Gordon William McKay (March 17, 1910 – October 26, 1990) was an American politician and businessman from

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 a Republican who served two four-year terms 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 ...

. In the senate, McKay represented a large

rural In general, a rural area or a countryside is a geographic area that is located outside towns and cities. Typical rural areas have a low population density and small settlements. Agricultural areas and areas with forestry are typically desc ...

district in

Central Oregon Central Oregon is a geographic region in the U.S. state of Oregon and is traditionally considered to be made up of Deschutes, Jefferson, and Crook counties. Other definitions include larger areas, often encompassing areas to the north towards t ...

. While serving in the state senate, he was a champion of tax relief and helped modernize the state's criminal code. In the private sector, he was president of a

title insurance Title insurance is a form of indemnity insurance, predominantly found in the United States and Canada, that insures against financial loss from defects in title to real property and from the invalidity or unenforceability of mortgage loans. Unlik ...

company in

Bend, Oregon Bend is a city in central Oregon and the county seat of Deschutes County, Oregon, Deschutes County, Oregon, United States. It is located to the east of the Cascade Range, on the Deschutes River. The site became known by pioneers as a ford (cros ...

Early life

McKay was born on March 17, 1910, in

Aitkin, Minnesota Aitkin ( ) is a city and the county seat of Aitkin County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 2,168 at the 2020 census. History Before the establishment of City of Aitkin, a transient community of Lexington was located at the mout ...

. His parents were Clyde Marshall and Olive Elizabeth (Spencer) McKay. In 1911, when he was less than a year old, McKay moved with his parents to

. They traveled to central Oregon by passenger train, disembarking at Shaniko, where the railroad line ended at that time. From there the family, took a

stagecoach A stagecoach (also: stage coach, stage, road coach, ) is a four-wheeled public transport coach used to carry paying passengers and light packages on journeys long enough to need a change of horses. It is strongly sprung and generally drawn by ...

to Bend, where they settled."Gordon McKay Dies at Age 80"
''Oregonian'', Portland, Oregon, 27 October 1990, p. D7.Joslin, Les
"Clyde M. McKay, Promoter"
''Legendary Locals of Bend Oregon'', Arcadia Publishing, Charleston, South Carolina, 2016, p. 19."Gordon McKay GOP Candidate for State Senate"
''Bend Bulletin'', Bend, Oregon, 4 March 1964, p. 1.Johnson, Julie
"McKay had a large role in Bend's early development"
''Bend Bulletin'', Bend, Oregon, 28 June 2009, p. 3. After arriving in Bend, his father became active in business, civic affairs, and local politics. McKay's father founded the ''Bend Company'', a sawmill operation located along the

Deschutes River The Deschutes River ( ) in central Oregon is a major tributary of the Columbia River. The river provides much of the drainage on the eastern side of the Cascade Range in Oregon, gathering many of the tributaries that descend from the drier, easte ...

. Later, his father became president of the ''Deschutes County Title and Abstract Company''."Gordon McKay Joins Local Firm"
''Bend Bulletin'', Bend, Oregon, 29 July 1950, p. 8. He actively supported the effort to form a new county from the western part of Crook County. When the new

Deschutes County Deschutes County ( ) is one of the 36 counties in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2020 census, the population was 198,253. The county seat is Bend. The county was created in 1916 out of part of Crook County and was named for the Deschu ...

was created in 1916, McKay's father was elected county treasurer, a position he held for 14 years. In addition, he served on the Bend city council and the local school board. McKay attended school in Bend, graduating from high school there in 1929. He then attended the

University of Oregon The University of Oregon (UO, U of O or Oregon) is a Public university, public research university in Eugene, Oregon, United States. Founded in 1876, the university is organized into nine colleges and schools and offers 420 undergraduate and gra ...

."Gordon McKay"
''State of Oregon Voters Pamphlet, Republican Party'' (Lake County), Oregon Secretary of State, 15 May 1964, p. 91.

Construction career

In 1930, McKay left Bend to take a job with the Oregon Highway Department. He worked for the highway department for four years before taking a career position as a construction engineer with the

United States Bureau of Reclamation The Bureau of Reclamation, formerly the United States Reclamation Service, is a federal agency under the U.S. Department of the Interior, which oversees water resource management, specifically as it applies to the oversight and operatio ...

. His first assignment with the bureau began in 1934 at

Parker Dam Parker Dam is a concrete arch-gravity dam that crosses the Colorado River downstream of Hoover Dam. Built between 1934 and 1938 by the Bureau of Reclamation, it is high, of which are below the riverbed (the deep excavation was necessary in ...

on the

Colorado River The Colorado River () is one of the principal rivers (along with the Rio Grande) in the Southwestern United States and in northern Mexico. The river, the List of longest rivers of the United States (by main stem), 5th longest in the United St ...

located on the border between

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 ...

and

Arizona Arizona is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States, sharing the Four Corners region of the western United States with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the nort ...

. In 1936, McKay married Melba T. McKay. Prior to her marriage, she worked at

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. (also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures, commonly shortened to MGM or MGM Studios) is an American Film production, film and television production and film distribution, distribution company headquartered ...

studios in

Hollywood, California Hollywood, sometimes informally called Tinseltown, is a List of districts and neighborhoods in Los Angeles, neighborhood and district in the Central Los Angeles, central region of Los Angeles County, California, within the city of Los Angeles. ...

. After their marriage, Melba joined her husband at the Parker Dam site. Together they had two children."Melba T. McKay Dies on Tuesday"
''Bend Bulletin'', Bend, Oregon, 29 July 1950, p. 8. McKay worked at Parker Dam for a total of four years before transferring to Marshall Ford Dam near

Austin, Texas Austin ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Texas. It is the county seat and most populous city of Travis County, Texas, Travis County, with portions extending into Hays County, Texas, Hays and W ...

. He remained there until 1942, when he was reassigned to a power station in

Phoenix, Arizona Phoenix ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities and towns in Arizona#List of cities and towns, most populous city of the U.S. state of Arizona. With over 1.6 million residents at the 2020 census, it is the ...

. In early 1943, McKay left the Bureau of Reclamation to join the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

. He served as a

Chief Warrant Officer Chief warrant officer is a senior warrant officer rank, used in many countries. Canadian Armed Forces In the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF), a chief warrant officer or CWO is the most senior non-commissioned member (NCM) rank for army and air fo ...

in the

Seabees United States Naval Construction Battalions, better known as the Navy Seabees, form the U.S. Naval Construction Forces (NCF). The Seabee nickname is a heterograph of the initial letters "CB" from the words "Construction Battalion". Dependi ...

, specializing in

amphibious landings Amphibious warfare is a type of Offensive (military), offensive military operation that today uses naval ships to project ground and air power onto a hostile or potentially hostile shore at a designated landing beach. Through history the opera ...

. He saw combat action in the Asiatic-Pacific Theater during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

including participation in the

Battle of Tarawa The Battle of Tarawa was fought on 20–23 November 1943 between the United States and Japan on Tarawa Atoll in the Gilbert Islands, and was part of Operation Galvanic, the U.S. invasion of the Gilberts. Nearly 6,400 Japanese, Koreans, and Am ...

. McKay was discharged from the navy in early 1946.

Businessman and civic leader

After leaving the navy, McKay moved to

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

, where he sold real estate for four years. He returned to Bend in 1950, becoming vice president of Deschutes County Title and Abstract Company. At that time, his father was still president of the company. In 1952, McKay's wife Melba died of cancer at the age of 40. A year later, McKay married Evelyn Ruth Watson. Prior to her marriage, she owned and operated a cattle ranch along the Lewis River in

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 ...

. After their marriage, she joined McKay in Bend. In Bend, McKay was involved in a number of civic organizations. He was president of the local

Kiwanis Kiwanis International ( ) is an international service club founded in 1915 in Detroit, Michigan. It is headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana, United States, and is found in more than 80 nations and geographic areas. In 1987, the organization ...

. He served on the Bend-La Pine School Board for eleven years, from 1953 through 1963. This included a term as board chairman. He was also a member of the Central Oregon Community College Foundation board of directors, a member of the Central Oregon Realty Board, and the Oregon Land Title Association. He was elected president of that organization in 1957. He was a member of the Bend

chamber of commerce A chamber of commerce, or board of trade, is a form of business network. For example, a local organization of businesses whose goal is to further the interests of businesses. Business owners in towns and cities form these local societies to a ...

and served as chairman of the local

United Way United Way is an international network of over 1,800 local nonprofit organization, nonprofit fundraising affiliates. Prior to 2015, United Way was the largest nonprofit organization in the United States by donations from the public. Individual Un ...

fund drive. In 1959, he was chosen as the Bend community's Boss of the Year. A year later, he was honored as Bend's Senior Citizen of the Year.

State senator

In 1964, McKay decided to run for a seat in the Oregon State Senate as a Republican. He was unopposed in the 1964 Republican primary. In the general election that followed, McKay defeated the Democratic candidate, Charles L. Allen of Tumalo. In the state senate, he represented District 19 which at the time included Crook, Deschutes,

Jefferson Jefferson may refer to: Names * Jefferson (surname) * Jefferson (given name) People * Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826), third president of the United States * Jefferson (footballer) * Jefferson (singer) or Geoff Turton (born 1944), British s ...

, and

Lake A lake is often a naturally occurring, relatively large and fixed body of water on or near the Earth's surface. It is localized in a basin or interconnected basins surrounded by dry land. Lakes lie completely on land and are separate from ...

counties. The 1965 legislative session lasted just over four months, from January 11 through May 14. During the session, he was appointed to the powerful ways and means committee. He also participated in a week-long special legislative session, shortly after the close of the 1965 regular session. Because terms in the Oregon state senate last four years, McKay was seated in the 1967 legislative sessions without running for re-election in 1966. The 1967 session began on January 11 and lasted through June 14. During the session, McKay served as chairman of the elections committee and vice chairman of the commerce and utilities committee. He was also a member of the ways and means, air and water quality control, health and welfare, and judiciary committees. In 1968, McKay ran for a second term representing District 19. He was unopposed in the Republican primary and got enough write-in votes in the Democratic primary to win that party's nomination as well. As a result, he was unopposed in the general election. The 1969 legislative session lasted just over three months, starting on January 13 and ending on April 23. During the session, McKay chaired the rules and resolutions committee and was a member of the ways and means, constitutional revisions and government reorganization, and judiciary committees. His main focus during the session was tax relief. During the second half of his second senate term, McKay attended the regular 1971 legislative session. That session began on January 11 and lasted through June 10. McKay served as chairman of the financial affairs committee and vice chairman of the rules and resolutions committee. He was also a member of the judiciary committee. During the session, he helped enact legislation that revised the state's

criminal code A criminal code or penal code is a document that compiles all, or a significant amount of, a particular jurisdiction's criminal law. Typically a criminal code will contain offences that are recognised in the jurisdiction, penalties that might ...

. Prior to the 1972 election, state senate districts were reorganized. In the redistricting, Deschutes County (McKay's home county) was joined with Klamath County to form District 27. In 1972, McKay ran for a third senate term. This time, seeking to represent District 27. He won the Republican nomination, but lost the general election to his Democratic opponent, Fred W. Heard of

Klamath Falls Klamath Falls ( ) is a city in, and the county seat of, Klamath County, Oregon, United States. The city was originally called ''Linkville'' when George Nurse founded the town in 1867. It was named after the Link River, on whose falls the city wa ...

. In the general election, McKay easily won Deschutes County with 8,509 votes against 6,131 votes for Heard. However, it was the opposite story in Klamath County, where Heard won by an even greater margin. The final vote was 12,578 for McKay and 15,205 for Heard. McKay left the state senate in January 1973 when his second term expired.

Later life and legacy

After leaving the state Senate, McKay returned to his title insurance business in Bend. When he eventually retired from business, McKay and his third wife, Della Marjorie (Phillips) McKay, traveled around the country in a motor home. This included regular trips up and down the west coast to watch University of Oregon Ducks football games. Over the years, they traveled enough to wear out two motor home engines. McKay died of a heart attack at his home in Bend on October 26, 1990. He was 80 years old at the time of his death. McKay is buried in Pilot Butte Cemetery in Bend. McKay's boyhood home was built in 1916. It is a craftsman style bungalow. Its original site overlooked the Deschutes River. In 1973, the house was moved to a new location, upstream along the river. It was then restored with the help of the Deschutes County Historical Society. Today, it is a popular restaurant called McKay's Cottage.Anderson , John Gottberg
"Restaurant review: McKay Cottage - Eatery is a longtime favorite for breakfast and lunch"
''Bend Bulletin'', Bend, Oregon, 2 November 2017.

References

External links

Oregon Blue Book Legislative Guide
* {{DEFAULTSORT:McKay, Gordon W. School board members in Oregon Republican Party Oregon state senators People from Aitkin, Minnesota Politicians from Bend, Oregon Military personnel from Oregon Businesspeople from Oregon University of Oregon alumni 1910 births 1990 deaths 20th-century members of the Oregon Legislative Assembly 20th-century American businesspeople