Samuel Harrison Coon (April 15, 1903 – May 8, 1980) was a

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

member of the

U.S. House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

who represented the 2nd Congressional District 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 ...

from 1953 to 1957.

Background

Born and raised in

Boise, Idaho Boise (, , ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Idaho and is the county seat of Ada County. On the Boise River in southwestern Idaho, it is east of the Oregon border and north of the Nevada border. The downtown are ...

, Coon attended local public schools, and graduating from the

University of Idaho The University of Idaho (U of I, or UIdaho) is a public land-grant research university in Moscow, Idaho. It is the state's land-grant and primary research university,, and the lead university in the Idaho Space Grant Consortium. The University ...

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...

in 1925.Samuel Harrison Coon
Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, Accessed September 7, 2007. He pursued various occupations in banking and agriculture, and was the owner-operator of a cattle ranch near Keating, Oregon, from 1929 to 1950. In 1937, Coon married Opal Kerfort.Corning, Howard M. ''Dictionary of Oregon History''. Binfords & Mort Publishing, 1956. From 1951 to 1952 he engaged in the real estate business.

Political career

In 1950, Coon was elected to represent Baker County 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 ...

, where the Republican served only during the 1951 session of the legislature.Oregon Legislative Assembly (46th) 1951 Regular Session
/ref> Toward the end of his term in the state Senate, Coon successfully ran for election to Congress as a Republican from Oregon's Second District. The two-term congressman was narrowly re-elected after a challenge from Democrat,

Al Ullman Albert Conrad Ullman (March 9, 1914 – October 11, 1986) was an American politician in the Democratic Party who represented in the United States House of Representatives from 1957 to 1981. One of the most influential Oregonians ever to be ele ...

, who ultimately defeated him in the election of 1956. Sam Coon served in the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the Lower house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being ...

from January 3, 1953 to January 3, 1957.

After politics

After serving as Deputy Director for the International Cooperation Administration in

Lima, Peru Lima ( ; ), originally founded as Ciudad de Los Reyes (City of The Kings) is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón River, Chillón, Rímac River, Rímac and Lurín Rivers, in the desert zone of t ...

, from 1957 to 1959, Coon took up residence in Laguna Hills, California. He died in 1980, and his ashes were distributed at sea.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Coon, Samuel Harrison 1903 births 1980 deaths People from Boise, Idaho People from Baker County, Oregon People from Laguna Hills, California Republican Party Oregon state senators University of Idaho alumni Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Oregon Ranchers from Oregon 20th-century American politicians