George Edward COLE, Congress, WA (1826-1906)

COLE George Edward , a Delegate from the Territory of Washington; born in Trenton (now Trenton Falls), Oneida County, N.Y., December 23, 1826; attended the public schools and Hobart Hall Institute; employed as clerk in a country store; moved to Illinois, thence to California in 1849, and later to Oregon in 1850; member of the Oregon house of representatives in 1852 and 1853; engaged in mercantile pursuits and steamboat transportation on the Willamette River; clerk of the United States District Court of Oregon in 1859 and 1860; moved to Walla Walla, Wash., in 1860; elected as a Democrat to the Thirty-eighth Congress (March 4, 1863-March 3, 1865); was not a candidate for renomination in 1864; appointed Governor of the Territory by President Johnson in November 1866 and served until March 4, 1867; returned to Portland, Oreg., in 1867; engaged in railroad construction 1869-1872; postmaster of Portland, Oreg., 1873-1881; moved to Spokane, Wash., in 1889; treasurer of Spokane County 1890-1892; had extensive interests in mining, manufacturing, and farming; died in Portland, Oreg., December 3, 1906; interment in Lone Fir Cemetery.

Source: Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, 1771-Present