Van Banks DeLashmutt (July 27, 1842 – October 4, 1921) served as mayor of Portland, Oregon, from 1888 to 1891.[1]

Van Banks DeLashmutt
27th Mayor of Portland, Oregon
In office
1888–1891
Preceded byJohn Gates
Succeeded byWilliam S. Mason
ConstituencyPortland, Oregon
Personal details
BornJuly 27, 1842
Burlington, Iowa
DiedOctober 4, 1921(1921-10-04) (aged 79)
Spokane, Washington
NationalityAmerican
Political partyRepublican

Early life

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Van B. De Lashmutt was born on July 27, 1842, in Burlington, Iowa.[2] His family journeyed over the Oregon Trail in 1852 and settled in Polk County, Oregon.[2] He then worked as a printer in Salem, Oregon, for Asahel Bush before moving to California.[2] At the start of the American Civil War he was in California and joined the Union Army in 1861, serving in the Third California regiment guarding the mail routes.[2] After he left the Army he returned to Oregon and settled in Portland.[2]

Portland

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In Portland, he joined The Oregonian newspaper in June 1865 as a compositor.[2] De Lashmutt married Maria Kelly in 1868, and they had four children, with their residence at Fourteenth and Columbia.[2] He established a farm near Hillsboro, the Witch Hazel Farm, which became famous for his horses and race tracks.[2] There he raised thoroughbreds and raced them on both a .5 miles (0.80 km) and 1 mile (1.6 km) track, which eventually became the community of Witch Hazel.[2] In business, he helped start the Oregon National Bank and the Metropolitan Savings Bank, and he served as president of both banks.[2]

On May 2, 1888, De Lashmutt was appointed as mayor of Portland after the death of Mayor John Gates.[3] He was then elected to the position on June 18, 1888, and served until 1891, when William S. Mason took office.[1] He became the Bank of Albina's first president in 1892.[4]

Later life

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De Lashmutt left Portland for Spokane, Washington, to mine.[2] He died there on October 4, 1921, at the age of 79.[2] At the time of his death, he had been living in Spokane for more than 20 years.[4]

References

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  1. ^ a b "Directory of Current and Past Elected Officials: Mayors of Portland". City of Portland, Oregon. Archived from the original on January 21, 2021. Retrieved November 12, 2021.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l "Van B. De Lashmutt Passes in Spokane". The Oregonian. October 5, 1921. p. 13.
  3. ^ "Mayor Van B. De Lashmutt; The Council Chooses a Head to the City Government". The Morning Oregonian. May 3, 1888. p. 8.
  4. ^ a b MacColl, E. Kimbark (1976). The Shaping of a City: Business and Politics in Portland, Oregon, 1885 to 1915. Portland, Oregon: The Georgian Press Company. p. 91. ISBN 0-89174-043-0.

Further reading

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  • Hines, Harvey K., An Illustrated History of Oregon (1873), Volume I, pages 430-432.
  • Scott, Harvey W., History of Portland (1890), pages 533-535.
  • Bancroft, Hubert Howe, Chronicles of Builders of the Commonwealth (1892), Volume II, pages 644-649.
  • "The DeLashmutt Story: Elias DeLashmutt of Frederick County, Maryland and His Descendants"; Virgil Close, pg.82
Preceded by Mayor of Portland, Oregon
1888–1891
Succeeded by