James C. Hawthorne (March 12, 1819 – February 15, 1881, commonly known as J.C. Hawthorne) was an American physician and politician in the states of

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

and

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

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

, he was the co-founder of the Oregon Hospital for the Insane in

East Portland, Oregon East Portland was a city in the U.S. state of Oregon that was consolidated into Portland in 1891. In modern usage, the term generally refers to the portion of present-day Portland that lies east of 82nd Avenue, most of which the City of Portland ...

. Hawthorne served in the

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and was a member of the Whig Party and later the

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. Hawthorne Boulevard in

Portland, Oregon Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers, Portland is the county seat of Multnomah County, the most populous co ...

is named after him.

Early years

Hawthorne was born on March 12, 1819, in

Mercer County, Pennsylvania Mercer County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 110,652. Its county seat is Mercer, and its largest city is Hermitage. The county was created in 1800 and later organized in 1803. Merce ...

, to James and Mary (Donald) Hawthorne, who were of

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descent.Corning, Howard M. (1989) ''Dictionary of Oregon History''. Binfords & Mort Publishing. p. 109-110. His father was a farmer and a graduate of

Washington College Washington College is a private liberal arts college in Chestertown, Maryland. Maryland granted Washington College its charter in 1782. George Washington supported the founding of the college by consenting to have the "College at Chester" name ...

. J.C. commenced the study of medicine under Dr. Bascom of

Mercer, Pennsylvania Mercer is a borough in and the county seat of Mercer County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 1,982 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Youngstown–Warren metropolitan area. The community was named after Brigadier General Hu ...

, and later earned a degree from the Medical University at

Louisville, Kentucky Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border ...

. He commenced practice in Louisville with his cousin, Dr. Hawthorne, continuing until 1850, when he went to

. He then located at

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Placer County, California Placer County ( ; Spanish for "sand deposit"), officially the County of Placer, is a county in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 404,739. The county seat is Auburn. Placer County is included in the Grea ...

and engaged in a large general practice and hospital work, where he became widely known and gained a reputation for his professional skill. In 1854 he was elected

State Senator A state senator is a member of a state's senate in the bicameral legislature of 49 U.S. states, or a member of the unicameral Nebraska Legislature. Description A state senator is a member of an upper house in the bicameral legislatures of 49 U ...

from Placer County, and served two terms. ( Lansing Stout, another future Oregonian, represented Placer County in California's lower house at the time.)

Oregon

In 1857, he moved to

, where he was well received by the medical community, and soon acquired a large private practice. In 1858, he took charge of the county hospital under a contract from

Multnomah County Multnomah County is one of the 36 counties in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2020 census, the county's population was 815,428. Multnomah County is part of the Portland–Vancouver– Hillsboro, OR–WA Metropolitan Statistical Area. Thou ...

, subsequently establishing a private hospital for the insane. The hospital was so successful that the state government, during

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Whiteaker's term in 1862, contracted with him to assume the care of the insane of Oregon. Assisted by Dr. A. M. Loryea, this grew into Oregon Hospital for the Insane. This contract was from time to time renewed by the State Legislature, and until his death Hawthorne had charge as Superintendent and Physician of the unfortunate wards of the state, which at the time of his death numbered some 500 inmates. Hawthorne was known for his kindness toward his patients and his devotion to his work. During the 21 years that he had charge of the Oregon Hospital for the Insane, it became widely known and was regarded as one of the best institutions of its kind in the United States. Hawthorne was highly proficient in every department of his profession and is highly honored by the record he made as authority upon diseases of the mind. He gained national renown in the treatment of insanity, and the curative rate of his institution was considered equal to that of any similar establishment in the United States. Hawthorne took an active interest in public affairs. Politically, he was originally a Whig, but after the overthrow of that party he became a Democrat. He commanded respect from members of both parties, and he was retained in office for many years when the state was under

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rule. He declined to become a candidate for high public stations. He was a

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, and for many years was a consistent member of the Episcopal Church. He was a productive and highly regarded man at the time of his death.

Family and later life

Hawthorne was twice married. His first wife, Miss Emma Curry, a niece of Congressman Kelly of Pennsylvania, died in Portland in 1862, only a few weeks after their marriage. Hawthorne remarried in 1865 to Mrs. E. C. Hite of

Sacramento, California ) , image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg , mapsize = 250x200px , map_caption = Location within Sacramento C ...

, one of California's favorite pioneer daughters. Their two daughters, Louise H. and Catharine, later inherited large real-estate interests in

. James Hawthorne died on February 15, 1881, at the age of 61 and was buried at

Lone Fir Cemetery Lone Fir Cemetery in the southeast section of Portland, Oregon, United States is a cemetery owned and maintained by Metro, a regional government entity. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the first burial was in 1846 with the ceme ...

Asylum Patients Memorial

A memorial for the patients of the Oregon Hospital for the Insane is being planned by

Metro Metro, short for metropolitan, may refer to: Geography * Metro (city), a city in Indonesia * A metropolitan area, the populated region including and surrounding an urban center Public transport * Rapid transit, a passenger railway in an urba ...

at the

, where it was recently uncovered that several hundred asylum patients are buried in unmarked graves. Local historians are joining with mental health advocates to shape the memorial area. The gravesite and memorial area adjoins another segregated area for Chinese workers where a separate memorial is planned.

References

External links