Samuel Royal Thurston - circa 1847
Born in Maine in 1815 and educated as a lawyer, Thurston became Oregon Territory's first representative to the U.S. Congress in 1849. Known for his advocacy of the Donation Land Claim Act previously championed by Missouri Senator Lewis F. Linn, he was well-known and appreciated by early settlers able to stake their claims based on that act. Both he and Linn have counties named after them; Thurston's is in what became the State of Washington.
However, Thurston was also narrow in his vision - because of his anti-British bias he helped strip Dr. John McLoughlin of his properties as part of the Donation Land Claim Act, and he worked to block African-Americans from settling in Oregon Territory.
He died young, at age 35, on his return from from Washington D.C., after becoming ill crossing the isthmus of Panama.
-- This photo is restored and printed by Old Oregon from an original at the Washington State Archives.
Photographer | Unknown |
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Location | Unknown Location |
Subject | Portraits |
Decade | 1840s |
Print Maker | Old Oregon |
Original Type | Copy Negative |
Size of Original | 4 x 6 inches |