Matthew Deady - Political Career

Political Career

Deady was elected to the Oregon Territorial Legislature in 1850, where he represented Yamhill County as a Democrat in the lower chamber House of Representatives. He attended the session held in Oregon City beginning in December, where he met James W. Nesmith and Asahel Bush for the first time. Those three would become influential leaders of the Democratic Party in the Oregon Territory, and later the state of Oregon. Deady was an early member of the Democratic Party in the territory.

During his initial session in the territorial legislature in 1850, Deady served on the judicial committee and helped draft many of the laws in the territory. The Oregon Territory had just been created by the United States Congress in 1848, with the territorial government taking control in early 1849. Following the 1850 to 1851 session, the secretary of the territory, Edward D. Hamilton, asked Deady to assist in publishing the laws passed by the legislature for all previous sessions of the legislative assembly. Deady helped with this process, in what became the first volume of laws published in Oregon.

In 1851, Deady was elected to the upper chamber Council, and the following session served as President of that chamber. During the 1851 session he served as chairman of the Council’s judiciary committee. In all, Deady attended two regular sessions and one special session of the legislature from 1851 to 1853.