Robert Crouch Kinney (July 4, 1813 – March 2, 1875) was an American businessman 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

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 ...

, he helped found

Muscatine, Iowa Muscatine ( ) is a city in Muscatine County, Iowa, United States. The population was 23,797 at the time of the 2020 census, an increase from 22,697 in 2000. The county seat of Muscatine County, it is located along the Mississippi River. The lo ...

, before crossing 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 ...

and settling in what became Oregon. In Oregon he was a prominent businessman in the milling business and served in 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 Representati ...

before being a member of 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 ...

Early life

Robert Kinney was born on July 4, 1813, in the town of Belleville in

St. Clair County, Illinois St. Clair County is the oldest county in Illinois; its western border is formed by the Mississippi River, bordering Missouri. It is a part of the Metro East in southern Illinois. At the 2020 United States census, it had a population of 257,400 ...

, near

St. Louis, Missouri St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi River, Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the Greater St. Louis, ...

.Corning, Howard M. (1989) ''Dictionary of Oregon History''. Binfords & Mort Publishing. p. 135. His parents were Samuel and Polly (née Gibbons) Kinney, both from

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 ...

. Robert’s uncle was William Kinney, who served as Lieutenant Governor of Illinois from 1826 to 1830. Robert Kinney was raised in Illinois where he received an education in the common schools of

Springfield Springfield may refer to: * Springfield (toponym), the place name in general Places and locations Australia * Springfield, New South Wales (Central Coast) * Springfield, New South Wales (Snowy Monaro Regional Council) * Springfield, Queenslan ...

. In 1833, he married Eliza Bigelow, and the couple had eleven children, with eight living to adulthood. The eight children were Mary Jane, Albert William (married daughter of William T. Newby), Augustus Crouch,

Marshall Johnson Marshall Donell Johnson (born November 1, 1952) is a former American football wide receiver in the National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divi ...

, Eliza Lee, Alfred Coleman, Josephine Elarena, and William Sylvester.Bancroft, Hubert Howe, and Mrs. Frances Auretta Fuller Barrett Victor
History of Oregon.
Vol. 1. San Francisco: History Co, 1886. p. 633. The year they were married the couple moved to what became

Iowa Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to the ...

, where they helped found the town of Bloomington (now Muscatine) along the

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the second-longest river and chief river of the second-largest drainage system in North America, second only to the Hudson Bay drainage system. From its traditional source of Lake Itasca in northern Minnesota, it f ...

. Kinney built a hotel along with a wharf, and operated a boat from the town downriver to St. Louis. Later he entered the milling business, running a sawmill and flourmill, while also

reading law Reading law was the method used in common law countries, particularly the United States, for people to prepare for and enter the legal profession before the advent of law schools. It consisted of an extended internship or apprenticeship under the ...

under judge

Serranus Clinton Hastings Serranus Clinton Hastings (November 22, 1814 – February 18, 1893) was an American politician, rancher and lawyer in California. He studied law as a young man and moved to the Iowa District in 1837 to open a law office. Iowa became a territory a ...

, though he never practiced law.

Oregon

Kinney and his family, including brother Samuel, headed west overland on the

in 1847 in a wagon train that included

Joel Palmer General Joel Palmer (October 4, 1810 – June 9, 1881) was an American pioneer of the Oregon Territory in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. He was born in Canada, and spent his early years in New York and Pennsylvania before serving ...

. He settled on a land claim in 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 the

Yamhill District The Provisional Government of Oregon was a popularly elected settler government created in the Oregon Country, in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. Its formation had been advanced at the Champoeg Meetings since February 17, 1841, a ...

near

Lafayette Lafayette or La Fayette may refer to: People * Lafayette (name), a list of people with the surname Lafayette or La Fayette or the given name Lafayette * House of La Fayette, a French noble family ** Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette (1757� ...

. The next year the region became the

Oregon Territory The Territory of Oregon was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from August 14, 1848, until February 14, 1859, when the southwestern portion of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Oregon. Ori ...

and in 1850 the

Donation Land Act The Donation Land Claim Act of 1850, sometimes known as the Donation Land Act, was a statute enacted by the United States Congress in late 1850, intended to promote homestead settlements in the Oregon Territory. It followed the Distribution-Preem ...

secured title for the settlers on their land claims. Kinney farmed his land claim in the Chehalem Valley and raised orchards. Kinney left Oregon for the

California Gold Rush The California Gold Rush (1848–1855) was a gold rush that began on January 24, 1848, when gold was found by James W. Marshall at Sutter's Mill in Coloma, California. The news of gold brought approximately 300,000 people to California fro ...

in 1848, but returned the next year without having gained a large fortune.Gaston, Joseph. 1911
Portland, Oregon, its history and builders: in connection with the antecedent explorations, discoveries, and movements of the pioneers that selected the site for the great city of the Pacific
Chicago: S.J. Clarke Pub. Co. Vol. III. pp. 414-417. After farming for ten years he moved to McMinnville in 1858 where he purchased the flour mill of town founder William Newby in 1859. Kinney expanded his business by buying the Brooklyn flour mill in

Portland Portland most commonly refers to: * Portland, Oregon, the largest city in the state of Oregon, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States * Portland, Maine, the largest city in the state of Maine, in the New England region of the northeas ...

in 1862, followed by buying into the wool mill owned in part by

Daniel Waldo Daniel Waldo (September 10, 1762 – July 30, 1864) was an American clergyman. Born in Windham, Connecticut, Waldo served in the American Revolutionary War and later became a missionary and clergyman. In 1856, at the age of 94, Waldo was nam ...

Salem Salem may refer to: Places Canada Ontario * Bruce County ** Salem, Arran–Elderslie, Ontario, in the municipality of Arran–Elderslie ** Salem, South Bruce, Ontario, in the municipality of South Bruce * Salem, Dufferin County, Ontario, part ...

in 1868. He moved the family to Salem and began running the flour mill part of the business, the Salem Milling Company. The company expanded and opened branch offices in San Francisco, Portland, and England, and at one time milled a quarter of all of the grain crops in the state. The company also was the first to ship flour from Portland to Liverpool in England, along with several other ports around the world.

Political career

In 1849, Kinney was elected to represent Yamhill County in the first Territorial Legislature. After taking the 1850 session off, he returned in 1851 to again represent Yamhill County. In 1857, he was elected as a delegate for Yamhill County to the

. Held in Salem in September and October, the convention creating the first Oregon Constitution and paved the way for Oregon’s entry into the Union. Kinney was a free stater and Anti-Democrat in philosophy, and he voted against the adoption of the constitution, though the convention did adopt the document and Oregon became a state in 1859.

Later life

Some of Kinney’s sons became partners in the milling business, including Marshall as manager of the San Francisco office. Kinney also entered the livestock business and had an extensive ranch in

Eastern Oregon Eastern Oregon is the eastern part of the U.S. state of Oregon. It is not an officially recognized geographic entity; thus, the boundaries of the region vary according to context. It is sometimes understood to include only the eight easternmost ...

near Heppner where he raised sheep. Robert Crouch Kinney died in Salem on March 2, 1875, at the age of 61 and was buried at the

Salem Pioneer Cemetery Salem Pioneer Cemetery (also known as the I.O.O.F. Cemetery or Oddfellows Cemetery) is a cemetery in Salem, Oregon, United States. Overview Salem Pioneer Cemetery is one of two historic cemeteries located next to each other at the intersection ...

References

External links

History of Muscatine County, IowaKinney, Robert Couch
– History of the Pacific Northwest, Oregon and Washington
Newsletter and Journal of the Yamhill County Historical Society
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kinney, Robert Crouch 1875 deaths 1813 births People from Belleville, Illinois People from McMinnville, Oregon Politicians from Salem, Oregon People from Muscatine, Iowa Burials at Salem Pioneer Cemetery Businesspeople from Oregon Members of the Oregon Constitutional Convention Members of the Oregon Territorial Legislature Oregon pioneers 19th-century American politicians People from Heppner, Oregon 19th-century American businesspeople