Walter T. West was an American politician and farmer. He served for one term 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 ...

from 1905 to 1907, representing the 14 District. He was a member of the

Republican Party Republican Party is a name used by many political parties around the world, though the term most commonly refers to the United States' Republican Party. Republican Party may also refer to: Africa *Republican Party (Liberia) * Republican Part ...

Biography

Walter T. West was born on May 24, 1845, in Wisconsin to his parents D. V. T. and Mary West. Following his education, West became employed as a bridge builder in Jackson County, Wisconsin, and later under the employ of the Illinois Central Railroad. In 1869, West married Mary Farmer who was from Union County, Illinois. The two moved to a farm in Dakota County, Minnesota, before finally settling in Norman County, Minnesota, in 1874 Two years later the West family moved to Stearns County, Minnesota. After eight years of farming in Minnesota, West and his family moved to Tillamook County, Oregon, where Mary West's (''née'' Farmer) father had settled. The West family arrived in Tillamook on May 20, 1884, and purchased their farm on October 4, 1884. West's farm had several dairy cows. West was nominated by the Republican Party as

Justice of the Peace A justice of the peace (JP) is a judicial officer of a lower or ''puisne'' court, elected or appointed by means of a commission ( letters patent) to keep the peace. In past centuries the term commissioner of the peace was often used with the sa ...

for the third district in 1902. West also served as the director of the

Tillamook School District The Tillamook School District (9) serves Tillamook, Oregon, United States, and its surrounding areas. As of 2019, the district had 2,105 students. Tillamook School District serves approximately 2,105 students at a total of six schools. Those school ...

for a total of 13 years. At the state Republican Party convention in 1904, West was nominated as their candidate for the 14 District of the

, which encompassed Tillamook and Yamhill counties. His opponent was C. W. Talmage who was nominated by the Democratic Party. During the June general election, West defeated Talmage. West only served one term in the legislature and was succeeded by A. G. Beals. In 1906, West moved his family to Newberg, Oregon. They briefly lived in tents while they constructed their home. Coates. a farmer by trade, was appointed to the Newberg Apple Growers Association in 1910. In 1915, he was appointed to the board of directors to the Newberg Co-operative Growers Association. The same year, West was appointed to the board of director of the Newberg Cannery. West's farm was known as West & Son, which specialized in prunes and dried berries. By 1921, his farm had 800

plum A plum is a fruit of some species in ''Prunus'' subg. ''Prunus'.'' Dried plums are called prunes. History Plums may have been one of the first fruits domesticated by humans. Three of the most abundantly cultivated species are not found i ...

trees. It is unclear what West's exact date of death was, but estate proceedings on his property began in 1932.

References

{{authority control 1845 births Farmers from Wisconsin People from Tillamook County, Oregon Republican Party members of the Oregon House of Representatives Year of death uncertain People from Newberg, Oregon Farmers from Oregon American justices of the peace