Robert Veatch

Robert M. Veatch (1843–1925), commonly known in his later years as "Uncle Bob," was a teacher, farmer, mercantile owner, and politician in the U.S. state of Oregon. Veatch is best remembered for having served two terms in each the Oregon House of Representatives and Oregon State Senate and for having served as the long-time mayor of Cottage Grove, Oregon.

Veatch was twice an unsuccessful candidate for United States Congress, losing to incumbents as a fusion Democrat in November 1898 and as a Democrat in November 1904.

Robert M. Veatch was born June 5, 1843 in White County, Illinois. He was the son of Isaac Veatch, a blacksmith and cabinet maker who originally hailed from the state of North Carolina, and the former Mary Miller, a woman born in Georgia.

The Veatch family moved to Iowa when Robert was young and he remained in that state until the age of 16. Veatch then left home for Missouri, where he farmed for four years.

In 1864 Veatch crossed the plains from Missouri to California, moving north to join three brothers in Oregon after just three months there. He settled in the southern Willamette Valley town of Creswell, located in Lane County.

Veatch attended Willamette University for one year before transferring to the new Oregon Agricultural College (OAC), today's Oregon State University, in 1868. He graduated from OAC with a Bachelor's degree in 1871, a member of the second graduating class from that institution.

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