Theodore Thurston Geer

Infobox Governor
name= Theodore T. Geer


imagesize=150px
caption=
order=10^th
office= Governor of Oregon
term_start= January 9 1899
term_end= January 14 1903
lieutenant=
predecessor= William Paine Lord
successor= George Earle Chamberlain
office2 = Speaker of the Oregon House of Representatives
term_start2 = 1891
term_end2 = 1892
predecessor2 = E. L. Smith
successor2 = W. P. Keady
constituency2 = Marion County
birth_date= March 12 1851
birth_place= Waldo Hills, Oregon
death_date= February 21, 1924
death_place= Portland, Oregon
spouse= Nancy Batte Duncan
Isabelle Trullinger
profession= Journalist, farmer
party= Republican
footnotes=Office information [http://bluebook.state.or.us/state/elections/elections24.htm Oregon Blue Book: Oregon Governors] ]

Theodore Thurston Geer (1851-1924) was the 10th Governor of Oregon, serving from January 9, 1899 to January 14, 1903. The Republican politician was in office when the legislature adopted the "Oregon System", Oregon's system of initiative and referendum. He also served in the Oregon House of Representatives, including time as its Speaker.

Early life

Theodore Geer was born on March 12 1851, in the Waldo Hills east of Salem, Oregon, in what was then the Oregon Territory.Corning, Howard M. "Dictionary of Oregon History". Binfords & Mort Publishing, 1956.] His parents, Heman Johnson Geer and the former Cynthia Ann Eoff, separated when Theodore was 14 years old. Geer was educated in the Salem schools and at Willamette University in Salem. After his parents separated he began working, and in 1866 he moved to the Grande Ronde Valley with his father. While living in Eastern Oregon until 1877, Theodore wrote letters to the "Blue Mountain Times" newspaper. In 1877, he returned to the Willamette Valley and the Waldo Hills where he farmed.

Political career

In 1880, Geer was elected to the Oregon Legislative Assembly, representing Marion County in the House. [ [http://arcweb.sos.state.or.us/legislative/histleg/statehood/1880reg.htm Oregon Legislative Assembly (11th) 1880 Regular Session] ] He returned to the House in 1889, [ [http://arcweb.sos.state.or.us/legislative/histleg/statehood/1889reg.htm Oregon Legislative Assembly (15th) 1889 Regular Session] ] serving through the 1893 session of the legislature. [ [http://arcweb.sos.state.or.us/legislative/histleg/statehood/1893reg.htm Oregon Legislative Assembly (17th) 1893 Regular Session] ] In the 1891 session, Geer served as Speaker of the House. [ [http://arcweb.sos.state.or.us/legislative/histleg/statehood/1891reg.htm Oregon Legislative Assembly (16th) 1891 Regular Session] ] Geer served as a Presidential Elector in 1897.

Theodore Geer was elected as the 10th Governor of Oregon in 1898 to replace William Paine Lord. He defeated Democrat and Populist party nominee W. R. King for the top executive position of the state. [http://www.osl.state.or.us/home/lib/governors/ttg.htm Theodore T. Geer.] Oregon State Library, Accessed September 10, 2007.] A Republican governor, he served one term from January 9 1899 until January 14 1903. Geer was the tenth governor since statehood, but the first native Oregonian to hold that position. Geer supported the first amendment to the 1857 Oregon Constitution that instituted the initiative and referendum system of legislation in Oregon. The amendment was passed by the Oregon Legislative Assembly in 1899 and 1901 and approved by the Oregon voters in 1902. Geer did not win re-nomination for a second term and left the office in 1903.

Later life and family

In 1870, Geer married Nancy Batte Duncan, and they would have three children together. Geer was married a second time in 1900, to Miss Isabelle Trullinger. After leaving political office, he worked as the editor of the "Oregon Statesman" newspaper from 1903 to 1905, and then owned the "Pendleton Tribune" from 1905 until 1908. In 1908, Geer moved to Portland, Oregon, where he published "Fifty Years in Oregon" in 1911. Theodore Thurston Geer then worked in real estate before dying on February 21 1924 in Portland.

References

External links

*cite book
title=Fifty Years in Oregon
author=Theodore Thurston Geer
year=1912
publisher=The Neale publishing company
isbn=
url=http://books.google.com/books?id=wFTbZPqBYccC&dq=fifty+years+in+oregon+geer&printsec=frontcover&source=web&ots=5OfqYHn36a&sig=qg_6rmYz-AeSf1uZj26P5_nrk54