Senate. In 1894, he was in contention for the Republican nomination for Oregon Governor, but William Paine Lord was selected as the candidate at the Republican convention. Fulton did not return to the senate during the next two legislatures, but was back during the 1898 special session. In 1900, he won another four-year term, and served as Senate President during the 1901 legislature. He also served in the 1903 session before the

Oregon Legislative Assembly The Oregon Legislative Assembly is the State legislature (United States), state legislature for the U.S. state of Oregon. The Legislative Assembly is bicameral, consisting of an upper house, upper and lower chamber: the Oregon State Senate, Sena ...

elected him to the U.S. Senate. Fulton served in that office from March 4, 1903, to March 3, 1909. While in the Senate he was chairman, Committee on Canadian Relations ( Fifty-eighth and Fifty-ninth Congresses) and a member of the Committee on Claims ( Fifty-ninth and Sixtieth Congresses). He failed to win re-election in 1908, and served only a single term in the U.S. Senate. In 1909 President Taft sought to appoint Fulton as U. S. ambassador to China, but following opposition from Chinese-Americans in Portland and San Francisco, Fulton declined the nomination.

Later years and family

Following Congress, he resumed the practice of law in Portland. Fulton married in 1886 to Ada M. Hobson, and they had one child, a son. Elmer Lincoln Fulton, Charles' brother, was a

United States representative The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...

from

Oklahoma Oklahoma ( ; Choctaw language, Choctaw: , ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Texas to the south and west, Kansas to the north, Missouri to the northea ...

. Charles William Fulton died on January 27, 1918, at the age of 64 and was buried in Astoria at Ocean View Cemetery.

References

External links

The New York TimesOregon History: The Oregon System
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fulton, Charles W. 1853 births 1918 deaths Politicians from Lima, Ohio Politicians from Astoria, Oregon Oregon lawyers Presidents of the Oregon State Senate Republican Party Oregon state senators Republican Party United States senators from Oregon Oregon city attorneys People from Pawnee City, Nebraska 20th-century United States senators 19th-century members of the Oregon Legislative Assembly 20th-century members of the Oregon Legislative Assembly