Richard Oswald Eymann (February 3, 1919 – September 26, 2005) was an American businessman 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

Alberta Alberta is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Canada. It is a part of Western Canada and is one of the three Canadian Prairies, prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to its west, Saskatchewan to its east, t ...

, Canada, he served as an airman during World War II and then graduated from

Dartmouth College Dartmouth College ( ) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Hanover, New Hampshire, United States. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, Dartmouth is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the America ...

. Eymann moved to Oregon where he would serve as a Democrat 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 ...

, including one session as

Speaker Speaker most commonly refers to: * Speaker, a person who produces speech * Loudspeaker, a device that produces sound ** Computer speakers Speaker, Speakers, or The Speaker may also refer to: Arts and entertainment * "Speaker" (song), by David ...

Early life

Richard O. Eymann was born in 1919 in

Medicine Hat, Alberta Medicine Hat is a city in southeast Alberta, Canada. It is located along the South Saskatchewan River. It is approximately east of Lethbridge and southeast of Calgary. This city and the adjacent Town of Redcliff to the northwest are within ...

, Canada.Steves, David. "Former legislator, EPUD board member Dick Eyemann, 86, dies; Politics; Obituary", ''The Register-Guard'', September 28, 2005, p. D1. After service in the South Pacific Theater during World War II as an airman, he attended

New Hampshire New Hampshire ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...

. He graduated with a master's degree in business administration in 1947 and moved to Springfield, Oregon.Wong, Peter. "Former Oregon House speaker Eymann dies at 86", ''Statesman Journal'', September 28, 2005, p. 1C. In Oregon, he worked for

Weyerhaeuser The Weyerhaeuser Company ( ) is an American timberland company which owns nearly of timberlands in the U.S., and manages an additional of timberlands under long-term licenses in Canada. The company has manufactured wood products for over a c ...

as an executive at their mill in Springfield. Eymann married Juanita, and they had eight children; Richard, Ramona, Patricia, Carol, Katy, Deborah, Rebecca and Penelope. Eymann would work for the Oregon State Tax Commission as executive secretary before entering politics. He also helped to found McKenzie-Willamette Memorial Hospital in Springfield and was one of the original administrators at

Lane Community College Lane Community College is a public community college in Eugene, Oregon, with additional facilities in downtown Eugene, Florence, Cottage Grove, and the Lane Aviation Academy at Eugene Airport. As of 2023-2024, Lane serves more than 15,000 cre ...

, later moving to the neighboring Mohawk Valley.

Political career

In 1960, Eymann was elected as a Democrat to serve District 14 and Lane County in the

. He won re-election and served in the 1963 legislature, representing District 13 after

reapportionment Apportionment is the process by which seats in a legislative body are distributed among administrative divisions, such as states or parties, entitled to representation. This page presents the general principles and issues related to apportionment ...

. He was a delegate to the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago. Eymann returned to 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 ...

during the 1969 session. He was re-elected in 1970 to the same seat, and was elected again in 1972, but to District 44. During the 1973 session he was elected as Speaker of the House, serving through the 1974 special session of the legislature. He defeated

Les AuCoin Walter Leslie AuCoin ( ; born October 21, 1942) is an American politician. In 1974 he became the first person from the Democratic Party to be elected to the U.S. House of Representatives from , since it was formed in 1892. The seat has been he ...

in the election for the Speakership. During the session he served as Speaker the legislature passed many bills including the Oregon Shield Law,

land use planning Land use planning or ''Land-use regulation'' is the process of regulating the Land use, use of land by a central authority. Usually, this is done to promote more desirable social and environmental outcomes as well as a more efficient resource u ...

, and a bill to allow public employees to unionize. In 1974, Eymann lost his run at re-election to Republican Bill Rogers. In 1986, he attempted to get the Democratic nomination to run against incumbent

Bob Packwood Robert William Packwood (born September 11, 1932) is an American retired lawyer and politician from Oregon who served as a member of the United States Senate from 1969 to 1995. He resigned from the U.S. Senate under threat of expulsion, in 1995 ...

for U.S. Senate after the primary winner dropped out, but lost out to Rick Bauman. In 1992, Eymann tried to return to public office, running for

Oregon State Treasurer The Oregon state treasurer is a constitutional officer within the executive branch of the government of the U.S. state of Oregon, elected by statewide vote to serve a four-year term. As chief financial officer for the state, the office holder head ...

.Hill, Gail Kinsey. "Kulongoski, Rodeman to face off in November", ''The Oregonian'', May 21, 1992, p. G4. Eymann won 27% of the vote in the May Democratic primary, losing to Jim Hill who also won in the November general election.

Later years and family

In 1978, he assisted in the establishment of the Emerald People's Utility District, the publicly-owned power company serving the areas surrounding Springfield and Eugene. Eymann served on the board of the organization from founding until 2004. His son Richard C. is an attorney in

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 ...

.Kirchmeier, Mark. "Demos heap praise on Foley during his visit to home state", ''The Oregonian'', May 29, 1989, p. D5. Daughter Ramona has served as the chief clerk for the Oregon House since 1985, while daughter Katy married

Bill Bradbury Bill Bradbury (May 29, 1949 – April 14, 2023) was an American politician who served as a member of the Oregon Legislative Assembly and as the 23rd Oregon secretary of state from 1999 to 2009. Bradbury was an unsuccessful candidate for the 2 ...

. Richard O. Eymann died on September 26, 2005, near Springfield at the age of 86.

References

External links

Oregon Legislature Resolution in 2005
{{DEFAULTSORT:Eymann, Richard O. Dartmouth College alumni 1919 births 2005 deaths Politicians from Springfield, Oregon People from Medicine Hat Speakers of the Oregon House of Representatives United States Army Air Forces personnel of World War II Canadian emigrants to the United States 20th-century members of the Oregon Legislative Assembly

Early life

Political career

Later years and family

See also

References

External links