Thomas Dryer
| Thomas J. Dryer | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Member of the Oregon Territorial Legislature | |
|
In office 1856–1856 |
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| Constituency | Washington and Multnomah counties |
| Member of the Oregon Constitutional Convention | |
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In office 1857 |
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| Constituency | Washington and Multnomah counties |
| Personal details | |
| Born | January 8, 1808 |
| Died | March 30, 1879 (aged 71) Oregon |
| Political party |
Whig Party Republican Party |
| Occupation | Newspaper publisher |
Thomas Jefferson Dryer (January 8, 1808 – March 30, 1879) was a newspaper publisher and politician in the Western United States. A member of the Oregon Territorial Legislature in 1857, Dryer is best remembered as the founder of The Oregonian, an influential and enduring newspaper in the American state of Oregon.
Dryer was also a committed mountain climber and is credited with being among the first to summit Mount St. Helens and perhaps Mount Hood.
Thomas Jefferson Dryer was born on January 10, 1808, in Ulster County, New York.
After working as a journalist in New York state, Dryer came to San Francisco in 1849 with a hand-operated printing press in tow, seeking a suitable location to establish a newspaper of his own.
He initially launched a publication called the California Courier, but with limited success. While in San Francisco Dryer was recruited to relocate north to the town of Portland, Oregon by Stephen Coffin and William W. Chapman, founders and leading boosters of the fledgling enclave.
Coffin and Chapman provided a crude log cabin to Dryer to set up his press and establish his newspaper office. He was able to release the first issue of his publication, The Weekly Oregonian, on December 4, 1850 — about two weeks after the launch six miles to the north in Milwaukie, Oregon by Lot Whitcomb, The Western Star, a rival publication.
In 1856, Dryer served in the Territorial Legislature representing Multnomah and Washington Counties as a Whig. The following year, he was elected and served at the Oregon Constitutional Convention.
Dryer became a Republican and was an active supporter of Abraham Lincoln in the Presidential election of 1860, winning election as a presidential elector. Following Lincoln's victory, Dryer called in a political favor and was appointed U.S. Commissioner to the Kingdom of Hawaii.
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