Jesse Quinn Thornton(1810–1888) was an American settler ofOregon,active in political, legal, and educational circles. He served as the 6th Supreme Judge of theProvisional Government of Oregon,presented Oregon's petition for official territorial status toCongress,served in theOregon Legislature,and wrote the state's motto.
Jesse Quinn Thornton | |
|---|---|
 | |
| 6thSupreme Judge of theProvisional Government of Oregon | |
| In office February 20, 1847 – November 9, 1847 | |
| Appointed by | George Abernethy |
| Preceded by | Peter Hardeman Burnett |
| Succeeded by | Columbia Lancaster |
| Member of theOregon House of Representatives | |
| In office 1864–1865 | |
| Constituency | Benton County |
| Personal details | |
| Born | August 24, 1810 Point Pleasant, Virginia |
| Died | February 5, 1888 Salem, Oregon |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse | Agnes M. "Nancy" Huston Logue (m. 1838) |
Biography
editEarly life
editJesse Quinn Thornton[1]was born August 24, 1810, nearPoint Pleasant, Virginia(nowWest Virginia). He grew up inChampaign County, Ohio,and studied law in London for nearly three years. Returning to the United States, heread lawin Virginia and was admitted to the bar in 1833, afterward attending lectures at theUniversity of Virginia.In 1835, Thornton moved toPalmyrain westernMissouri,where he practiced law; he also edited a newspaper.[2][3]
On February 8, 1838, he married the widowed Agnes M. "Nancy" Huston Logue, a teacher.[4][5]Thornton, an abolitionist, ran into difficulty in pro-slavery Missouri and in 1841 he and his wife moved across theMississippi RivertoQuincy, Illinois.[2][3]Thornton corresponded with newspaper editorHorace Greeleyand was acquainted with senatorsThomas Hart Bentonof Missouri andStephen A. Douglasof Illinois.[6]
Oregon
editHoping to improve their health, the Thorntons decided to emigrate to Oregon. They left Quincy on April 18, 1846, and after a brief stop inIndependence, Missouri,joined theWilliam H. Russellwagon train on May 15.[7]This company was made up of travelers bound for both Oregon andCalifornia;among the latter were many of the emigrants who later formed theDonner Party.On June 1 Thornton and his partner John B. Goode became involved in a dispute about their wagon and team, and the following day arbitrators requested the Oregon-bound wagons to leave the group.[8][9]
When they reachedFort Hall,near present-dayPocatello, Idaho,Thornton's party metJesse Applegate,Lindsay Applegate, David Goff, andLevi Scott,who were authorized by theProvisional Government of Oregonto survey a new route to theWillamette Valleythat would avoid theColumbia River.On August 9, 1846, Thornton's group set off on theCalifornia Trail,which they followed until they reached centralNevada.From there the newApplegate Trail(also called the Southern Route) went northwest and entered Oregon from the south.[10]
The road built by the party was inadequate for wagon travel and required the first group to take it to make many improvements, slowing their progress. Some emigrants, including the Thorntons, were forced to abandon their wagons and possessions along the way.[10]On November 30, 1846, Thornton arrived atSalt CreekinYamhill Districtand soon after wrote a letter to the editor of theOregon Spectatorpleading for the settlers to send relief parties to theUmpqua Valleyto save the belated emigrants.[11]
Politics
editOn February 20, 1847, GovernorGeorge Abernethyof the Provisional Government appointed Thornton to the position of Supreme Judge where he served until November 9, 1847.[12]He resigned when Abernathy asked him to go to Washington, D.C., as a delegate from the Provisional Government to present Oregon's bill requesting official territorial status toCongress.[13]
He sailed for the east on the shipWhitonalong with a memorial created by theProvisional Legislature of Oregon.[14]During a one-month layover in San Francisco he met survivors of the Donner Party, who provided him with information about their disastrous journey to California.[7]Thornton arrived inBostonin May 1848 and spent the summer in the East until the creation ofOregon Territoryon August 14, 1848.[15]During his travels Thornton wrote up his overland diary, which was published asOregon and California in 1848in early 1849.[7]After his legislative work was done, Thornton returned to Oregon and practiced law in the Willamette Valley.[13]
Thornton'smotto"She flies with her own wings," translated into Latin asAlis volat propriis,was adopted as the motto of Oregon Territory and incorporated into the territorial seal by an act of theTerritorial Legislatureon January 18, 1854.[16]In 1864 and 1865, Thornton returned to politics when he served in theOregon House of Representativesas a Republican fromBenton County.[17]
From 1872 until 1888 he served on the board of trustees forWillamette UniversityinSalem.[18]
Death and legacy
editThornton died in Salem on February 5, 1888, and was buried atLee Mission Cemetery.Mrs. Thornton died the following year and is buried beside him. They had no children of their own, but left an adopted daughter.[19]
Footnotes
edit- ^Wilson, Joseph G., ed. (1862)."Attorneys - When Admitted".Oregon Reporter.Banks & Brothers: 9.
- ^abThornton, Jessy Quinn. Oregon history: Salem, Ore. and related materials. Bancroft MS P-A 70, Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley.
- ^ab"Jessy Quinn Thornton."Appleton's Cyclopedia[dubious–discuss]
- ^Missouri Marriage Records, 1805-2002. Ancestry (subscription database). Retrieved on November 7, 2008.
- ^Huston, E. Rankin.History of the Huston families and their descendants, 1450-1912, with a genealogical record.Mechanicsburg, Pa.: Carlisle Pub. Co., 1912.
- ^Phil Norfleet: Biographical Sketch of William Campbell (1793-1885) of Santa Clara, California.
- ^abcThornton, Jessy Quinn.Oregon and California in 1848.New York: Harper & Brothers, 1849.
- ^Bryant, Edwin.What I Saw in California.New York: D. Appleton, 1848.
- ^Rabbeson, Antonio B. Growth of towns. Bancroft MS P-B 17, Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley.
- ^abApplegate's Road to Oregon.End of the Oregon Trail Interpretive Center. Retrieved on January 31, 2008.
- ^Smith, Ross.Chapter 14: Rescue Efforts.Oregon Overland. Retrieved on January 31, 2008.
- ^Oregon Blue Book: Earliest Authorities in Oregon - Supreme Court Justices of Oregon.Oregon Secretary of State. Retrieved on January 31, 2008.
- ^abYamhill County Circuit Court History.Archived2008-12-06 at theWayback MachineOregon Judicial Department. Retrieved on January 31, 2008.
- ^History of the Pacific Northwest Oregon and Washington 1889 Volume I.Retrieved on January 31, 2008.
- ^Horner, John B.Oregon: Her History, Her Great Men, Her Literature.Portland: J.K. Gill, 1919.
- ^State Motto Timeline.Archived2007-08-10 at theWayback MachineOregon Legislature. Retrieved on January 31, 2008.
- ^Oregon Legislative Assembly (3rd) 1864 Regular Session.Oregon State Archives. Retrieved on January 31, 2008.
- ^Gatke, Robert Moulton.Chronicles of Willamette, the pioneer university of the West.Portland, Or: Binfords & Mort, 1943.
- ^Flora, Stephenie and Sherrill Hochspeier,Lee Mission Cemetery burials.
Works
edit- Oregon and California in 1848.In two volumes. New York: Harper and Brothers, 1849.Vol. 1|Vol. 2
- "History of the Provisional Government of Oregon,"fromConstitution and Quotations from the Register of the Oregon Pioneer Association, Together with the Annual Address of Hon. S.F. Chadwick, Remarks of Gov. L.F. Grover, at Reunion, June 1874, and Other Matters of Interest.Salem, OR: E.M. Waite, 1875; pp. 43–96.