Obadiah Benton McFadden (November 18, 1815 – June 25, 1875) was an American attorney and politician in 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 ...

. He was the 8th justice of the

Oregon Supreme Court The Oregon Supreme Court (OSC) is the highest state court in the U.S. state of Oregon. The only court that may reverse or modify a decision of the Oregon Supreme Court is the Supreme Court of the United States.Matthew Deady Matthew Paul Deady (May 12, 1824 – March 24, 1893) was a politician and jurist in the Oregon Territory and the state of Oregon of the United States. He served on the Oregon Supreme Court from 1853 to 1859, at which time he was appointed to the n ...

. A

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

native, he later was a legislator in 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 ...

, and he served in Congress representing that territory.

Early life

Obadiah McFadden was born in West Middletown, Pennsylvania, on November 18, 1815.Obadiah Benton McFadden.
Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. Retrieved on January 22, 2008. He was then educated locally in

Washington County, Pennsylvania Washington County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 209,349. Its county seat is Washington. Washington County is part of the Pittsburgh, PA Metropolitan Statistical Area. The county i ...

, at the public schools and at McKeever Academy. Then in 1837 he married Margaret Caldwell. By 1843 he had been admitted to the bar allowing him to practice law.Corning, Howard M. ''Dictionary of Oregon History''. Binfords & Mort Publishing, 1956.

Politics

In 1853, U.S. President

Franklin Pierce Franklin Pierce (November 23, 1804October 8, 1869) was the 14th president of the United States, serving from 1853 to 1857. He was a northern Democrat who believed that the abolitionist movement was a fundamental threat to the nation's unity ...

appointed McFadden a justice of the Oregon Supreme Court during the territorial period on a temporary assignment to replace Matthew Deady. His term ended in 1854 and he left the Oregon court.Oregon Blue Book: Earliest Authorities in Oregon - Supreme Court Justices of Oregon.
Oregon Secretary of State. Retrieved on January 22, 2008. At the time he was one of three justices on the bench of the court. In 1854, he was appointed to the

Washington Supreme Court The Washington Supreme Court is the highest court in the judiciary of the U.S. state of Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the ...

when Washington Territory was created out of

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 ...

. While on that court he served as Chief Justice from 1858 to 1861. In 1861, he would become the president of the Washington Legislature's Council Chamber and would serve on that body until 1864 representing Thurston,

Lewis Lewis may refer to: Names * Lewis (given name), including a list of people with the given name * Lewis (surname), including a list of people with the surname Music * Lewis (musician), Canadian singer * "Lewis (Mistreated)", a song by Radiohead ...

and

Chehalis Chehalis may refer to: People * Chehalis people, a Native American people of Washington state **Lower Chehalis language **Upper Chehalis language * Sts'Ailes people (Chehalis people), a First Nation in British Columbia * Chehalis First Nation, Bri ...

counties.Members of the Legislature: 1889-2001.
State of Washington. Retrieved on January 22, 2008. From 1855 to 1856, he fought in the

Yakima War The Yakima War (1855–1858), also referred to as the Yakima Native American War of 1855 or the Plateau War, was a conflict between the United States and the Yakama, a Sahaptian-speaking people of the Northwest Plateau, then part of Washington T ...

against the

Yakima Yakima ( or ) is a city in and the county seat of Yakima County, Washington, and the state's 11th-largest city by population. As of the 2020 census, the city had a total population of 96,968 and a metropolitan population of 256,728. The uninco ...

Indians.

Later years

McFadden then returned to private law practice, setting up office in

Olympia, Washington Olympia is the capital of the U.S. state of Washington and the county seat and largest city of Thurston County. It is southwest of the state's most populous city, Seattle, and is a cultural center of the southern Puget Sound region. European ...

. Then in 1872 he was elected 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 ...

to represent the territory in the 43rd

United States Congress The United States Congress is the legislature of the federal government of the United States. It is bicameral, composed of a lower body, the House of Representatives, and an upper body, the Senate. It meets in the U.S. Capitol in Washing ...

. He served as a delegate from March 4, 1873, to March 3, 1875, and was not a candidate for renomination to the position. McFadden died in Olympia on June 25, 1875, and was buried at the Masonic Cemetery.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:McFadden, Obadiah B. 1815 births 1875 deaths Justices of the Oregon Supreme Court Members of the Washington Territorial Legislature Justices of the Washington Supreme Court Delegates to the United States House of Representatives from Washington Territory Washington (state) Democrats People from Washington County, Pennsylvania 19th-century American politicians 19th-century American judges