Thomas J. Dryer

Thomas J. Dryer
Member of the Oregon Territorial Legislature
In office 1856–1856
Constituency	Washington and Multnomah counties
Member of the Oregon Constitutional Convention
In office 1857–1857
Constituency	Washington and Multnomah counties
Personal details
Born	January 10, 1808 Ulster County, New York
Died	March 30, 1879 age 71 Oregon
Political party	Whig Party
Occupation	Newspaper publisher

Thomas Jefferson Dryer (1808–1879) was a newspaper publisher, Freemason, mountain climber, and politician in the Western United States.

He was born on January 10, 1808, in Ulster County, New York.^[1][2] Dryer founded the Weekly Oregonian, which has survived as the daily Oregonian, and served as its publisher.^[3] He was also the editor of the California Courier in San Francisco, California.

Dryer made the first documented ascent of Mount St. Helens on August 27, 1853, with three companions. He has also been reported as the first to climb Mount Hood, on August 8, 1854; those reports have been disputed. In 1856, Dryer served in the Territorial Legislature representing Multnomah and Washington Counties as a Whig.^[4] The following year, he was elected and served at the Oregon Constitutional Convention.^[5]

Dryer was appointed U.S. Commissioner to the Kingdom of Hawaii in 1861 by President Abraham Lincoln, through the influence of Senator Edward Baker. Dryer was buried at Lone Fir Cemetery in Portland.^[6]

References

External links

• Full body portrait of Dryer in his later years
• Oregon Biographies: Thomas Jefferson Dryer from the Oregon Historical Society

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