Kathryn Clarke | |
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Member of the Oregon Senate | |
In office January 21, 1915 – January 1917 | |
Preceded by | George Neuner Jr. |
Personal details | |
Born | 1873 Gardiner, Oregon, United States |
Died | August 19, 1940 Pasadena, California, United States | (aged 66–67)
Political party | Republican |
Kathryn Clarke (1873 – August 19, 1940) was the first woman to serve in the Oregon Senate. [1]
Clarke was born in 1873 to John Clarke and Catherine McGregor Clarke in Gardiner, Oregon. [2] In January 1915, Senator George Neuner Jr. resigned to serve as district attorney, so governor Oswald West, the cousin of Clarke, set to appoint a replacement. He initially offered the post to Dexter Rice, a judge, but Rice declined. A special election was held on January 20, which Clarke won by 76 votes. [3] [4] [5] Clarke served until January 1917. [6]