Benjamin Franklin Burch (May 2, 1825 – March 24, 1893) was an American farmer, soldier, and politician in what became the state of

Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...

. A native of

Missouri Missouri is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee ...

, he moved to the

Oregon Country Oregon Country was a large region of the Pacific Northwest of North America that was subject to a long dispute between the United Kingdom and the United States in the early 19th century. The area, which had been created by the Treaty of 1818, co ...

in 1845 and served in the

Cayuse Cayuse may refer to: *Cayuse people, a people native to Oregon, United States *Cayuse language, an extinct language of the Cayuse people *Cayuse, Oregon, an unincorporated community in the United States *Cayuse horse, an archaic term for a feral or ...

and Yakima wars. A Democrat, he represented Polk County at the

Oregon Constitutional Convention The Oregon Constitutional Convention in 1857 drafted the Oregon Constitution in preparation for the Oregon Territory to become a U.S. state. Held from mid-August through September, 60 men met in Salem, Oregon, and created the foundation for Oregon ...

, in the

Oregon House of Representatives The Oregon House of Representatives is the lower house of the Oregon Legislative Assembly. There are 60 members of the House, representing 60 districts across the state, each with a population of 65,000. The House meets in the west wing of the ...

, and in the

Oregon State Senate The Oregon State Senate is the upper house of the statewide legislature for the US state of Oregon. Along with the lower chamber Oregon House of Representatives it makes up the Oregon Legislative Assembly. There are 30 members of the state Sena ...

including one session as President of the Senate.

Early life

Benjamin Burch was born in Chariton County, Missouri, on May 2, 1825, to Samuel Burch and Eleanor (''

née A birth name is the name of a person given upon birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name, or the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a birth certificate or birth re ...

'' Lock) Burch.Corning, Howard M. (1989) ''Dictionary of Oregon History''. Binfords & Mort Publishing. p. 38. In 1845, he crossed the Great Plains on the

Oregon Trail The Oregon Trail was a east–west, large-wheeled wagon route and Westward Expansion Trails, emigrant trail in the United States that connected the Missouri River to valleys in Oregon. The eastern part of the Oregon Trail spanned part of what ...

bound for the

. He settled in what became Polk County in the

Willamette Valley The Willamette Valley ( ) is a long 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, ...

of Oregon. At the time it was under the authority of the Provisional Government of Oregon, and in 1848 became the Oregon Territory. In 1846, he helped

Jesse Applegate Jesse Applegate (July 5, 1811 – April 22, 1888) was an American pioneer who led a large group of settlers along the Oregon Trail to the Oregon Country. He was an influential member of the early government of Oregon, and helped establish the ...

and Levi Scott build the Applegate Trail, a route to the valley through

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, excluding the southern Oregon Coast. Counties include Douglas, Jackson, Klamath, and Josephine. It includes the Southern Oreg ...

.Lang, Herbert O. (1885
''History of the Willamette Valley, Being a Description of the Valley and Its Resources, with an Account of Its Discovery and Settlement by White Men, and Its Subsequent History Together with Personal Reminiscences of Its Early Pioneers''.
G.H. Himes, Book and Job Printer, p. 633. Burch then returned to his home where he had tutored Applegate's children before becoming a teacher at the first school in the county. After the breakout of the Cayuse War in 1847, he volunteered for the militia and served as an

adjutant Adjutant is a military appointment given to an officer who assists the commanding officer with unit administration, mostly the management of human resources in an army unit. The term is used in French-speaking armed forces as a non-commission ...

. Following the war, on September 6, 1848, he married

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

native Eliza A. Davidson who had immigrated to Oregon from

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

the year before. They had seven children, including Benjamin, Jr. During the Yakima War in 1856 Burch served as a captain of a company of militia.“Another Of The Few Remaining Pioneers Of Oregon Is Dead”
''The Oregonian'', March 25, 1893.

Political career

In 1857, he was elected to represent Polk County in the

held in

in August and September. At the convention he was part of a special committee with

James K. Kelly James Kerr Kelly (February 16, 1819September 15, 1903) was an American politician born in Pennsylvania. He was a United States senator for Oregon from 1871 to 1877, and later Chief Justice of the Oregon Supreme Court. Prior to his election to the ...

and La Fayette Grover that designed the

Oregon State Seal The Seal of the State of Oregon is the official seal of the U.S. state of Oregon. It was designed by Harvey Gordon in 1857, two years before Oregon was admitted to the Union. The seal was preceded by the Salmon Seal of the Provisional Government ...

. Burch was also a member of the Military Affairs Committee. In 1858, he was elected to the first session of the state legislature as a Democrat representing Polk County in the

. Oregon was still waiting to be admitted to the Union, and the legislature did not officially convene until 1859. Burch remained out of politics until 1868 when he was elected to the

.Oregon Legislators and Staff Guide: 1868 Regular Session (5th).
Oregon State Archives. Retrieved on June 20, 2016. He represented Polk County as a Democrat during a four-year term.Oregon Legislators and Staff Guide: 1870 Regular Session (6th).
Oregon State Archives. Retrieved on June 20, 2016. During the 1868 legislature he served as

President of the Senate President of the Senate is a title often given to the presiding officer of a senate. It corresponds to the speaker in some other assemblies. The senate president often ranks high in a jurisdiction's succession for its top executive office: for e ...

Later years

In 1877, he became the Superintendent of the

Oregon State Penitentiary Oregon State Penitentiary (OSP), sometimes called Oregon State Prison, is a supermax, maximum security prison in the Northwestern United States, northwest United States in Salem, Oregon, Salem, Oregon. Originally opened in Portland, Oregon, Portl ...

in Salem by appointment of Governor

Stephen F. Chadwick Stephen Fowler Chadwick (December 25, 1825 – January 15, 1895) was an American Democratic politician

, serving two terms. He was appointed as the receiver at the Oregon City Land Office in 1887 by President

Grover Cleveland Stephen Grover Cleveland (March 18, 1837June 24, 1908) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 22nd and 24th president of the United States from 1885 to 1889 and from 1893 to 1897. Cleveland is the only president in American ...

. Benjamin Franklin Burch died on March 24, 1893, at the age of 67 at his farm near

Independence Independence is a condition of a person, nation, country, or state in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is the statu ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Burch, Benjamin F. Members of the Oregon Constitutional Convention Democratic Party members of the Oregon House of Representatives Presidents of the Oregon State Senate Democratic Party Oregon state senators People from Chariton County, Missouri People from Independence, Oregon Cayuse War 1825 births 1893 deaths People from Oregon Country 19th-century American legislators People who traveled the Oregon Trail People from Oregon Territory