Charles William Fulton (August 24, 1853January 27, 1918) was an American lawyer and politician in 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 Ohio, he grew up in

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 ...

and

Nebraska Nebraska () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Kansas to the south; Colorado to the southwe ...

before settling in

Astoria, Oregon Astoria is a port city and the seat of Clatsop County, Oregon, United States. Founded in 1811, Astoria is the oldest city in the state and was the first permanent American settlement west of the Rocky Mountains. The county is the northwest corne ...

. A Republican, he served 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 time 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 ...

, before he was elected as

United States Senator The United States Senate is the Upper house, upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States House of Representatives, House of Representatives being the Lower house, lower chamber. Together they compose the national Bica ...

from Oregon.

Early life

Charles William Fulton was born in

Lima, Ohio Lima ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Allen County, Ohio, United States. The municipality is located in northwest Ohio along Interstate 75 in Ohio, Interstate 75 approximately north of Dayton, Ohio, Dayton, southwest of Toledo, Ohio, T ...

, on August 24, 1853, to Jacob and Eliza A. Fulton.Corning, Howard M. (1989) ''Dictionary of Oregon History''. Binfords & Mort Publishing. p. 94. The family moved to

in 1855 and settled in

Magnolia ''Magnolia'' is a large genus of about 210 to 340The number of species in the genus ''Magnolia'' depends on the taxonomic view that one takes up. Recent molecular and morphological research shows that former genera ''Talauma'', ''Dugandiodendro ...

, Harrison County. Fulton attended the common schools there, and then moved to

Pawnee City, Nebraska Pawnee City is a city and county seat of Pawnee County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 878 at the 2010 census. History Pawnee City was incorporated in 1858, and is named after the Pawnee Native Americans. By the 1880s, Pawnee Cit ...

, in 1870 where he was educated at the Pawnee City Academy. He taught school while he studied law in Nebraska, and passed the

bar Bar or BAR may refer to: Food and drink * Bar (establishment), selling alcoholic beverages * Candy bar * Chocolate bar Science and technology * Bar (river morphology), a deposit of sediment * Bar (tropical cyclone), a layer of cloud * Bar (u ...

in April 1875 in that state. Three days after passing the bar he departed for Oregon, arriving 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 ...

on April 20. Fulton then taught school for a few months to the south in Linn County at Waterloo. In July 1875, he relocated to Astoria at the mouth of the

Columbia River The Columbia River (Upper Chinook: ' or '; Sahaptin: ''Nch’i-Wàna'' or ''Nchi wana''; Sinixt dialect'' '') is the largest river in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. The river rises in the Rocky Mountains of British Columbia, C ...

where he entered private legal practice.

Political career

In 1878, Fulton was elected to the

to represent Clatsop, Columbia, and Tillamook counties as a Republican. He served his four-year term, remaining through the 1880 legislative session. In 1880, he began working as Astoria's city attorney, keeping the job until 1882. In 1890, he was elected to his old seat in the senate for a four-year term. During the 1893 session he served as President of the Senate. In 1894, he was in contention for the Republican nomination for Oregon Governor, but William Paine Lord was selected as the candidate at the Republican convention. Fulton did not return to the senate during the next two legislatures, but was back during the 1898 special session. In 1900, he won another four-year term, and served as Senate President during the 1901 legislature. He also served in the 1903 session before the

Oregon Legislative Assembly The Oregon Legislative Assembly is the state legislature for the U.S. state of Oregon. The Legislative Assembly is bicameral, consisting of an upper and lower house: the Senate, whose 30 members are elected to serve four-year terms; and the Ho ...

elected him to the U.S. Senate. Fulton served in that office from March 4, 1903, to March 3, 1909. While in the Senate he was chairman, Committee on Canadian Relations ( Fifty-eighth and Fifty-ninth Congresses) and a member of the

Committee on Claims The United States Senate Committee on Claims was among the first standing committees established in the Senate. It dealt generally with issues related to private bills and petitions. After reforms in the 1880s that created judicial and administra ...

( Fifty-ninth and Sixtieth Congresses). He failed to win re-election in 1908, and served only a single term in the U.S. Senate. In 1909 President Taft sought to appoint Fulton as U. S. ambassador to China, but following opposition from Chinese-Americans in Portland and San Francisco, Fulton declined the nomination.

Later years and family

Following Congress, he resumed the practice of law in Portland. Fulton married in 1886 to Ada M. Hobson, and they had one child, a son.

Elmer Lincoln Fulton Elmer Lincoln Fulton (April 22, 1865 – October 4, 1939) was an American politician and a U.S. Representative from Oklahoma. Biography Born in Magnolia, Iowa, on April 22, 1865, Fulton was son to Jacob and Eliza Ann McAllester Fulton. He m ...

, Charles' brother, was a

United States representative 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 ...

from

Oklahoma Oklahoma (; Choctaw language, Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the nor ...

. Charles William Fulton died on January 27, 1918, at the age of 64 and was buried in Astoria at Ocean View Cemetery.

References

External links

The New York TimesOregon History: The Oregon System
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fulton, Charles William 1853 births 1918 deaths Politicians from Lima, Ohio Politicians from Astoria, Oregon Oregon lawyers Presidents of the Oregon State Senate Republican Party Oregon state senators Republican Party United States senators from Oregon 19th-century American politicians Oregon city attorneys People from Pawnee City, Nebraska