Joseph P. Gaston
| Joseph P. Gaston | |
|---|---|
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|
| Born |
November 14, 1833 St. Clairsville, Ohio |
| Died | July 20, 1913 (aged 79) Pasadena, California |
| Resting place | Greenwood Hills Cemetery Portland, Oregon 45°27′39″N 122°40′46″W / 45.460780°N 122.679375°W |
| Residence |
Joseph Gaston House Gaston–Strong House |
| Occupation | Lawyer Journalist Railroad executive Historian |
| Years active | 1864 – 1913 |
| Known for | Oregon Central Railroad |
| Notable work |
Portland, Oregon, Its History and Builders The Centennial History of Oregon, 1811 to 1911 |
| Spouse(s) | Narcissa Jones |
| Children | Mary Gaston |
Joseph P. Gaston (November 14, 1833 – July 20, 1913) was an American railroad executive, journalist, and historian based in Oregon. He is remembered as the namesake of Gaston, Oregon, the Joseph Gaston House, and the Gaston-Strong House. Gaston was the first president of the Oregon Central Railroad and an outspoken opponent of railroad executive Ben Holladay. He authored the three-volume Portland, Oregon, Its History and Builders and the four-volume The Centennial History of Oregon, 1811 to 1911.
Gaston was born in St. Clairsville, Ohio, in 1833 to parents Joseph Gaston and Nancy Fowler. He was raised in the home of his maternal grandmother, Jean Fowler. He worked on the family farm, attending school during winter sessions. When he was 16, he began teaching school and later worked in a saw mill.
Gaston's grand-uncle, William Gaston, had been chief justice of the Supreme Court of North Carolina and founder of Gaston, North Carolina. His cousin, William Gaston, served as Governor of Massachusetts.
Gaston read law in St. Clairsville, and in 1856 he was admitted to practice in the Ohio Courts of Common Pleas. He immigrated to Oregon in 1862 and practiced law in Jacksonville. Congress had enacted the Pacific Railway Act of 1862, and Gaston became interested in surveying the route of rail traffic north from the California border.
At this time Gaston also served as editor of Jacksonville's Oregon Sentinel, a newspaper founded by William G. T'Vault.
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