George Edward Cole (December 23, 1826 – December 3, 1906) was an American politician. He is remembered as the 6th Governor and 5th Delegate from the

Territory of Washington The Territory of Washington was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 2, 1853, until November 11, 1889, when the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Washington. It was created from the ...

Biography

Early years

George Edward Cole was born December 23, 1826, in Trenton, Oneida County,

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

. Cole attended the public schools and Hobart Hall Institute. He was employed as clerk in a country store."George Edward Cole,"
in ''Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, 1774-Present.'' www.bioguide.congress.gov/ After living in the

Midwestern The Midwestern United States, also referred to as the Midwest or the American Midwest, is one of four census regions of the United States Census Bureau (also known as "Region 2"). It occupies the northern central part of the United States. I ...

state 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 ...

, Cole departed for

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

during the

gold rush A gold rush or gold fever is a discovery of gold—sometimes accompanied by other precious metals and rare-earth minerals—that brings an onrush of miners seeking their fortune. Major gold rushes took place in the 19th century in Australia, New Z ...

year of 1849. From there he moved to the

Pacific Northwest The Pacific Northwest (sometimes Cascadia, or simply abbreviated as PNW) is a geographic region in western North America bounded by its coastal waters of the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains to the east. Though ...

, arriving in 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 ...

in 1850. Harvey K. Hines, ''An Illustrated History of the State of Washington: Containing a History of the State of Washington from the Earliest Period of Its Discovery to the Present Time, Together with Glimpses of its Auspicious Future, Illustrations and Full-page Portraits of Some of Its Eminent Men and Biographical Mention of Many of Its Pioneers and Prominent Citizens of To-day.'' Chicago, IL: Lewis Publishing Co., 1893; pg. 349.

Oregon years

Cole soon became involved in the politics of the Oregon Territory, serving as a member of 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 ...

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 ...

during the biannual session running from 1852 to 1853. During that session he became an early supporter of the idea of splitting the territory — which then included the whole of today's states of

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

Idaho Idaho ( ) is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. To the north, it shares a small portion of the Canada–United States border with the province of British Columbia. It borders the states of Montana and Wyom ...

, and the western portion of Montana — helping to draft a memorial to

Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of a ...

calling for the establishment of the

Washington Territory The Territory of Washington was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 2, 1853, until November 11, 1889, when the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Washington. It was created from the ...

. In Oregon Cole engaged in mercantile pursuits and steamboat transportation on the

Willamette River The Willamette River ( ) is a major tributary of the Columbia River, accounting for 12 to 15 percent of the Columbia's flow. The Willamette's main stem is long, lying entirely in northwestern Oregon in the United States. Flowing northward b ...

. He served as clerk of the United States District Court of Oregon in 1859 and 1860.

Washington Territorial politician

Cole relocated to

Walla Walla, Washington Walla Walla is a city in Walla Walla County, Washington, where it is the largest city and county seat. It had a population of 34,060 at the 2020 census, estimated to have decreased to 33,927 as of 2021. The population of the city and its two su ...

, in 1860. He was elected as the Washington Territory's delegate to Congress in 1862 as a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

, serving as a member of the Thirty-eighth Congress from March 4, 1863, to March 3, 1865. He was the first Washington Territorial Delegate to Congress to hail from the East side of the state. He would also be the last member of the Democratic Party to represent the Washington Territory in Congress until 1885.Kent D. Richards, "George Edward Cole," in John T. Hubbell, James W. Geary, and Jon L. Wakelyn (eds.), ''Biographical Dictionary of the Union: Northern Leaders of the Civil War.'' Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1995; pp. 1010-102. Cole served for one term only, not being a candidate for renomination in 1864. In November 1866 Cole was appointed Governor of the Territory by Democratic President

Andrew Johnson Andrew Johnson (December 29, 1808July 31, 1875) was the 17th president of the United States, serving from 1865 to 1869. He assumed the presidency as he was vice president at the time of the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. Johnson was a Dem ...

, serving in that position until March 4, 1867.

Railroad official and Postmaster

With the Democrats out of power and himself out of office, Cole returned to

Portland, Oregon Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers, Portland is the county seat of Multnomah County, the most populous co ...

, in 1867 where for the next four years he was instrumental in the operation of the

Oregon & California Railroad The Oregon and California Railroad was formed from the Oregon Central Railroad when it was the first to operate a stretch south of Portland, Oregon, Portland in 1869. This qualified the railroad for land grants in California, whereupon the name ...

, helping oversee construction of a line from Portland to the

Southern Oregon Southern Oregon is a region of the U.S. state of Oregon south of Lane County and generally west of the Cascade Range, excluding the southern Oregon Coast. Counties include Douglas, Jackson, Klamath, and Josephine. It includes the Southern Oreg ...

town of Roseburg. In the interim he switched his allegiance to the Republican Party. In 1873 Cole was appointed Postmaster of Portland by Republican

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

Ulysses S. Grant Ulysses S. Grant (born Hiram Ulysses Grant ; April 27, 1822July 23, 1885) was an American military officer and politician who served as the 18th president of the United States from 1869 to 1877. As Commanding General, he led the Union Ar ...

, taking reappointment to the post by President

Rutherford B. Hayes Rutherford Birchard Hayes (; October 4, 1822 – January 17, 1893) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 19th president of the United States from 1877 to 1881, after serving in the U.S. House of Representatives and as governor ...

in 1877. Following the expiration of his second term as Postmaster, Cole went to work for the

Northern Pacific Railroad The Northern Pacific Railway was a transcontinental railroad that operated across the northern tier of the western United States, from Minnesota to the Pacific Northwest. It was approved by 38th United States Congress, Congress in 1864 and given ...

, remaining with the company through 1882. Cole moved to

Spokane, Washington Spokane ( ) is the largest city and county seat of Spokane County, Washington, United States. It is in eastern Washington, along the Spokane River, adjacent to the Selkirk Mountains, and west of the Rocky Mountain foothills, south of the Canada ...

, in 1889, was elected county treasurer of

Spokane County Spokane County is a county located in the U.S. state of Washington. As of the 2020 census, its population was 539,339, making it the fourth-most populous county in Washington. The largest city and county seat is Spokane, the second largest cit ...

, serving two terms in that position.Hines, ''An Illustrated History of the State of Washington,'' pg. 350. He also maintained extensive interests in mining, manufacturing, and farming.

Death and legacy

George E. Cole died in Portland, Oregon, December 3, 1906. His body was interred in

Lone Fir Cemetery Lone Fir Cemetery in the southeast section of Portland, Oregon, United States is a cemetery owned and maintained by Metro, a regional government entity. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the first burial was in 1846 with the cem ...

in the city of his death.