Ralph Carey Geer (March 13, 1816 – January 9, 1895) was an American farmer and politician in what became 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

Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...

, he lived in

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

and

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 ...

before taking 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 ...

west to Oregon where he started a nursery and later raised livestock and grew flax. At times a Republican and later a Democrat, he served in 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 ...

and as the clerk for the county. He was related to both Homer Davenport and T. T. Geer.

Early life

Ralph C. Geer was born to Joseph Carey Geer, Sr. and Mary Johnson Geer on March 13, 1816, in

Willimantic, Connecticut Willimantic is a census-designated place located in Windham, Connecticut, United States. Previously organized as a city and later as a Borough (Connecticut), borough, Willimantic is currently one of two Local government in Connecticut#Special ta ...

, a former city now located in the town of Windham in

Windham County, Connecticut Windham County ( ) is one of the eight counties in the U.S. state of Connecticut, located in its northeastern corner. As of the 2020 census, the population was 116,418, making it the least populous county in Connecticut. It forms the core o ...

. The family moved to

Madison County, Ohio Madison County is a county located in the central portion of the U.S. state of Ohio. As of the 2020 census, the population was 43,824. Its county seat is London. The county is named for James Madison, President of the United States and was e ...

, when he was still a boy.''Marion County Record'', January 11, 1895, 8:3. On January 8, 1837, he married Mary Catherine Willard in

London, Ohio London is a city in and the county seat of Madison County, Ohio, United States. Located about southwest of the Ohio capital of Columbus, Ohio, Columbus, London was established in 1811 to serve as the county seat. The population was 10,279 at t ...

, and later moved to Farmington in

Knox County, Illinois Knox County is a County (United States), county in the U.S. state of Illinois. According to the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it had a population of 49,967. Its county seat is Galesburg, Illinois, Galesburg. Knox County comprises the ...

. In 1847, Geer and his family immigrated to the

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 ...

over the

. The couple had six children in all with two of them born in Oregon. Mary Geer was born September 8, 1851, and the youngest of them Angeline, was born on October 8, 1853, dying at two and half years of age on March 23, 1856. Geer settled east of Salem in the

Waldo Hills The Waldo Hills are a range of hills in the Willamette Valley of Oregon, United States. Encompassing an area of around , the hills are located east of Salem.Corning, Howard M. ''Dictionary of Oregon History''. Binfords & Mort Publishing, 1956. The ...

and began building a nursery using the apple and pear seedlings he carried with him across the plains to Oregon. Geer spent time as a teacher, imported English sheep to Oregon in 1858, and was a pioneer of flax growing in 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 ...

Cayuse War

The

Whitman Massacre The Whitman massacre (also known as the Whitman killings and the Tragedy at Waiilatpu) was the killing of American missionaries Marcus and Narcissa Whitman, along with eleven others, on November 29, 1847. They were killed by a small group of C ...

contributed greatly to the environment that resulted into what is known as the

Cayuse War The Cayuse War (1847–1855) was an armed conflict between the Cayuse people of the Northwestern United States and settlers, backed by the U.S. government. The conflict was triggered by the Whitman massacre of 1847, where the Cayuse attacked a ...

with Native Americans. Several companies of men were organized in response to the war and in 1848 Geer served as Captain of one assigned to protecting the Willamette Valley. In March of that year, he led his troops into the Battle of Abiqua Creek.

Political career

In 1854, he was elected to 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 ...

to represent Marion County. He served during the 1854 to 1855 session in the lower House of Representatives. In July 1868 he was elected Clerk of Marion County and served a single twoyear term, leaving office in June 1870.

Later years and family

Ralph Geer was the uncle of Oregon Governor

Theodore Thurston Geer Theodore Thurston Geer (March 12, 1851February 21, 1924) was the tenth Governor of Oregon (the first born in the territory of the state), serving from January 9, 1899, to January 14, 1903. The Republican politician was in office when the legisl ...

. He was also the grandfather of political cartoonist Homer Davenport. Ralph Carey Geer died in the Waldo Hills on January 9, 1895, at the age of 79 and was buried at Mt. Hope Pioneer Cemetery east of Salem in the Waldo Hills.Geer, Ralph Carey.
Mt. Hope Pioneer Cemetery. Retrieved on December 22, 2008. Geer's house, still located on his original Donation Land Claim is listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

as the R. C. Geer Farmhouse.

References

External links