George Edward Cole (December 23, 1826 – December 3, 1906) was an American politician. He is remembered as the 6th Governor and 5th Delegate from the

Territory of Washington A territory is an area of land, sea, or space, belonging or connected to a particular country, person, or animal. In international politics, a territory is usually a geographic area which has not been granted the powers of self-government, ...

Biography

Early years

George Edward Cole was born December 23, 1826, in Trenton, Oneida County,

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

. Cole attended the

public schools Public school may refer to: *Public school (government-funded), a no-fee school, publicly funded and operated by the government *Public school (United Kingdom), certain elite fee-charging private schools in England and Wales *Great Public Schools, ...

and Hobart Hall Institute. He was employed as clerk in a country store."George Edward Cole,"
in ''Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, 1774-Present.'' www.bioguide.congress.gov/ After living in the

Midwestern The Midwestern United States (also referred to as the Midwest, the Heartland or the American Midwest) is one of the four census regions defined by the United States Census Bureau. It occupies the northern central part of the United States. It ...

state of

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

, Cole departed for

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

during the

gold rush A gold rush or gold fever is a discovery of gold—sometimes accompanied by other precious metals and rare-earth minerals—that brings an onrush of miners seeking their fortune. Major gold rushes took place in the 19th century in Australia, ...

year of 1849. From there he moved to the

Pacific Northwest The Pacific Northwest (PNW; ) is a geographic region in Western North America bounded by its coastal waters of the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains to the east. Though no official boundary exists, the most common ...

, arriving in 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 ...

in 1850. Harvey K. Hines, ''An Illustrated History of the State of Washington: Containing a History of the State of Washington from the Earliest Period of Its Discovery to the Present Time, Together with Glimpses of its Auspicious Future, Illustrations and Full-page Portraits of Some of Its Eminent Men and Biographical Mention of Many of Its Pioneers and Prominent Citizens of To-day.'' Chicago, IL: Lewis Publishing Co., 1893; pg. 349.

Oregon years

Cole soon became involved in the politics of the Oregon Territory, serving as a member of the

Oregon House of Representatives The Oregon House of Representatives is the lower house of the Oregon Legislative Assembly, the upper house being the Oregon State Senate. There are 60 members of the House, representing 60 districts across the state, each with a population of ...

in the

Oregon Territorial Legislature Oregon's Territorial Legislature was a bicameral legislative body created by the United States Congress in 1848 as the legislative branch of the government of the Oregon Territory. The upper chamber Council and lower chamber House of Represent ...

during the biannual session running from 1852 to 1853. During that session he became an early supporter of the idea of splitting the territory — which then included the whole of today's states of

Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...

Idaho Idaho ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest and Mountain states, Mountain West subregions of the Western United States. It borders Montana and Wyoming to the east, Nevada and Utah to the south, and Washington (state), ...

, and the western portion of Montana — helping to draft a memorial to

Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...

calling for the establishment of the

Washington Territory The Washington Territory was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 2, 1853, until November 11, 1889, when the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Washington. It was created from the ...

. In Oregon Cole engaged in mercantile pursuits and steamboat transportation on the

Willamette River The Willamette River ( ) is a major tributary of the Columbia River, accounting for 12 to 15 percent of the Columbia's flow. The Willamette's main stem is long, lying entirely in northwestern Oregon in the United States. Flowing northward ...

. He served as clerk of the United States District Court of Oregon in 1859 and 1860.

Washington Territorial politician

Cole relocated to

Walla Walla, Washington Walla Walla ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Walla Walla County, Washington, United States. It had a population of 34,060 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, estimated to have decreased to 33,339 as of 2023. The combined populat ...

, in 1860. He was elected as the Washington Territory's delegate to Congress in 1862 as a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...

, serving as a member of the Thirty-eighth Congress from March 4, 1863, to March 3, 1865. He was the first Washington Territorial Delegate to Congress to hail from the East side of the state. He would also be the last member of the Democratic Party to represent the Washington Territory in Congress until 1885.Kent D. Richards, "George Edward Cole," in John T. Hubbell, James W. Geary, and Jon L. Wakelyn (eds.), ''Biographical Dictionary of the Union: Northern Leaders of the Civil War.'' Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1995; pp. 1010-102. Cole served for one term only, not being a candidate for renomination in 1864. In November 1866 Cole was appointed Governor of the Territory by Democratic President

Andrew Johnson Andrew Johnson (December 29, 1808July 31, 1875) was the 17th president of the United States, serving from 1865 to 1869. The 16th vice president, he assumed the presidency following the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. Johnson was a South ...

, serving in that position until March 4, 1867.

Railroad official and Postmaster

With the Democrats out of power and himself out of office, Cole returned to

Portland, Oregon Portland ( ) is the List of cities in Oregon, most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon, located in the Pacific Northwest region. Situated close to northwest Oregon at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, ...

, in 1867 where for the next four years he was instrumental in the operation of the

Oregon & California Railroad The Oregon and California Railroad was formed from the Oregon Central Railroad when it was the first to operate a stretch south of Portland in 1869. This qualified the railroad for land grants in California, whereupon the name of the railroad ...

, helping oversee construction of a line from Portland to the

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 ...

town of Roseburg. In the interim he switched his allegiance to the Republican Party. In 1873 Cole was appointed Postmaster of Portland by Republican

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

Ulysses S. Grant Ulysses S. Grant (born Hiram Ulysses Grant; April 27, 1822July 23, 1885) was the 18th president of the United States, serving from 1869 to 1877. In 1865, as Commanding General of the United States Army, commanding general, Grant led the Uni ...

, taking reappointment to the post by President

Rutherford B. Hayes Rutherford Birchard Hayes (; October 4, 1822 – January 17, 1893) was the 19th president of the United States, serving from 1877 to 1881. Hayes served as Cincinnati's city solicitor from 1858 to 1861. He was a staunch Abolitionism in the Un ...

in 1877. Following the expiration of his second term as Postmaster, Cole went to work for the

Northern Pacific Railroad The Northern Pacific Railway was an important American transcontinental railroad that operated across the northern tier of the Western United States, from Minnesota to the Pacific Northwest between 1864 and 1970. It was approved and chartered b ...

, remaining with the company through 1882. Cole moved to

Spokane, Washington Spokane ( ) is the most populous city in eastern Washington and the county seat of Spokane County, Washington, United States. It lies along the Spokane River, adjacent to the Selkirk Mountains, and west of the Rocky Mountain foothills, south o ...

, in 1889, was elected county treasurer of

Spokane County Spokane County is a county located in the U.S. state of Washington. As of the 2020 census, its population was 539,339, making it the fourth-most populous county in Washington. The largest city and county seat is Spokane, the second largest c ...

, serving two terms in that position.Hines, ''An Illustrated History of the State of Washington,'' pg. 350. He also maintained extensive interests in mining, manufacturing, and farming.

Death and legacy

George E. Cole died in Portland, Oregon, December 3, 1906. His body was interred in

Lone Fir Cemetery Lone Fir Cemetery, in the southeast section of Portland, Oregon, United States, is a cemetery owned and maintained by Metro, a regional government entity. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the first burial was in 1846 with the ...

in the city of his death.