John B. Waldo | |
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13th Chief Justice of the Oregon Supreme Court | |
In office 1884–1886 |
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Preceded by | Edward B. Watson |
Succeeded by | William Paine Lord |
29th Associate Justice of the Oregon Supreme Court | |
In office 1880–1886 |
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Preceded by | James K. Kelly |
Succeeded by | Reuben S. Strahan |
Personal details | |
Born |
Salem, Oregon |
October 6, 1844
Died | September 2, 1907 | (aged 62)
Spouse(s) | Clara Humason |
John Breckenridge Waldo (October 6, 1844 – September 2, 1907) was an American politician and jurist from the state of Oregon. A native of Oregon, he grew up near Salem as part of a prominent pioneer political family that included father Daniel and brother William. A trained lawyer, he was elected to the Oregon Supreme Court and served for one term from 1880 to 1886, including as the 13th Chief Justice from 1884 to 1886. He also served one term in the Oregon House of Representatives. Waldo spent many summers in the Cascade Range fostering an appreciation for the natural environment, which led to conservation efforts to preserve the range and later to the naming of several natural features after Waldo, notably Waldo Lake.
Waldo was born in 1844 in Oregon to parents who immigrated to Oregon Country from Missouri via the Oregon Trail in 1843. The family settled near Salem in an area now known as the Waldo Hills in the Willamette Valley. John’s father Daniel Waldo, was also the father of William Waldo (1832–1911). Daniel Waldo was a politician in the early days of Oregon, while John’s brother William was a lawyer, judge, and state legislator, serving as President of the Oregon Senate in 1885.
John B. Waldo’s education was at Willamette University in Salem, graduating in 1866. He then passed the bar in 1870 and began practicing law in Salem. On October 8, 1877, he married Clara Humason of The Dalles, Oregon. They would have one daughter named Edith.