Scott Leavitt (June 16, 1879 – October 19, 1966) was a

U.S. 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 c ...

from

Montana Montana () is a state in the Mountain West division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota and South Dakota to the east, Wyoming to the south, and the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columb ...

. He served as chairman of the House Committee on Indian Affairs.

Early life

Scott Leavitt was born in

Elk Rapids, Michigan Elk Rapids is a village in Antrim County in the state of Michigan. The population was 1,642 at the 2010 census. The village is located within Elk Rapids Township, about north of Traverse City. It is physically split by the Elk River, which ru ...

in 1879 to Roswell Leavitt, an attorney, member of the Maine House of Representatives and later Michigan State Senator, a native of Turner, Maine, where he enlisted in the

17th Maine Volunteer Infantry Regiment The 17th Maine Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War. It was particularly noted for its service during the 1863 Battle of Gettysburg. Organization The 17th Maine was organized at C ...

, and his wife Anna C. (Lawrence) Leavitt. Scott Leavitt moved with his parents in 1881 to

Bellaire, Michigan Bellaire is a village in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is the county seat of Antrim County. The population was 1,053 in 2020 census. The village is split between Forest Home and Kearney townships. The historic Antrim County Courthouse is ...

, where his father Roswell served as

prosecuting attorney A prosecutor is a legal representative of the prosecution in states with either the common law adversarial system or the civil law inquisitorial system. The prosecution is the legal party responsible for presenting the case in a criminal trial ...

and circuit court commissioner. Scott Leavitt attended the public schools and while in high school enlisted in the Thirty-third Regiment, Michigan Volunteer Infantry, during the

Spanish–American War , partof = the Philippine Revolution, the decolonization of the Americas, and the Cuban War of Independence , image = Collage infobox for Spanish-American War.jpg , image_size = 300px , caption = (cloc ...

. Leavitt served in the campaign at

Santiago, Cuba Santiago de Cuba is the second-largest city in Cuba and the capital city of Santiago de Cuba Province. It lies in the southeastern area of the island, some southeast of the Cuban capital of Havana. The municipality extends over , and contains ...

during the war. After the war he attended the

University of Michigan at Ann Arbor , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

. He subsequently moved to Oregon in 1901 and began homesteading in the Coast Range Mountains near Falls City. There he worked as a school principal in the communities of Falls City, North Yamhill, Dayton, and

Lakeview, Oregon Lakeview is a town in Lake County, Oregon, United States. The population was 2,418 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Lake County. The city bills itself as the "Tallest Town in Oregon" because of its elevation, above sea level. ...

from 1901 to 1907. In 1907 Leavitt entered the

United States Forest Service The United States Forest Service (USFS) is an agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture that administers the nation's 154 national forests and 20 national grasslands. The Forest Service manages of land. Major divisions of the agency in ...

as a ranger at the

Fremont National Forest The Fremont-Winema National Forest of south central Oregon is a mountainous region with a rich geological, ecological, archaeological, and historical history. Founded in 1908, the Fremont National Forest was originally protected as the Goose Lake ...

in Oregon. He later served in

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

and Montana until 1917.

Politics

1922 Events January * January 7 – Dáil Éireann, the parliament of the Irish Republic, ratifies the Anglo-Irish Treaty by 64–57 votes. * January 10 – Arthur Griffith is elected President of Dáil Éireann, the day after Éamon de Valera ...

, when incumbent United States Congressman Carl W. Riddick opted to run for the Senate rather than seek re-election to 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 chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

, Leavitt ran to succeed him in

Montana's 2nd congressional district Montana's 2nd congressional district is a congressional district in the United States House of Representatives that was apportioned after the 2020 United States census. The first candidates ran in the 2022 elections for a seat in the 118th Uni ...

. He defeated Preston B. Moss, the Democratic nominee, by a wide margin to win his first term, and in

1924 Events January * January 12 – Gopinath Saha shoots Ernest Day, whom he has mistaken for Sir Charles Tegart, the police commissioner of Calcutta, and is arrested soon after. * January 20– 30 – Kuomintang in China holds ...

, defeated Joseph Kirschwing by a landslide to win his second term. Leavitt was re-elected in

1926 Events January * January 3 – Theodoros Pangalos declares himself dictator in Greece. * January 8 **Abdul-Aziz ibn Saud is crowned King of Hejaz. ** Crown Prince Nguyễn Phúc Vĩnh Thuy ascends the throne, the last monarch of Viet ...

against Harry B. Mitchell, was overwhelmingly re-elected in

1928 Events January * January – British bacteriologist Frederick Griffith reports the results of Griffith's experiment, indirectly proving the existence of DNA. * January 1 – Eastern Bloc emigration and defection: Boris Bazhan ...

over B. A. Taylor, and won what would be his fifth and final term in Congress in

1930 Events January * January 15 – The Moon moves into its nearest point to Earth, called perigee, at the same time as its fullest phase of the Lunar Cycle. This is the closest moon distance at in recent history, and the next one will b ...

over Tom Stout. On March 5, 1932, Leavitt took to the floor of the House to deliver a eulogy to Indian Chief

Plenty Coups Plenty Coups (Crow: ''Alaxchíia Ahú'', "many achievements"; 1848 – 1932) was the principal chief of the Crow Nation ("Apsáalooke") and a visionary leader. He allied the Crow with the whites when the war for the West was being fought, becaus ...

. "I have chosen to announce the passing of one who has graced the history of my state of Montana," said Leavitt on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives.

lenty Coup'slife was in truth a symbol of the absorption of the American Indian into the citizenship of the United States," Leavitt continued. "His was one of the finest characters I have ever known.... He was a man of such caliber and such high character, and his service was so outstanding, that it is entirely fitting that the American Congress should pause for a moment to do him reverence.Chief Plenty Coups Home, Chief Plenty Coups State Park, Big Horn, Montana, National Historic Landmark Nomination, National Park Service
/ref>

Leavitt ran for re-election in

1932 Events January * January 4 – The British authorities in India arrest and intern Mahatma Gandhi and Vallabhbhai Patel. * January 9 – Sakuradamon Incident: Korean nationalist Lee Bong-chang fails in his effort to assassinate Emperor Hiro ...

, but was defeated by Roy E. Ayers in a Democratic landslide year that saw Republicans lose over a hundred seats in the

. From the 69th United States Congress to the

71st United States Congress The 71st United States Congress was a meeting of the legislature of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1929, to Ma ...

, Leavitt served as the Chairman of the House Committee on Indian Affairs. Following his defeat for re-election, Leavitt ran for the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

in a 1934 special election to fill the seat of Thomas J. Walsh, who died in office. He won the

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 ...

primary against former

State Attorney General The state attorney general in each of the 50 U.S. states, of the federal district, or of any of the territories is the chief legal advisor to the state government and the state's chief law enforcement officer. In some states, the attorney gener ...

Wellington D. Rankin, but lost the general election to James E. Murray in a landslide. After his unsuccessful campaign for the Senate, he started working for the Forest Service again in

Milwaukee, Wisconsin Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County, Wisconsin, Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at th ...

, and served as the Commander-in-Chief of the

United Spanish War Veterans The United Spanish War Veterans was an American veterans' organization which consisted of veterans of the Spanish–American War, Philippine–American War and China Relief Expedition. Origins Soon after the Spanish–American War ended, in earl ...

from 1936 to 1937.

Later life

He retired from the Forest Service in 1941 and moved to Newberg, Oregon, where Scott Leavitt died on October 19, 1966. He was interred in

Willamette National Cemetery Willamette National Cemetery is a United States National Cemetery located about southeast of the city of Portland, Oregon. Administered by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs, it encompasses straddling the county line between Multn ...

near

Portland, Oregon Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the list of cities in Oregon, largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, Columbia rivers, Portland is ...

. Scott Leavitt Park in Newberg is named for the Congressman and Forest Ranger.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Leavitt, Scott 1879 births 1966 deaths American military personnel of the Spanish–American War Leavitt family People from Newberg, Oregon University of Michigan alumni People from Bellaire, Michigan Burials at Willamette National Cemetery United States Army soldiers Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Montana