Earl T. Newbry

Earl T. Newbry
Newbry in 1950
15th Secretary of State of Oregon
In office
November 3, 1947 – January 7, 1957
GovernorJohn H. Hall
Douglas McKay
Paul L. Patterson
Elmo Smith
Preceded byRobert S. Farrell, Jr.
Succeeded byMark O. Hatfield
Member of the Oregon House of Representatives
In office
1939–1942
ConstituencyJackson County
Personal details
BornApril 15, 1900
Rocky Ford, Colorado, U.S.
DiedSeptember 2, 1995(1995-09-02) (aged 95)
Ashland, Oregon, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
OccupationBusinessman

Earl T. Newbry (April 15, 1900 – September 2, 1995) was an American businessman and politician from the state of Oregon. A native of Colorado, he served as the twenty-fifth Secretary of State of Oregon after appointment by Oregon Governor John Hubert Hall. A Republican, he previously served two terms in the Oregon House of Representatives and three terms in the Oregon State Senate.

Early life

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Earl Newbry was born in Rocky Ford, Colorado, on April 15, 1900.[1] He and his family came to Oregon in the early 1920s. They established themselves in Jackson County in the city of Ashland. Newbry managed a fruit growing and packing firm in the Rogue River Valley before entering politics.[2]

Political career

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Newbry ran for a seat in the Oregon House of Representatives and won the House District 19 seat which at the time was Jackson County in 1938.[3] He served in the Oregon House for the 1939 and 1941 legislative sessions. A Republican from Ashland, he was then elected to the Oregon Senate representing District 6 in 1942.[4] Newbry served in the state senate during the 1943, 1945, and 1947 sessions of the Oregon Legislature.

In late October 1947, Governor Earl Snell, Secretary of State Robert S. Farrell, Jr., and Senate President Marshall Cornell were killed in a plane accident near Dog Lake, Oregon, while on their way to a hunting trip.[5] As the first two successors were killed along with the Oregon Governor, the Speaker of the House, John Hubert Hall, became governor.[6] Hall's first act as governor was to appoint Newbry as Oregon Secretary of State.[7]

In office, Newbry was responsible for creating branch offices of the Department of Motor Vehicles across the state and implementing the use of permanent license plates in the state.[8] He won election to a full term in office in 1948 and then won re-election in 1952, defeating Edith Green;[5][9] in 1949 he declined to seek the Republican nomination for governor.[10] Newbry remained in office until January 7, 1957.[11]

He was an unsuccessful candidate for governor in 1954, losing the Republican primary to Paul L. Patterson.

Later years

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After leaving office, he returned to Southern Oregon and resumed his business career.[2] Earl T. Newbry died on September 2, 1995, in Ashland, Oregon.[1]

Electoral history

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1952 Republican primary
Candidate Name Votes [12]
Earl T. Newbry 230,232
1952 General Election
Candidate Name Votes [13]
Earl T. Newbry (R) 370,216
Edith Green (D) 301,894

References

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  1. ^ a b "Earl T. Newbry". Social Security Death Index. MyFamily.com Inc. Retrieved 2008-11-19.
  2. ^ a b "Oregon Secretary of State Agency History, page 15". Oregon Blue Book. Oregon Secretary of State. Retrieved April 28, 2021.
  3. ^ Snell, Earl. Oregon Blue Book. Salem, Oregon: Office of the Secretary of State, 1938
  4. ^ "1943 Regular Session (42nd)". Oregon Legislators and Staff Guide. Oregon State Archives. Retrieved 2008-11-20.
  5. ^ a b "Crash changed Oregon". The Register-Guard. October 28, 2007. Retrieved 2008-11-20.
  6. ^ Sadler, Russell (March 14, 2005). "GOP pipeline to top office trickles; Columns". The Register-Guard. pp. A9.
  7. ^ "Governor John H. Hall's Administration: Governor's Message, 1949". Oregon State Archives. Retrieved 2008-11-20.
  8. ^ Ellis, Barnes C. (August 31, 1987). "History-making ex-legislators recall old times". The Oregonian. pp. B3.
  9. ^ Swarthout, John M. (December 1954). "The 1954 Election in Oregon". The Western Political Quarterly. 7 (4): 620–625. doi:10.2307/442815. JSTOR 442815.
  10. ^ "1950 Race Eschewed by Newbry". The Oregonian. September 17, 1949. p. 1.
  11. ^ "Secretaries of State of Oregon". Oregon Blue Book. Oregon Secretary of State. Retrieved 2008-11-20.
  12. ^ Newbry, Earl.Oregon Blue Book, Office of the Secretary of State, 1954
  13. ^ Newbry, Earl.Oregon Blue Book, Office of the Secretary of State, 1955
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Political offices
Preceded by Secretary of State of Oregon
1947–1957
Succeeded by