Reading Into It: Biographies of Oregon Governors

At a recent Oregon Chapter APIC meeting this last year we had the great fortune to welcome Bob Straub biographer Charles Johnson and have a sit down chat with him about his book and subject matter. He signed copies of his book and talked about the dual McCall-Straub dynamic that was prevalent in most state politics in the late 60s and 70s.

The recent winter weather was a good chance to sit back down and take a second look at a couple of the other biographies on Oregon governors. Here are the ones that you can find out there (Mind you it is a small list):



1) Oregon cattleman/governor, congressman: Memoirs and Times of Walter M. Pierce, by Walter M. Pierce


This 500 pager was written by Pierce and another gentleman after Pierce had left public life in 1942. He had served in various public offices from 1902-1943. He served in the Oregon Senate, Congress, ran for the U.S. Senate and eventually won the Governorship of Oregon by lending support to a bill supported by the K.K.K. While it won Pierce the governorship, it would forever tie him with infamous segregationist group. Perhaps the 500 page autobiography was in part to attempt distance himself from the association and try to better defend his legacy? Unsure, it is the one of two books on this list I have yet to read.

Another interesting note; in the 1924 Presidential Election Governor Pierce helped further divisions within the Democratic Party of Oregon by endorsing Progressive Robert La Follette for President.

2) Iron Pants: Oregon's Anti-New Deal Governor, by Gary Murrell

Charles Martin was a Democrat in an era when being a Democrat was most typified by being a New Dealer-FDR Democrat. Martin didn't think the New Deal was all that great of a deal. He won election as a conservative Democrat during the middle of the Great Depression in Oregon on his ability to get state finances in order. Martin would go on to lose the Democratic nomination four years later over the New Deal. He ended up endorsing the Republican, Charles Sprague.

I have not had a chance to read this biography yet and will probably order a copy for my birthday this year. If Oregon had to have a 'war hero' governor, Martin fit the bill. He retired as a Major General and served during the Spanish-American, Philippine-American War and the Boxer Rebellion. Before his single term as governor, he served in congress.

3) An Editor for Oregon: Charles Sprague & the Politics of Change, by Floyd McKay

Sprague is perhaps one of the many overlooked Oregon governors from the war years (WWII). He was in every sense a 'one term wonder'. He was a newspaperman by trade and entered Oregon politics in a year when the State GOP was divided about supporting Governor Charles Martin, an anti-New Deal Democrat that had a considerable amount of Republican businesses interests backing him. When Martin lost the 1938 Democratic Primary he campaigned for Sprague and the GOP swept the governorship, state senate and state house races.

While he had backing of the GOP special interests he in turn did not back most of what they wanted while governor. He vetoed a lot of legislation coming from the state legislature. As his biography explains,while in private business Sprague could run things as he wanted if he wanted to remain governor he would need to do the all too familiar political dance with the legislature. He kept true to the populist progressive policies of George Joesph and Julius Meier, especially regarding management of Oregon's natural resources. This ultimately cost him the primary in the next election.

I enjoyed this biography, mostly because Sprague wasn't a full time politician like so many people turn into. Most of his life he dedicated to informing the public about public policy through his work on various newspapers. Today it is rare for a journalist, editor or newspaper owner to get elected to high office. They usually have a large paper trail for others to use against them at the polls.


4)  Fire at Eden's Gate: Tom McCall & the Oregon Story, by Brent Walth

If you are going to read a biography about an Oregon governor; this is probably the one to read. Tom McCall is probably the most recognized Oregon governor in the history of the state. He helped enshrine a vision of Oregon that endures even today to folks who live out of state.

Walth does a great job at capturing the man that the public rarely saw in front of the cameras. There was the public and private McCall that fed off each others strengths and weaknesses. The private McCall struggled with family and finances. He desperately kept looking for an outlet for his politics of the personal in an era that didn't appreciate it. It is 580 pages of fantastic political biography.



5) Standing at the Water's Edge: Bob Straub's Battle for the Soul of Oregon, By Charles Johnson

We've talked a little about this biography over the last year or so and it is still rather new. Bob Straub and Tom McCall were always bouncing off each other. Straub had the wonky, gritty policy smarts that alluded McCall much of the time. Straub also lacked the natural charisma that McCall was gifted with and made him unstoppable during their two campaigns for governor. McCall understood good ideas when he saw them and helped push them forward. When both of them were working for the same goal they were unstoppable; most of the time.

This bio is about 350 pages and is a very accessible to those not use to reading Oregon biographies. If you are familiar with Tom McCall then you should read this book about Bob Straub to get the full picture of this period of Oregon.





6)  Up the Capitol Steps: A Woman's March to the Governorship, by Barbara Roberts

This is the first autobiography done by a modern day Oregon governor. Barbara Roberts was the first woman elected governor of Oregon in 1990. She was one of the first ten women in America to be elected governor of a state. Getting someone in such a position to sit down and tell their story is a very important project and it is one Governor Roberts spent several years attempting to articulate. It isn't all just old campaign stories and political accomplishments. There is a lot pages dedicated to her early life and capturing her every day life before and after politics. Most importantly she explains the issues that got her interested in public life in the first place: her children.

I attended several talks with Governor Roberts right after she published the book and found each presentation entertaining and insightful. I don't know if any of our other living former governors will write a book about their perspectives on governing, but I hope someone steps up.

**There is also a small trade paperback about Governor Oswald West that you can find at book stores and historical museums. It is the equivalent of the books you can find in local historical societies, written by members. The few times I have looked at it made me decide that it was not in the same academic edited and researched as the above six texts. I'm sure one day there will be a solid historical accounting of his life and times. It can at best be described as being a highlights of his life and administration.