Matthew Deady - Later Years and Legacy

Later Years and Legacy

As a prominent figure in Portland he continually worked to raise funds for the library he supported. He would also rely on financial help from his associates in order to supplement his small salary as a federal judge. This allowed him to keep his personal appearance inline with what was expected of prominent citizens. In contravention to his earlier stances during the Oregon Constitutional Convention, Deady later denounced violence against Chinese Americans during the 1870s and 1880s, even convening a grand jury to examine charging anti–Chinese crowds with criminal acts. These crowds were threatening violence against these minorities in an attempt to expel the immigrants from the state.

In Portland, Deady helped establish the University of Oregon’s law school. As the first public law school in the state, the University of Oregon School of Law opened in 1884 with an address by Deady. The school later moved to the main campus in Eugene.

From his work in California, the state bar in that state passed a resolution of thanks for Deady’s work. He was also named as a regent to Stanford University by then United States Senator Leland Stanford. Deady gave many public speeches and was a prolific writer on the law and other subjects, in addition to his national reputation in the legal field.

In 1878, Matthew's father Daniel died. In October 1892, he suffered a stroke, but continued to preside over the courtroom. Matthew Paul Deady died in Portland on March 24, 1893, at the age of 68. In 1893, the first building at the University of Oregon was renamed in Deady's honor. Built in 1876, Deady Hall joined the National Register of Historic Places in 1972 and was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1977. Matthew’s wife Lucy died in 1923, followed by son Henderson in 1933. The eldest son Edward died in 1914, with middle son Paul’s death coming in 1920.