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The Infamous Black Bird Southern Oregon History, Revised


Reameses

Also see the Loraine Hollis page.

Alfred Evan Reames, January 1938
Alfred Evan Reames

    SOLD OUT.--Mr. Thomas G. Reames has sold out his interest in the Union Stable to Mr. Kaspar Kubli. The business will hereafter be conducted by Messrs. Wilson & Kubli.
Democratic Times, Jacksonville, October 21, 1871, page 3


TOM. REAMES AT HOME.
    The Jacksonville Times, published at the home of the Democratic candidate for
Secretary of State, gives that gentleman the following highly complimentary notice:
    "Once more has Jackson County, the banner county of the state, been complimented with a place on the ticket, an honor acknowledged to be due her. And it is with pride that we announce that our fellow townsman, T. G. Reames, has been selected as such representative. He is peculiarly fitted for the arduous duties of this important place, and combines good financial acumen with a thorough conception of all that may be required of him. From boyhood a resident of our state, against whom nothing can be said, and, on the contrary, much in his favor, Tom Reames is preeminently the right man in the right place. Southern Oregon fully appreciates the compliment--a fact that will be made apparent in June next."
    You are right, Charley [Nickell]; Tom Reames is one of God's noblemen, and Southern Oregon will not be alone in showing her appreciation of his good qualities and peculiar fitness for the office of Secretary of State.
    But, Charley, you don't call Jackson the banner county this year if the Democracy of "Old Linn" can prevent it. Our party is in excellent fix for a gallant and successful combat, and we will roll up such a majority as will forever wipe out the Peter Cooper stain of 1876.
    But do your best, friend Nickell, and we will be first to give you our paw if you beat us.
State Rights Democrat, Albany, Oregon, May 3, 1878, page 2


BORN.
REAMES--In Jacksonville, April 18th, to the wife of T. G. Reames, a son.
Oregon Sentinel,
Jacksonville, April 30, 1879, page 3


    T. G. Reames, Democratic candidate at the last state election for Secretary of State, narrowly escaped death while on a hunting expedition in Jackson County last week. He was going down a canyon a distance away from camp sometime before dusk, when a snowstorm suddenly came up and night followed soon afterward. Unable to return, he wandered about without food and in his shirtsleeves. The moisture had saturated the matches he had with him, and left no alternative than to walk about to prevent freezing. After that all was a blank until late next morning, when he awoke to find himself seated alongside a log and so badly injured as to be unable to walk. A sheepherder passed by soon afterward, but he seemed unwilling to lend any assistance. Mr. Reames managed finally to reach his camp by crawling, where he lay helplessly until about 2 o'clock that night, when James Reames and a companion, who had been advised of the affair by the sheepherder, relieved him from his perilous position, after being out two days and two nights.
"Oregon," Sacramento Daily Union, October 28, 1879, page 4



ANOTHER PIONEER AT REST
    On Sunday evening at 11:20 Woodford Reames, one of the early pioneers of this state, laid down his earthly burden at the end of a long life full of honor and usefulness. For several months Mr. Reames had been suffering from dropsy of the heart and although all that medical skill could suggest was done, it was unavailing, and before the turn of the midnight hour he passed peacefully away surrounded by nearly all his family. Mr. Reames was one of the old Kentucky stock, his father having accompanied Daniel Boone to that state when it was yet a wilderness. Woodford emigrated from Kentucky to Illinois in 1848, where he remained with his family until 1852 and then pushed westward with them, landing in Vancouver in the fall of that year. For a short time he was in the employ of the Hudson Bay Company, then went to St. Helens on the Columbia and in June 1853 arrived with his family in Rogue River Valley, where he has resided continuously until the day of his death. Mr. Reames' father was, for over sixty years, a minister in the M.E. Church, and he himself has been during his whole life a consistent and faithful member of that organization, living in strict obedience to all the precepts of the church, dying in the full faith that all the promises of Christianity would be fulfilled and laying down his burden cheerfully and full of hope. Mr. Reames was in the 72nd year of his age and leaves a widow, three sons and two daughters to mourn a husband and father, gentle as a child yet strong enough to have fought the battle of life bravely and to have left behind him the name of a worthy, upright citizen. On Tuesday the remains were interred in the Masonic cemetery followed by a very large number of citizens who paid the last sad tribute to a friend and neighbor who, with the silent majority, now awaits the resurrection and the life. May the memory of him who has done his duty so bravely and so well always be green.
Oregon Sentinel, Jacksonville, May 17, 1882, page 3


    Thomas G. Reames was born in Hart County, Kentucky in 1839. Arrived in Oregon, September 1, 1852.
    Evan R. Reames was born in Macoupin County, Illinois, April 5, 1850. Arrived in Oregon, September 1, 1852.

"Southern Oregon Pioneers," Oregon Sentinel, Jacksonville, July 15, 1882, page 3


    THOMAS G. REAMES was born in Litchfield, Kentucky, December 15, 1838. When he was about six years old his parents settled in Carlinville, Illinois, where they remained until 1852, and came to Oregon that year. With his father he was employed by the Hudson's Bay Company during the winter, and in the spring they came to Jackson County, arriving just before the commencement of the Indian war in 1853--and settled near Phoenix. Mr. Reames was farming and mining here until 1864, when he took up his residence in Jacksonville and was appointed deputy sheriff, holding the office until 1868. That year he was elected sheriff--serving one term. After engaging in the livery business one year he opened a mercantile house at Phoenix, under the firm name of Reames & Sachs, which continued four years. Then, in conjunction with his brother, [he] bought out Messrs. White & Martin, at Jacksonville, and since that time the firm has been "Reames Bros." Mr. Reames has been mayor of Jacksonville several terms, and a number of times a member of the common council. He was appointed brigadier-general of the first brigade of Oregon militia by Governor Thayer. Received the nomination for secretary of state on the Democratic ticket in 1878, but was defeated by R. P. Earhart by 191 votes. He is a prominent citizen of Jacksonville, and is a past grand master of Masons in Oregon. His portrait appears in this work. Married Lucinda Williams, and has a family of seven children.
A. G. Walling, History of Southern Oregon, 1884, page 538


    Reames Bros. offer for sale their entire stock of merchandise in Jacksonville at cost, preparatory to a change in business.
"Brevities," Ashland Tidings, January 25, 1884, page 3


    Gen. T. G. Reames intends closing out his extensive stock of dry goods at cost with the intention of quitting the business. As he has never handled any but first-class goods, bargains can be had by purchasing of him. We hope he may receive one of the best appointments in the gift of the new administration, for he is a man of sterling integrity, a lifelong Democrat, and one of the few who has always honored a public or private trust.

"Local Items," Oregon Sentinel, Jacksonville, May 9, 1885, page 3



    Dr. Geo. DeBar, who was here some time since and purchased the Reames farm in Manzanita precinct, returned this week and proposes making further investments in the same line. He has visited England, France and South America since his last visit.

"Local Items," Oregon Sentinel, Jacksonville, June 13, 1885, page 3



Closing Out Sale.
    To quit business. Our entire stock of general merchandise is offered for sale, in whole or in part, at cost. If you want cheap goods, now is your time to buy them--as we mean just what we say.
REAMES BROS.
Oregon Sentinel, Jacksonville, June 27, 1885, page 2


    Thos. G. Reames of this place, as Grand Master of the Masonic Order in this state, has accepted an invitation to lay the cornerstone for the new University of Oregon. The date has not yet been announced.

"Local Items," Oregon Sentinel, June 27, 1885, page 3


    Gen. T. G. Reames of Jacksonville has resigned his position as postal inspector. He resigned once before, but he was so efficient in his duties that the department declined to accept it, but the failing health of his wife compelled him to insist upon giving up the office.
"Local and Personal," Rogue River Courier, Grants Pass, May 6, 1887, page 3



    Evan A. Reames delivered a fine declamation at Eugene during the commencement exercises at the annual reunion of the literary societies.

"Here and There," Democratic Times, Jacksonville, June 27, 1890, page 3


    Evan R. Reames of San Jose, Cal. is visiting Jacksonville and will stay a short time. He lately disposed of his business in California, and is now a gentleman of leisure.
    Gen. Thos. G. Reames and C. C. Beekman, accompanied by their wives, Mrs. D. Beekman and her daughters, and Miss Lizzie Graves, departed last Tuesday afternoon for a few weeks' sojourn by the sounding sea.
"Personal Mention," Democratic Times, Jacksonville, July 18, 1890, page 3


    The new silver half dollar has been introduced here by Beekman & Reames and seems to be popular.
"Here and There," Democratic Times, Jacksonville, February 5, 1892, page 3



    Mrs. T. G. Reames left for Yaquina Bay on Tuesday evening, accompanied by her son Evan. They will be gone a few weeks.
"Personal Mention," Democratic Times, Jacksonville, July 15, 1892, page 3


    Evan Reames has gone to Lexington, Virginia, to attend the law school there, which has a high reputation.
"Local Notes," Democratic Times, Jacksonville, September 9, 1892, page 3


    Mrs. John E. Ross of this precinct will spend the winter months with her daughter, Mrs. E. A. Reames, at San Jose, Cal.
"Here and There," Democratic Times, Jacksonville, October 7, 1892, page 3


    Jacksonville is a small town in population, but has more of the office-holding fraternity to the square yard than any town in America. After the polls closed on the 8th day of November, a raft of candidates blossomed out for all the offices in Oregon. Henry Klippel is billed for the U.S. marshalship; R. A. Miller for the Oregon City land office; Judge Prim for U.S. consul to Calcutta; Tom Reames for minister to Turkey; Nickell would like to get his fingers in the Treasury Department and Colvig--oh, he is after anything that has a salary attached to it. Circumstances and cruel fate having bereft him of an office for now these five months, he is lean, lank, hungry and dry, famishing and thirsting for another swing at the public teat, and it can't come too soon to suit his appetite.

Valley Record, Ashland, November 24, 1892, page 2


    Last Friday Clarence Reames and Willie McKenzie, aged thirteen years, while hunting built a fire and thought they would have a jolly time by burning powder. McKenzie poured the powder from an old flask, a small quantity at a time. All was well for a time, but later on the flask was placed too near the fire, when the powder within exploded. Reames was close by, watching the effect. He was severely burned on the head, face and hands, eyebrows and hair scorched and clothes burned full of holes. McKenzie was more fortunate and was only tumbled over by the shock. The boys are not likely to repeat the operation.

"Jacksonville Jottings," Valley Record, Ashland, December 8, 1892, page 2



    Gen. T. G. Reames and wife left for the East last Saturday morning, going by way of San Francisco. They will visit the World's Fair as well as relatives in Kentucky and Illinois.
"Local Notes," Democratic Times, Jacksonville, June 16, 1893, page 3


    Evan Reames, who has been attending the leading law college of Virginia, from which he graduated with high honors last month, returned home yesterday. He will probably locate in Montana to practice his chosen profession.

"Local Notes," Democratic Times, Jacksonville, July 14, 1893, page 3


    A. E. Reames is studying law in Hon. W. M. Colvig's office. He promises to become a good lawyer.

"Personal Mention," Democratic Times, Jacksonville, August 4, 1893, page 3


    E. R. Reames of Klamath Falls will leave for Jacksonville in a few days, from whence he goes to the World's Fair, accompanied by his wife and Miss Maggie Linn. His daughter Mollie will attend St. Mary's Academy during their absence.
"Personal Mention," Democratic Times, Jacksonville, September 15, 1893, page 3


    Gen. T. G. Reames, who has been engaged in the mercantile business at Klamath Falls for many years past, has retired from the firm of Reames, Martin & Co.
"Here and There," Democratic Times, Jacksonville, September 22, 1893, page 3


    E. R. Reames and wife and Miss Maggie Linn started for the World's Fair on yesterday's train. They will go by the Canadian Pacific, returning via the Sunset route, and will be gone two months.
    A. E. Reames left for Portland on Wednesday evening and may continue his trip farther northward, as he is looking for a location to practice law. Evan is one of southern Oregon's most promising young men, and his many friends wish him success wherever he may go.
"Personal Mention," Democratic Times, Jacksonville, September 22, 1893, page 3


New Law Firm.
    A. E. Reames, formerly a student of the University at Eugene and late a graduate of Washington and Lee University of Virginia, has located in Eugene and entered into co-partnership with E. R. Skipworth for the practice of law. Mr. Reames was a faithful student at the university and very popular with the faculty and students. He is a young man of excellent ability and sterling character. Mr. Skipworth, the senior member of the firm, has already established an enviable reputation as a lawyer and a citizen. The new firm is one of the very best in Lane County and we predict for it a successful career.--[Eugene Guard.
Democratic Times,
Jacksonville, October 6, 1893, page 3


    Alfred E. Reames has been admitted to practice in the courts of Oregon upon a certificate from the supreme court of Virginia.
"Personal Mention," Democratic Times, Jacksonville, October 13, 1893, page 3


    E. R. Reames and wife have returned from their trip east and will spend the winter in San Francisco.
"Personal Mention," Democratic Times, Jacksonville, November 17, 1893, page 3


    A. E. Reames has left Eugene for Portland, to engage in the practice of law.
"Personal Mention," Democratic Times, Jacksonville, January 11, 1894, page 3


Settle Up.
    All persons indebted to the undersigned, either by note or book account, are hereby notified to call and settle at once. All claims due us will be placed in the hands of an attorney for collection if not paid promptly. We shall endeavor to do CASH business in the future.
REAMES, WHITE & CO.       
    Jacksonville, Jan. 22, 1894.
Democratic Times, Jacksonville, January 22, 1894, page 3


    The old-fashioned credit system of doing business died at Reames, White & Co.'s this week, and that enterprising firm will endeavor to build up a large cash business in the future.
"Local Notes," Democratic Times, Jacksonville, January 25, 1894, page 3


    T. G. Reames and his sons Willie and Clarence have gone to San Francisco to witness the opening of the Mid-winter Fair.
"Personal Mention," Democratic Times, Jacksonville, January 25, 1894, page 3


    A. Evan Reames is said to have become a member of the well-known firm of Johnson & Idleman of Portland.
"Personal Mention," Democratic Times, Jacksonville, February 15, 1894, page 3


    Gen. T. G. Reames returned Sunday from a business trip to San Francisco in the interest of Wm. Bybee.
"Medford Items," Valley Record, Ashland, March 14, 1895, page 3


    Gen. T. G. Reames went to California Tuesday on a short trip.
"Medford Items," Valley Record, Ashland, May 16, 1895, page 3



Matrimonial.
    Reames-Tongue--The home of Senator Thomas H. Tongue, of Hillsboro, was the scene of a very happy wedding last Wednesday. The contracting parties were Miss Edith L. Tongue, eldest daughter of Senator and Mrs. Tongue, and Mr. A. E. Reames, a prominent attorney of Portland. The bride is beautiful and accomplished, having been educated at the Oregon state university at Eugene, and at the university at Forest Grove, graduating with high honors. The groom is a son of General T. G. Reames, of Jacksonville, and is well known throughout the state. He was educated at the Oregon state university, and at Washington and Lee University, Lexington, Va. The wedding was a quiet one, only near relatives being present. The parlor was bedecked in flowers. Promptly at 11 o'clock a.m. the ceremony was performed, Rev. Dr. Webb, of Hillsboro, officiating. Immediately after the ceremony, a sumptuous wedding dinner was served, after which, amid showers of rice, the happy couple took a carriage for Portland, where they will reside. They have hosts of friends throughout the state who wish them unbounded happiness. No cards.
Oregonian, Portland, June 2, 1895, page 11


    Evan Reames, who has been going right along making a brilliant record in school, the practice of law and all other walks of life, has made another dash and swooped down on one of Oregon's fairest daughters and made her his bride. The large circle of friends of this native son of Jackson County soil wish him supreme happiness and continued prosperity.
"Medford Items," Valley Record, Ashland, June 6, 1895, page 3


    Gen. T. G. Reames has returned from a business trip to Portland.
"Medford Items," Valley Record, Ashland, August 22, 1895, page 3


    Miss Genevieve Reames, of Jacksonville, was in Medford a couple of days this week endeavoring to organize a class in elocution. Miss Reames teaches only children, and if the pleasant comment which comes from the people of Jacksonville is to be taken as a proof, she is indeed an able instructor. She has been handling quite a large class in the above-named place and but recently gave an entertainment in which her pupils took part and those in attendance have since been sounding the loudest possible praises for their work. She hopes to secure a class of about thirty in Medford--and there seems little doubt but that this number can be had. Woolf's hall has been secured as the class meeting place--and the first meeting will be held at that place on Saturday, January 25th, at 2 o'clock. Miss Reames was assisted in her canvass of this city by Miss Ella Hanley.
"News of the City," Medford Mail, January 17, 1896, page 5


    A. E. Reames of Jacksonville and C. B. Watson of Ashland were at Salem last week, and argued the case of Jacksonville school district vs. W. S. Crowell, county judge, et al., before the supreme court.

"Personal Mention,"
Democratic Times, Jacksonville, March 14, 1898, page 3


    A. E. Reames, who has been at Salem on professional business, returned Tuesday morning, accompanied by his wife, who has been visiting at her old home at Hillsboro.

"Personal Mention,"
Democratic Times, Jacksonville, March 17, 1898, page 3


Genevieve Reames, September 10, 1899 Oregonian
September 10, 1899 Oregonian

    The Sunday Oregonian, which is printing pictures of residents of Oregon who are clever in amateur theatricals, gives that of Miss Genevieve Reames of Jacksonville in its last issue.
"Local Notes," Democratic Times, Jacksonville, September 15, 1899, page 3


    The wedding of Clarence L. Reames and Miss Clara Colvig took place at noon on Thursday last,  at the home of the bride's parents, Mr. and Mrs. Wm. M. Colvig, on Oregon Street, and was a very charming affair. But few persons were present, and they were either members of the families of the contracting parties or very intimate friends. Mr. Reames is the junior member of the firm of Reames Bros., of Gold Hill, and very popular with his fellow men. The bride is a highly cultured and very refined young lady. Rev. S. H. Jones performed the ceremony, and Zela White and Master Vance Colvig acted as bridesmaid and best man. Mr. and Mrs. Reames left immediately for Gold Hill, where a cozy home had been fitted up for the happy couple.

"Jacksonville News," Medford Mail, December 29, 1899, page 3


Death of Thos. G. Reames.
    Gen. T. G. Reames died last evening at his home in Jacksonville after an illness of a week or so with erysipelas.
    Mr. Reames was born in Litchfield, Kentucky, Dec. 15, 1838. When he was about six years old his parents settled in Carlinville, Ill., where they remained until 1852, and came to Oregon that year. With his father he was employed by the Hudson Bay Co. during the winter, and in the spring they came to Jackson County, arriving just before the commencement of the Indian war in 1853, and settled near Phoenix. Mr. Reames was farming and mining here until 1864, when he took up his residence in Jacksonville and was appointed deputy sheriff, holding the office until 1868. That year he was elected sheriff, serving one term. After engaging in the livery business one year he opened a mercantile house at Phoenix under the firm name of Reames & Sachs, which continued four years. Thence in conjunction with his brother, bought out Messrs. White & Martin, at Jacksonville, where he was engaged in the mercantile business for many years and finally became a partner of C. C. Beekman in the banking business, which they have carried on for the past number of years.
    Mr. Reames was a prominent man in political affairs and in 1878 was the Democratic nominee for secretary of state, but was defeated by R. P. Earhart by 191 votes. During President Cleveland's first term he was appointed a U.S. Postal Inspector and was a delegate to the national Democratic convention in 1892 which nominated Cleveland.
    He leaves a wife, formerly Lucinda Williams, and a family of seven children.
    The funeral takes place at Jacksonville tomorrow (Friday) at 2 p.m. under the auspices of the Masons, of which order deceased was a prominent member in Oregon. He was the first commander of Malta Commandery No. 4, Knights Templar, of Ashland.
Valley Record, Ashland, February 22, 1900, page 3

Thomas G. Reames 1900-2-24p4Oregonian
February 24, 1900 Oregonian

DEATH OF THOMAS G. REAMES
An Old Pioneer, Citizen and Capitalist of Southern Oregon
Dies in Jacksonville Last Night.
    General Thomas Givings Reames, an honored and respected citizen of this valley, and a man of affairs, died at his home in Jacksonville, Wednesday night at 9 o'clock, aged 60 years, 2 months and 6 days. Several weeks ago Mr. Reames was suffering severely from nasal catarrh and went to Portland for surgical treatment, where he had an operation performed. Following the operation he caught a severe cold, which afterwards developed into erysipelas, and he has been lying at his home for several days in a very critical condition, attended by doctors DeBar, Robinson and Pickel, but the best of medical aid failed to save his life.
    The deceased pioneer was one of the best-known men in the state, and was a candidate for honors and preferment by the Democratic Party on several occasions. He was a member [of the] well-known banking firm of Beekman & Reames, of Jacksonville, at the time of his death.
    Thomas G. Reames was born in Litchfield County, Kentucky, December 15, 1839. When he was about the age of 6 years his parents moved to Carlinville, Illinois, where the family remained until the year 1852, and then crossed the plains to faraway Oregon, arriving late that year. Together with his father he was employed in the then-important Hudson Bay Company, but learning of the gold mining and other resources of Southern Oregon, they came to Jackson County, settling in the locality of Phoenix. He mined and farmed thereabouts until the year 1864, when he established his residence in Jacksonville, and was appointed a deputy sheriff under Wm. Owens, which office he held until 1868, when he was nominated by the Democratic Party and elected sheriff of the county of Jackson, serving one term with much credit to the county and himself. After his term of office expired he engaged in the livery business in Jacksonville for a time, and then established a general merchandise business near his old home in Phoenix, with B. Sachs, under the firm name of Reames & Sachs, continuing that partnership for a period of four years. Together with his brother Evan Reames, he then purchased the stock and good will of the firm of the firm of White & Martin, of Jacksonville, removed there, and carried on the business as Reames Brothers, with a branch house in Klamath Falls.
    General Reames was one of the very prominent members of the Masonic fraternity, having been the Grand Master of the Grand Lodge, A.F. and A.M. of Oregon, in 1885. He was made a Mason in Warren Lodge, No. 10, of Jacksonville, where he has held an honorary membership, and was worshipful master from 1871 to 1876. He was exalted to a Royal Arch Mason in Oregon Chapter, No. 4, at Jacksonville, and has been its high priest since 1879. General Reames was knighted as a Knight Templar in Oregon Commandery in 1877, and became a charter member of Malta Commandery, No. 4, of Ashland, and was its first eminent commander. He received the 32nd degree of A.A.S.R. in Portland Consistory, and was a member of Al Kadir Temple Ancient Arabic Order of the Mystic Shrine of Portland. He is the grand representative of
the grand lodge of Florida, the grand representative of the grand lodge of Florida and the grand lodge of South Australia, in Oregon.
    General Reames has long been prominent in Democratic politics in this county, as well as the state, and was one of the best-known men in Oregon. He served a number of terms in the town council of Jacksonville, was mayor of that city several times, and was appointed brigadier general of the first brigade of Oregon militia by Governor W. W. Thayer, in 1878. In the year 1878 General Reames was the Democratic candidate for the office of secretary of state against the late Hon. Rocky P. Earhart, but was defeated for the office by 191 votes. During the early days of the first administration of President Cleveland, General Reames was appointed by the President United States postal inspector, but the position did not prove to his liking, and after a few months' very creditable service he resigned the office. He was a delegate to the National Democratic Convention of 1892.
    General Reames was married July 4, 1866, to Miss Lucinda Williams, and a family of four sons and six daughters have blessed the union; A. E. Reames and Chas. Reames of Jacksonville, W. F. and Clarence Reames of Gold Hill, Mrs. J. F. White, Genevieve, Lucinda, Laura, Nellie and Florence Reames of Jacksonville.
    The funeral will take place from his late home in Jacksonville Friday afternoon at 2 o'clock, under Masonic auspices. Malta Commandery No. 4 of this city will send a delegation to Jacksonville on this evening's train to attend the funeral.
    The services will be conducted by Warren Lodge No. 10 of Jacksonville, and Malta Commandery No. 4 K.T. of Ashland will act as escort.
Ashland Semi-Weekly Tidings, February 22, 1900, page 3


NORTHWEST DEAD.
General Thomas G. Reames, Prominent Citizen of Jacksonville.
    ASHLAND, Or., Feb. 21.--General Thomas G. Reames, an honored and respected pioneer, capitalist and citizen of Jacksonville, member of the banking firm of Beekman & Reames, of that city, died at his home tonight, at 9 o'clock, after being confined to his bed for several days with erysipelas, aged 61 years.
    The deceased was one of the best-known men in Oregon, and had long been prominent in the political affairs of the state. He was born in Litchfield County, Kentucky, December 15, 1838, and came to Oregon in 1853 from Carbonville, Ill., settling in Jackson County, where he had since resided. He had served as sheriff of the county, mayor of Jacksonville several terms, and was appointed brigadier-general of the First Brigade of the Oregon militia by Governor Thayer. In 1876 Mr. Reames was the Democratic candidate for secretary of state, but was defeated by the late Hon. Rocky P. Earhart, by 191 votes. During the early days of President Cleveland's first term he was appointed a United States postal inspector, but the work was not to his liking, and he resigned in a few weeks.
    Deceased was a prominent member of the Masonic order, being at one time the grand master of Oregon Masons. The funeral will take place from the family
home in Jacksonville, Friday, at 2 o'clock. He left a wife, and seven children, and a large estate.
Morning Oregonian, Portland, February 22, 1900, page 4


A Dead Pioneer.
By the Associated Press
    ASHLAND, Or., Feb. 23--Thomas G. Reames, an Oregon pioneer and one of the best-known men in the state, died at his home in Jacksonville last night. Together with his father he was one of the employees of the Hudson Bay Company in Oregon Territory, but moved to Southern Oregon upon the discovery of gold there. He became associated with C. C. Beekman in the banking house of Beekman & Reames, the pioneer bank in the southern half of Oregon. He was at one time prominent in Oregon politics and was widely known in Masonic circles, of which order he was past grand master of the state.
San Jose Herald, February 23, 1900, page 8


General Reames Dead.
Special Dispatch to The Call.
    MEDFORD, Feb. 22.--General Thomas G. Reames of Jacksonville died last night after a brief illness. He was a partner in the banking house of Beekman & Reames and a pioneer leader in Democratic politics. He leaves a large family.
San Francisco Call, February 23, 1900, page 6


GENERAL THOMAS G. REAMES.
Prominent Oregon Pioneer, Who Died Wednesday.
    JACKSONVILLE, Or., Feb. 22.--General Thomas G. Reames, who died at his home in Jacksonville February 21, was born in Grayson County, Kentucky, December 15, 1838. He crossed the plains with his parents to Oregon in 1852. The family wintered at St. Helens, and moved to Jackson County in the spring of 1853, where Mr. Reames' father took up a donation claim near Phoenix. Thomas farmed and mined till 1864, when he was appointed Deputy Sheriff under W. A. Owen. In 1868 he succeeded Mr. Owen as Sheriff. At the conclusion of his term of office he engaged extensively in the mercantile business at Phoenix, Jacksonville and Klamath Falls. He was appointed Postal Inspector during President Cleveland's first term, and in 1878 was the nominee of the Democratic Party for Secretary of State. In 1887 he formed a partnership with C. C. Beekman in the banking business. Mr. Reames was a 32nd degree Mason, past grand master of the Grand Lodge of Oregon, and a member of the A.O.U.W. Mr. Reames was a man of energy, of discriminating judgment and superior business qualifications. He leaves a wife and four sons--Alfred Evan, of the law firm of Colvig & Reames; William and Clarence Lester, partners in the mercantile business at Gold Hill, and Charles Wilkinson, a small boy at home--and six daughters, Mrs. John F. White, of Medford, and Misses Genevieve, Lucinda, Laura, Nellie and Florence, all at home.
Oregonian, Portland, February 24, 1900, page 4


    General Thos. Givings Reames, an old pioneer and man of influence, died at his home in Jacksonville, Oregon, February 22nd. He was a prominent Democratic politician of that section and was several times honored by nomination for high office at the hands of the party, all of which he creditably filled when elected. General Reames was a Mason of high degree. His funeral was under auspices of that order, and was the largest attended that has taken place in Jackson County for many years. He leaves a wife and six children, one of whom is W. F. Reames, well known to the citizens of Crescent City.
Del Norte Record, Crescent City, March 3, 1900, page 3


    Mrs. Lu Marhoffer has returned home from a visit to her daughter, Mrs. W. M. Reames of Gold Hill, Jackson County.
"Local News Briefly Told," Del Norte Record, Crescent City, June 16, 1900, page 3


    W. H. Ricker, of Gold Hill, and Miss Genevieve Reames, daughter of the late T. G. Reames, were married in Jacksonville on Wednesday of this week. Mr. Rickey is but recently from New York City and has mining interests near Gold Hill.

"City Happenings," Medford Mail, September 21, 1900, page 7


Wimer Mine Incorporated.
    Hon. A. E. Reames of Jacksonville has purchased a third interest in the Wimer hydraulic mine at Waldo, and the property has been incorporated under the name the Deep Gravel Mining Company, in the sum of $85,000, divided into shares of $100 each. G. W. Wimer is president of the new company, W. J. Wimer treasurer and A. E. Reames secretary.
    Many new improvements have been made on the property during the past summer, and the mine now had a very complete equipment and is in the best condition for profitable operation--Courier.
Medford Enquirer,
January 5, 1901, page 1


    Evan Reames, the Klamath Falls banker, accompanied by his wife, arrived in Medford Tuesday and will remain here several days. Mr. Reames is one of the executors of the estate of the late T. G. Reames, and it is in connection with the appraisement of the property that he is here.

"Purely Personal," Medford Mail, March 15, 1901, page 6


    Misses Lucinda and Laura Reames spent Friday with their sister, Mrs. John F. White of Medford..
"Jacksonville Items," Medford Mail, January 3, 1902, page 3


    Banker and Mrs. E. R. Reames, of Klamath Falls, were in Medford Monday and Tuesday upon a visit to J. F. White and family. They are now visiting Jacksonville relatives.

"Purely Personal," Medford Mail, March 21, 1902, page 6


    Mrs. L. Reames, of this city, will remove to Berkeley, Calif. in the near future.
"Jacksonville Items," Medford Mail, March 28, 1902, page 3


    Mrs. L. Reames and family will leave about May 1st for Berkeley, Calif., where they will make their future home.
"Jacksonville Items," Medford Mail, April 18, 1902, page 3


    Mrs. L. Reames and family have gone to Berkeley, Calif., to make their future home. Will Reames and family accompanied them.
    Misses Lucinda and Laura Reames, of this city, will graduate from the seminary class of Mills College, Calif., on Wednesday, May 21st, 1902.
"Jacksonville Items," Medford Mail, May 16, 1902, page 3


    The gas plant installed here by E. A. Reames is in operation. The first test was made with the street lamps Sunday night, and the light produced was a pronounced success.
"Jacksonville News," Medford Mail, August 29, 1902, page 3


    Rumor has borne afloat about Medford this week that Ira Anderson and Lucinda Reames were recently married in San Francisco. The rumor is not authenticated by the parents of Mr. Anderson, who reside in this city, they averring that if the rumor is true they know nothing of it.
"City Happenings," Medford Mail, September 12, 1902, page 7


    Married--At the residence of the bride's mother, in Berkeley, Calif., on September 11, 1902, Mr. Ira Anderson and Miss Lucinda Reames. The groom is the son of Mr. and Mrs. R. F. Anderson, of Medford, and the bride is the daughter of Mrs. T. G. Reames, formerly of Jacksonville.
"Additional Local," Medford Mail, September 19, 1902, page 6


    District Attorney A. E. Reames and his sister, Mrs. J. F. White, left this week for a few days' visit with their mother and sisters at Berkeley, Calif.

"Purely Personal," Medford Mail, October 10, 1902, page 6


    District Attorney Reames returned Sunday night from Lake and Klamath counties, where he had been attending court. He succeeded in convicting one Indian out of two on trial at Klamath Falls, and considers that a good average, especially as the witnesses were all aborigines, and the habit our red brothers have of wandering from the truth is notorious. It is almost impossible to get an Indian to tell a story twice in the same way.
"Purely Personal," Medford Mail, December 5, 1902, page 6

A. E. Reames, February 17, 1903 Oregonian
February 17, 1903 Oregonian

    District Attorney Reames is favorably mentioned in connection with the Democratic nomination for Congress from the First District. The Oregonian prints his picture in a recent issue.
"Brief Mention,"
Democratic Times, Jacksonville, February 25, 1903, page 2


OVATIONS TO REAMES.
Impromptu Receptions at Medford and Jacksonville.
    MEDFORD, Or., April 13.--(Special.)--Hon. A. E. Reames, Democratic candidate for Congress in the First District, on his return from Albany this morning, was tendered an impromptu but nevertheless a very enthusiastic ovation, both in this city and at his home in Jacksonville. Mr. Reames was met at the train by a delegation of citizens and the high school band greeted him with music, which added much to the reception, which was certainly very complimentary to Mr. Reames. Repeated calls for some remarks by him being made, he mounted an improvised platform and spoke eloquently for a few minutes. Mr. Reames assured his hearers that he would serve his constituents in an energetic and impartial manner, sparing no effort to secure all the beneficial legislation in his power for the people of his district irrespective of location. At Jacksonville Mr. Reames' arrival was greeted by the firing of anvils and other demonstrations of welcome.
----
    JACKSONVILLE, Or., April 13.--(Special.)--On arrival of the train today bearing Hon. A. E. Reames, the Democratic nominee for Congress for this district, he was met at the depot by a large crowd of people, headed by the Medford High School band, and given a royal reception. He was the recipient of many hearty congratulations, and from the rear of the car, in a few well-chosen words, thanked his fellow-townsmen for the splendid reception, which he had not at all anticipated. He said that it elected, as he felt assured he would be, it would be his pride and purpose to serve the people of Oregon in every measure having for its object the public good.
Morning Oregonian, Portland, April 14, 1903, page 4


    Clarence L. Reames, who has been studying law in the office of District Attorney Reames, was admitted to the bar by the Supreme Court one day last week.

"Personal Mention," Democratic Times, Jacksonville, April 15, 1903, page 1



BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH OF MR. REAMES
As Given by an Oregonian Correspondent Writing from Albany.

    A. E. Reames, the Democratic nominee for Congress in the First Congressional District, was born in Jacksonville, Ore. in 1862. He comes from Southern stock, his father, Thomas G. Reames, having come to Oregon from Kentucky in the pioneer days of 1853, and his mother is a native of Missouri.
    Mr. Reames received his primary education in the public schools of Jacksonville, and then attended the University of the Pacific at San Jose, Calif. Later he was a student at the University of Oregon. Before completing his course at Oregon's leading educational institution, Mr. Reames went to Lexington, Va. and entered the law department of Washington and Lee University. While there he won the debater's medal. He graduated from the law department of the Virginia institution in 1890, and immediately returned to Jacksonville for the practice of his profession. However, Mr. Reames remained in Jacksonville but a short time, when he formed a partnership with E. R. Skipworth in Eugene. This lasted until 1893, when he moved to Portland and associated himself with C. M. Idleman in the practice of law. He was candidate for representative on the Democratic ticket while he lived there. In 1896 Reames returned to Jacksonville, where for a time he practiced law in partnership with Wm. M. Colvig. He was elected prosecuting attorney for the First Judicial District in 1900.
    Mr. Reames married Miss Edith Tongue in 1895. He was for over three years president of the Oregon Native Sons' Cabin at Jacksonville, and for one year held the office of grand president of the Native Sons of Oregon. He is a Shriner in the Masonic order, and belongs to the Red Men and the B.P.O. Elks.
Democratic Times, Jacksonville, April 15, 1903, page 1


Our Next Congressman Receives an Enthusiastic Welcome.
    District Attorney Reames, who was nominated at Albany as the Democratic candidate for Congress in this district, returned home Monday. He was met at the train by a large number of people and the high school band of Medford. Anvils boomed, bombs were exploded and there were many other demonstrations of enthusiasm and good will.
    Being called on for a speech, Mr. R. mounted the rear of the car, and for several minutes entertained his hearers. He seems sanguine of his election, and assured his auditors that he would serve them faithfully and impartially, and leave nothing undone that would be of public benefit and importance.
    Jackson County now has the only real opportunity in its history to be represented in Congress by one of its own citizens--a native son--who is a gentleman of first-class ability and high character. It should give Mr. Reames at least 1000 majority.

Democratic Times,
Jacksonville, April 15, 1903, page 1


OVATION TO MR. REAMES
Impromptu Receptions at Medford and Jacksonville.

    The Oregonian of the 14th gives the following account of the receptions given our next congressman on his return home: "Hon. A. E. Reames, Democratic candidate for Congress in the First District, on his return from Albany was tendered an impromptu but nevertheless a very enthusiastic ovation, both in Medford and at his home in Jacksonville. Mr. Reames was met at the train by a large delegation of citizens. The high school band greeted him with music, which added much to the reception, that was certainly very complimentary to Mr. Reames. Repeated calls for some remarks by him being made, he mounted an improvised platform and spoke eloquently for a few minutes. Mr. Reames assured his hearers that he would serve his constituents to an energetic and impartial manner, sparing no effort to secure all the beneficial legislation in his power for the people of his district, irrespective of location. At Jacksonville Mr. Reames' arrival was greeted by the firing of anvils and other demonstrations of welcome."
Democratic Times, Jacksonville, April 15, 1903, page 1


    Mr. and Mrs. C. L. Reames of Jacksonville were in Medford Wednesday evening. The former was his way to Albany to attend the Democratic congressional convention. He will also apply for admission to the bar.
"Medford Squibs," Democratic Times, Jacksonville, April 15, 1903, page 3


MR. REAMES' CAMPAIGN WILL BE GENTEEL
In Every Way. Devoid of Personalities and One that Will Reflect Credit on His Candidacy.
    Paraphrasing New York's time-honored election expression, A. E. Reames will come down the Umpqua River with an overwhelming majority.
    It impossible to remain long in this part of the First Congressional District without being impressed with the immense popularity of Mr. Reames among the voters all classes. The fact that he has once easily carried this district is partial proof, at least, that his chances are excellent to repeat that achievement on the first day of June.
    In this part of the state Mr. Reames has lived all his life, with the exception of a few years spent in Eugene, Portland, San Jose and Lexington, Va. Those who are backing his candidacy make no small point of the fact that his home popularity is a good recommendation to the people farther removed from the place of his residence.
    Mr. Reames has already organized his campaign, which he proposes to prosecute vigorously from this day until the date of election. He has arranged his itinerary, and proposes to cover the district very thoroughly, speaking in as many places as the intervening time will permit. This itinerary has been arranged in conjunction with the District Congressional Committee, and will be announced in a few days. It will take him from one end of his district to the other, and not more than two or three counties will be omitted, among these being Coos and Curry, which it is impracticable to reach in the limited time remaining.
    It is quite surprising to learn of the remarkable support that is coming to him voluntarily from all quarters. Every mail brings voluminous correspondence containing proffers of assistance of the most valuable kind. If there be anything in surface indications, one must judge that the drift is towards Reames. His campaign managers realize the heavy majority that must be overcome, and that to overcome it is not a small task. Ordinarily to do so would be a practical impossibility, but a careful analysis of the situation satisfies them, so they assert that they will be able to accomplish that for which they are striving.
Democratic Times, Jacksonville, April 29, 1903, page 1


REAMES' PROSPECTS ARE VERY BRIGHT.
A Very Large Number of Republicans Will Vote for Him--
They Know Him to Be Clean, Impartial, Energetic.

    A. E. Reames, candidate for Congress, has 1246 majority to overcome in the First District. In the June election of 1902 W. J. Furnish, Republican candidate for governor, carried the First District by a majority over George E. Chamberlain, of 1246.
    It is not logical to compare the present campaign for Congress with that which was fought in 1902 between the late Thomas H. Tongue and J. K. Weatherford, respectively Republican and Democratic candidates. Mr. Weatherford is a man of highest character and strong with the voters. But he was running against a man who also was of distinction, in office and in the midst of the most brilliant career ever experienced by a congressman from Oregon.
    Mr. Hermann is not situated with respect to the voters as was Mr. Tongue. Mr. Hermann rests under dark clouds that obscure his official character--to put it charitably, clouds that do not brighten political horizons and presage victorious coming days. Rather, they indicate that a storm is about to break over his head and floods destroy his political house.
    Furthermore, A. E. Reames has passed the most searching inquiry, has been subjected to most severe scrutiny, and has emerged from the ordeal with unquestioned reputation and brilliant endorsement from the fair-minded voters of the district.
    The present situation, therefore, is like that which existed in the 1902 state candidate for governor.
ANALYSIS OF THE VOTE.
Furnish . . . 21,349
Chamberlain . . . 20,103
Furnish majority . . . 1,246
    Furnish counties--Benton, Clackamas, Coos, Curry, Josephine, Klamath, Lake, Lane, Lincoln, Tillamook, Washington and Yamhill counties gave Mr. Furnish a majority of 2206.
    Chamberlain counties--Douglas, Linn, Marion, Jackson and Polk gave Mr. Chamberlain a 960 majority.
REAMES HOME STRONGHOLD.
    According to the most astute politicians in the southern end of the First District, Reames will carry the First Judicial District, comprising Jackson, Josephine, Lake and Klamath counties, by more than 1000 majority over Hermann. To place it at only 1000 is to assume a most conservative attitude, for close figurers, who know the ground, in many instances name 1500 to 1800 as the correct estimate. These counties gave Furnish 270 majority over Chamberlain.
    To carry them with 1000 Reames will have wiped out the Furnish majority and have 24 votes to the good, if the remainder of the district be as it was in 1902.
    But Washington, Yamhill and Clackamas, which went for Furnish heavily, will beyond much doubt go for Reames. Presume them to be a "standoff" and the 753 majority they gave Furnish will be subtracted from the Reames' opposition to make up for possible losses everywhere.
    Hermann's normal strength, which he should inherit from the Furnish vote, crumbles to pieces in all of the remaining counties of the District. In Lane, Benton and many other counties he has lost from the votes that were cast for Furnish, until Reames' election seems to be practically assured.
Democratic Times, Jacksonville, May 20, 1903, page 1


Something About the Nominee.
    Harrisburg Bulletin: A. E. Reames, the Democratic nominee for Congress, is the First Congressional District, was born in Jacksonville, Or., in 1862. He comes from Southern stock, his father, Thomas G. Reames, having come to Oregon from Kentucky in the pioneer days of 1852, and his mother is a native of Missouri.
    Evan Reames received his primary education in the public schools of Jacksonville, and then attended the University of the Pacific at San Jose, Cal. Later he was a student at the University of Oregon. Before completing his course at Oregon's leading educational institution, Mr. Reames went to Lexington, Va., and entered the law department of Washington and Lee University. While there Reames won the debater's medal. He graduated from the law department of the Virginia institution in 1890, and immediately returned to Jacksonville for the practice of his profession. However, Mr. Reames remained in Jacksonville but a short time, when he formed a partnership with E. R. Skipworth in Eugene. This lasted until 1892, when Reames moved to Portland and associated himself with C. M. Idleman in the practice of law. In 1896 Reames returned to Jacksonville, where for a time he practiced law in partnership with William M. Colvig, which partnership was dissolved a short time ago. He is now State's Attorney of the First Judicial District of Oregon.
    A. E. Reames married Miss Edith Tongue in 1895. Mr. Reames was for three years president of the Oregon Native Sons' Cabin of Jacksonville, and for one year held the office of grand president of the Native Sons of Oregon. He is a Shriner in the Masonic order, and belongs to the Red Men and the B.P.O. Elks.
"What the State Press Has to Say of Reames and Hermann," Oregon Journal, Portland, May 26, 1903, page 6


REAMES' FINAL SPEECH.
Closes His Campaign Before a Medford Audience.

    MEDFORD, Or., May 29.--(Special.)--A. E. Reames tonight closed his campaign for Congress with a rousing rally, attended by citizens of this vicinity, and many from Jacksonville, who came by special train. Mr. Reames spoke last night at Gold Hill, and on Wednesday night at Oakland. He has no political appointments for Decoration Day.
    Discussing trusts and tariff revision, he counseled rational treatment of this issue, and said that no revision of law should be passed that would be iconoclastic in character, that would prejudice the interests of any legitimate industrial institution. He quoted from various statesmen who have favored reasonable revision, among them the late Mr. Tongue, and believed that trusts that sell abroad more cheaply than at home do not need protection.
    Applying to Pacific Coast industries his theories of economics, Mr. Reames advocated removal of tariffs between the United States and the Philippines, and urged that Coast manufacturers and producers demand leveling all barriers that now lie between the Coast ports and their legitimate markets in the Orient.
    He eloquently defended President Roosevelt from the imputation of having retained Secretary of the Interior Hitchcock as the friend of railroad corporations and discharging Mr. Hermann as the friend of the people, quoting from newspapers that, in commenting on the campaign, have said what he thought was a reflection on President Roosevelt. He read from a local paper an atrocious comment on the President, which referred to him as "resembling a bullet-headed tough," denouncing the article and eliciting continued applause by expressing high respect for the personality of the President as a perfect specimen of true Western manhood.
    Closing the address, Mr. Reames spoke fondly to his home county people, and was warmly applauded by the large audience.
Morning Oregonian, Portland, May 30, 1903, page 5


    ALFRED EVAN REAMES. A man of literary and scholastic attainments, well versed in legal science, Alfred Evan Reames is now rendering excellent service as district attorney for Jackson and Josephine counties. A native-born citizen, Jacksonville, the city in which he resides, may well be proud of her distinguished son, who has achieved praiseworthy success in his professional career, and has won a good reputation for judicial impartiality and legal ability. A son of Thomas G. Reames, an early settler of Jacksonville, he was born February 5, 1870. Woodford Reames, his paternal grandfather, a native of Kentucky, came to Oregon with his family in 1853, crossing the plains with ox teams, the customary mode of traveling in those days. Locating in Jackson County, he took up a donation claim of three hundred and twenty acres, lying midway between Phoenix and Talent. The upper portion of his claim was the site of the diggings of 1849, and is still rich in placer, and valued highly by the family, who have retained its possession until the present time. Retiring to Jacksonville in 1884, he lived here until his death, in 1885, at the age of seventy-two years. He was a blacksmith by trade, and worked at his trade in connection with farming during his years of activity.
    A native of Grayson County, Ky., Thomas G. Reames was but a boy when he came with his parents to Oregon. Completing his education in the pioneer schools of Jackson County, he first embarked in mining pursuits, and was afterwards a general merchant in Phoenix for three years. Disposing of his Phoenix store, he came to Jacksonville, and, in company with his brother, E. R. Reames, bought out the firm of Sachs Bros. & Co., and engaged in the mercantile business, conducting a general store. He subsequently organized the firm of Reames, Martin & Co., of Klamath Falls, Ore., the firm including, besides his brother and himself, Alex Martin, now living retired in Oakland, Cal., and Charles S. Moore, now state treasurer. E. R. Reames is still at Klamath Falls, where he is carrying on a prosperous banking and general mercantile business. During the time that the soldiers were in Fort Klamath, Mr. Reames and his brother carried on a substantial business in that locality. On retiring from the business in Jacksonville, E. R. Reames was succeeded by John F. White at first, and later by Lee Jacobs. In 1886 Mr. Reames became connected with the banking business of Jacksonville as junior member of the firm of Beekman & Reames, a position that he retained until his death, in 1900, at the age of sixty-three years. In 1885 he was appointed by President Cleveland postmaster inspector for Oregon, Idaho, Washington, Montana and Alaska, but at the end of eighteen months he resigned the position. In 1874 he was deputy sheriff of Jackson County, and in 1887 was elected sheriff, and served one term. In 1878 he was nominated for the position of secretary of state, but was defeated by only one hundred and twenty-six votes. One of the leading Democrats of the state, he served on the county and state Democratic committees until 1890. He married Lucinda Williams, who was born in Missouri, near St. Joseph, and is now residing in Berkeley, Cal.
    The second child in a family of four sons and six daughters, Alfred Evan Reames acquired the rudiments of his education in the common schools of Jacksonville. From 1888 until 1889 he continued his studies at the University of the Pacific, in San Jose, Cal., and the ensuing three years was a student in the University of Oregon, where he took a short course preparatory to taking up the study of law. Entering the Washington and Lee University, at Lexington, Va., in 1892, he was graduated in 1893 with the degree of B.A. Returning to Oregon, Mr. Reames began the practice of his profession with Eugene Skipworth of Eugene. Going to Portland in 1894 he was associated with C. M. Idleman, who was later attorney general of Oregon. Returning to Jacksonville in the fall of 1896, he was engaged in practice with William M. Colvig until 1900, when the partnership was dissolved. In that year he was elected district attorney for Jackson, Josephine, Klamath and Lake counties on the Democratic ticket, receiving a majority of four hundred and eighty-nine votes, although the counties went Republican by a majority of seven hundred and fifty votes. On the death of his father-in-law. Congressman Tongue, in 1903, Mr. Reames received the Democratic nomination for congressman from the First Congressional District.
    In Hillsboro, Ore., in 1895, Mr. Reames married Edith L. Tongue, who was born in Hillsboro, Washington County, Ore., August 26, 1871, a daughter of the late Thomas H. Tongue, of whom a brief biographical sketch may be found elsewhere in this work. A man of activity and enterprise, progressive and far-sighted, Mr. Reames is associated with many of the leading industries of this locality. He owns a controlling interest in the Deep Gravel Mining Company, of which he is secretary. This company, incorporated with a capital of $85,000, of which $75,000 is paid up, owns a valuable mine in Josephine County, about a mile north of Waldo. He is president of the Three Pines Timber Company, which owns ten thousand acres of timber land in Jackson and Josephine counties. In Jacksonville he built, and owns, the Jacksonville Gasoline Lighting Plant, the only one in existence in this part of the state. He is a student, and his valuable library contains a choice collection of books, being one of the finest in Jackson County.
    Politically Mr. Reames is an earnest supporter of the principles of the Democratic Party, and a prominent worker in its ranks. Fraternally, he is a member of Warren Lodge No. 10, A.F.&A.M.; of Oregon Chapter No. 4, R.A.M.; of Oregon Commandery No. 1, K.T. of Portland; of Al Kader Temple. N.M.S., of Portland; of P. P. Prim Cabin, Native Sons of Oregon, of which he was grand president in 1900-01; and of Pocahontas Tribe No. 1, I.O.R.M.

Portrait and Biographical Record of Western Oregon, Chapman Publishing Co., Chicago, 1904, pages 305-306


    EVAN ROGERS REAMES. In reviewing the career of Evan Rogers Reames one is impressed with the practical and substantial, as against the speculative and visionary, in business. Starting out in life as a clerk in a general store, he advanced by easy stages, keeping his mind focused on success, and with no thought of failure to clog his mental or physical machinery. It is to this steady and persevering class of men that communities owe their backbone, and whose affairs, always in order and well adjusted, are rarely influenced by temporary financial depression. Mr. Reames' fifty-three years of life began in Litchfield, Montgomery County, Ill., April 5, 1850, his father being Woodford Reames, born in Hart County, Ky., April 4, 1811, and his mother, Hulda (White) Reames, born in the same state and county April 2, 1825. His paternal grandfather, Aaron Reames, although a southerner and large slave owner, ranged himself on the side of the Union when the keeping of slaves became a national issue, emphasizing his sincerity by liberating those who had toiled for his success with the yoke of ownership upon their shoulders. In the Civil War he attained to the rank of colonel in the Union army. He was probably of Scotch descent, his emigrating ancestor having settled in Virginia, from where his parents moved to Kentucky, the state of his birth. He was the father of nine children, and he lived to an advanced age. Woodford Reames learned the blacksmith trade in his youth, working at the same in Kentucky and after his removal to Montgomery County, Ill. In April, 1852, when Evan, who was next to the youngest of the six children, was two years old, the father brought his family across the plains with ox teams, having six yoke of cattle, and a sufficient number of wagons to travel in comfort. There were many other home seekers in the train, and the party arrived at St. Helens, Columbia County, in October, 1852. The following spring Mr. Reames located one mile south of Phoenix, Jackson County, where he took up three hundred and twenty acres of land, the same now occupied by his son, James R. On this farm he made many fine improvements, and in connection with farming ran his little shop, one of the first in his neighborhood. About 1879 he retired to Jacksonville, where his death occurred in 1884, his wife surviving him until 1890. The oldest son in this family, Thomas G., a banker of Jacksonville, died in March, 1900; Martha is the widow of Joseph Rapp, of Talent, Ore.; James R. is a farmer of the vicinity of Phoenix, Ore., and Dora is the wife of Oliver Harbaugh, of Jacksonville, Ore. One child died in infancy.
    The early public schools of Jackson County afforded the preliminary education of Evan R. Reames, and at the age of nineteen he entered upon a six years' clerkship in the store of Major James T. Glenn, a pioneer merchant of Jackson County. While thus employed the Modoc War made an appeal to the able-bodied sons of the state, and he enlisted, as second lieutenant November 26, 1872, in Company A, First Oregon Volunteer Cavalry, serving until April, 1873. The company, under command of Capt. Harris Kelly, was detailed to service in both Klamath and Siskiyou counties, and at the first important battle Mr. Reames received a flesh wound in the leg. With the return of order he again took his place in the general store, and in 1881 engaged in a similar business in Jacksonville, in partnership with his brother, Thomas G., under the firm name of Reames Brothers. The business expectations of the brothers were so far realized that they were enabled to start a branch store in Klamath Falls, of which Evan R. assumed control in 1881, moving here, the better to superintend what was in reality a business of county importance. The store here was managed under the firm name of Reames, Martin & Co., and Mr. Reames continued with it until 1886, when he sold his interest both in this and the Jacksonville store, and turned his attention to stock-raising on his splendidly appointed ranch of two thousand acres two miles south of Klamath Falls. For a few years he was engaged in business in San Jose, Cal., the superior educational facilities of that town for his child being the chief incentive, for removal. Returning to Klamath Falls in 1890, he engaged in a general hardware business with George T. Baldwin, and in 1898 sold out both his stock and hardware business engaging in a general merchandise and banking enterprise with Alexander Martin and son. At the expiration of two years Mr. Reames purchased Martin's interest, and has since conducted his business under the firm name of Reames & Jennings.
    The broad and tolerant public spirit of Mr. Reames has found vent in many avenues of town activity, and he has been particularly energetic in seeking to gain the foremost of modern advantages for his adopted town. He is one of the promoters and a stockholder in the light and water works of Klamath Falls, and is treasurer of and owns a quarter interest in the Midway Telephone & Telegraph Company. He is also vice-president of the Klamath County Bank, one of the solid financial institutions of this part of the state. Although independent in politics, he has held many positions of honor in the community, and when Klamath was divided from Lake County he was appointed county treasurer by the Governor, and was elected to succeed himself, serving in all four years. For many terms he has been a member of the town council. Fraternally he is connected with the Klamath Falls Lodge No. 77, A.F.&A.M., the Knights Templar, and the Royal Arch Masons, being the present treasurer of the latter organization.
    Near Jacksonville, Ore., October 3, 1873, Mr. Reames was united in marriage with Jennie E. Ross, who was born in 1855 on a farm near Jacksonville, Jackson County, Ore., a daughter of Gen. John E. Ross, one of the best known of the Indian fighters of the Northwest. Mollette, the only daughter born of this union, is one of the cultured and very popular young women of the county, and is the wife of F. W. Jennings, of the firm of Reames & Jennings. Architecturally and otherwise, the Reames home on the riverside is an exposition of latter-day elegance and refinement, and just such a center of hospitality as one might expect from a man of Mr. Reames' advanced ideas and unquestioned appreciation of the benefits of beautiful and attractive surroundings. To an unusual extent the genial owner possesses the nameless element of popularity, and with it the sincere good will of the many associates who regard him as the embodiment of western prosperity and shrewd business sagacity.

Portrait and Biographical Record of Western Oregon, Chapman Publishing Co., Chicago, 1904, pages 924-925


    JAMES R. REAMES. The ranch now occupied by James R. Reames has been in the possession of his family since 1853, and in the meantime has undergone a change from the wild and uncultivated to the modern and productive. Located one and a half miles southwest from Phoenix, it is three hundred and twenty acres in extent, and the successful owner raises a variety of products, as well as much fine stock. He has a pleasant rural home, bearing slight resemblance to the one-room log cabin erected by his father when he first came here, and his barns are far superior to the rude shacks which protected from the blasts of winter the stock which crossed the plains. Mr. Reames and his industrious and capable sons are thoroughly practical in their methods, and their farm presents one of the typical examples of agriculture to be found in this county.
    In Grayson County, Ky., where he was born January 6, 1844, Mr. Reames lived the first four years of his life, and in 1848 was taken by his parents to Macoupin County, Ill., where his father, Woodford Reames, engaged in farming and blacksmithing. In the spring of 1852, when James R. was eight years old, the family started across the plains with two wagons and six yoke of oxen, accomplishing the long journey to Oregon without any particular adventure. After spending the winter at St. Helen they came in the spring of 1853 to Jackson County, where the elder Reames selected the farm now occupied by his son, erected the log cabin heretofore mentioned, and finally cleared a little patch of ground for the sowing of the first seed. Soon afterward he went to Talent and Fort Wagner with his wife, and four children, in both of which places the settlers had stockades to protect them from the Indians. After the Rogue River War life and property were assured greater safety, and the family returned to their own, and industriously set about making a home in the wilderness. The father lived to be seventy-two years of age, and almost up to the time of his death in 1882 kept his cheerful spirits and good health. His wife, many years younger than himself, survived him until 1891, dying at the age of sixty-two years. Mrs. Reames was formerly Malinda White, and she was the mother of six children, of whom Thomas G., the oldest son, is deceased; Martha is the widow of Joseph Rapp; James R.; Evan R. lives at Klamath Falls, Ore.; Medora is the wife of Oliver Harbaugh of Jacksonville, Ore.; and Richard died at an early age.
    Until 1869 James R. Reames lived on the home farm and then tried to improve his prospects by engaging in the livery business in Jacksonville for a couple of years. He afterward clerked in a general store in Phoenix for five years, making himself a valuable employee of Reames & Sachs. At the end of this period Mr. Reames, in company with C. S. Sargent, purchased the business which they conducted until 1876, when their store was destroyed by fire. Mr. Reames soon afterward opened a business of his own, which he conducted for five years or until he located on his present farm. In 1875 he was united in marriage with Alice Strong, of which union six children have been born: Lillie, Elsie, Harry W., Ernest, Archie, and Nellie, all of whom are still at home. From his home in Phoenix Mr. Reames returned to the old home place in Jackson County, where he has since lived uninterruptedly. He finds his mercantile experience of invaluable aid in the management of his farm, but naturally prefers the occupation in which he was trained in his youth, and which nets him a comfortable yearly income. From time to time Mr. Reames has taken an active interest in local politics, and for eighteen successive years has been a member of the school board. He is a supporter of the Democratic Party, although he is liberal minded enough to vote for the man best qualified for the office in question. He is esteemed as a man of honest convictions, industry, and progressiveness, and his farm and himself are a credit to his prosperous and well-conditioned community.
Portrait and Biographical Record of Western Oregon, Chapman Publishing Co., Chicago, 1904, pages 846-847


TRY ANOTHER ONE, MR. REAMES
    The Medford Mail has stated that I had four criminal cases against the present District Attorney, A. E. Reames, and that I lost but one of them. Will Mr. Reames deny that I was not the attorney for the defendant in the following cases?
STATE VS. DEIK; STATE VS. GRINER,
STATE VS. HOSKINS; STATE VS. DAHACK.
    These cases were had in the courts of Jackson County and I was attorney for defendant in each one and lost but one--State vs. Dahack. Better nail another "lie," but be sure that it is a lie first, Mr. Reames.
    Mr. Reames has lost 66⅔ percent of the criminal cases he has had in Jackson County since he has been district attorney, which were tried by a jury. His predecessor, C. B. Watson, lost but 47 percent and yet Mr. Reames attempted to leave the impression, while making his first canvass for district attorney, that Mr. Watson was but a third-rate lawyer.
    Mr. Reames has resorted to the cowardly dodge of issuing a small pamphlet to the voters of the county, too late for general reply through the press, in which he seeks to gain votes for himself by attempting to create the impression that I was endeavoring to have swine in Jackson County restrained from running at large. The fact is that Mr. Hanley, an ardent supporter of Mr. Reames and for whom Mr. Reames is acting as attorney, is the originator of and the circulator of the petition.
    Mr. Reames' attempt to gain votes through issuance of a pamphlet too late for general reply should receive the seal of condemnation of voters as it deserves to receive it.
    June 6, 1904.        GUS NEWBURY.
Henry Dox Papers, Southern Oregon Historical Society Research Library M883 Box 2


    Friday evening the usually quiet town of Jacksonville was in an uproar, caused by the escape of four of the six prisoners confined in the county jail. Three of those who attempted to escape were the fellows who made so much trouble for the officers when they were arrested near Ashland, in June last. The other was Madison, who was awaiting trial for robbing Selsby & Magill's saloon in Medford. Howard and Keagan, two of the Ashland thugs, were captured quickly, while Wilson, the third man, and Madison made their escape.
    Art. Robinson and Chas. Irwin, the other two prisoners, made no attempt to escape. The break occurred a little after six o'clock. Deputy Sheriff Crawford had entered the jail for the purpose of removing the basket in which he had carried supper to the prisoners, when he was set upon by the gang, which attempted to put him in a cell. They failed to accomplish this purpose, however, but the four above named escaped from the jail and took to the hills. Pat Donegan, Jr., and Clarence Reames were returning from a deer hunting expedition and met Howard in the road. They covered him with their guns and marched him back to town.
"Jail Break at Jacksonville," Medford Mail, August 19, 1904, page 1


    EVAN ROGERS REAMES, one of the leading capitalists and bankers of Oregon, resides in a beautiful home on the banks of Klamath River, Klamath Falls. The place of his nativity is Litchfield, Montgomery County, Illinois, having been born April 5, 1850, the son of Woodford and Mahulda (White) Reames, both natives of Hart County, Kentucky. Woodford Reames was born April 4, 1811; his wife, April 2, 1825.
    The paternal grandfather of our subject, Aaron Reames, although living in the South and being a large slave owner, was found firmly on the Union side when slavery became a national issue. He then emphasized his sincerity by liberating those who had toiled for his personal success in life. Probably of Scotch descent, his ancestors settled in Virginia, whence his parents moved to Kentucky, where he was born. During the Civil War he attained to the rank of colonel in the Union army. Aaron Reames was the father of nine children, and lived to an advanced age.
    Woodford Reames, the father of our subject, in his youth learned the blacksmith trade, working at the same in Kentucky and, also, after he had removed to Montgomery County, Illinois. In April, 1852, when Evan R. was two years of age, he crossed the plains accompanied by his wife and four children, and a long train of many other emigrants. The family tarried one winter at St. Helens, Columbia County, Oregon, and the following spring Woodford Reames located about one mile south of Phoenix, Jackson County, Oregon, where he secured a donation claim of three hundred and twenty acres. On this land he made many improvements, and in connection with his farming operations conducted a blacksmith shop, this being one of the first in the neighborhood. Having erected a small log cabin and cleared a patch of ground which he sowed to grain, he removed his family to Talent, and thence to Fort Wagner. In each of these places the settlers had erected stockades to protect themselves from the hostile Indians. Following the Rogue River Indian War, assured of greater safety, they returned to their land and resumed their improvements of a "home in the wilderness." About 1879 he removed to Jacksonville where he lived a retired life until his death in 1884. His wife survived him until 1890. They had a family of six children, the two youngest being born in Oregon; Thomas G., a banker in Jacksonville, Oregon, who died in March, 1900; Martha, widow of Joseph Rapp, of Talent, Oregon; James R., a farmer on the old homestead at Phoenix, Oregon; Dora, the wife of Oliver Harbaugh of Jacksonville, Oregon; Richard, who died in infancy; and our subject, being the fourth of the family.
    The latter received a fair education in the public schools of that pioneer period and at the age of nineteen entered upon a six-year clerkship in the store of Major James T. Glenn. At the breaking out of the Modoc Indian War he promptly responded by enlisting as second lieutenant, Company A, First Oregon Volunteer Cavalry. This was on November 26, 1872. He served until April, 1873, under Captain Harris Kelley, and was detailed to service in Southern Oregon and Northern California. In his first important battle he received a flesh wound in the leg. Returning, he again assumed his old position in the store. In 1881 he was in partnership with his brother, Thomas G., in a general merchandise store, with a branch store at Klamath Falls, then called Linkville, of which Evan R. took control, removing here the same year. In 1886 he disposed of his interest in both stores and turned his attention to stock-raising. His ranch comprised two thousand acres, two miles south of Klamath Falls. He engaged two years in business in San Jose, California, chiefly on account of the superior educational advantages offered for his daughter.
    In 1890 Mr. Reames engaged in the hardware business with George T. Baldwin, at Klamath Falls, but in 1898 disposed of his interest and inaugurated a general merchandise and banking business, in company with Alexander Martin & Sons. He purchased Martin's interest in two years and has since conducted the same under the firm name of Reames & Jennings. He is one of the promoters and stockholders of the Klamath Falls Electric Light & Water Power Company, and is treasurer and owner of a quarter interest in the Midway Telephone & Telegraph Company, and is, also, vice president of the Klamath County Bank. Politically Mr. Reames is independent, and he has held many positions of honor in the community. At the organization of Klamath County he was appointed treasurer by the Governor, succeeding himself at the following election. He has served several terms in the city council, and has ever been recognized as a broad-minded and public-spirited citizen. He is a member of Klamath Falls Lodge, No. 77, A.F.&A.M., the Knights Templar and the Royal Arch Masons.
    October 3, 1873, near Jacksonville, Oregon, he was united in marriage to Jennie E. Ross, a native of Jacksonville, born in 1855. She is a daughter of General John E. Ross, one of the best-known Indian fighters in the Northwest. They have one daughter, Molette, an accomplished and very popular lady, the wife of F. W. Jennings, of the firm of Reames & Jennings.
An Illustrated History of Central Oregon, 1905, pages 1048-1049


A. E. Reames Will Resign.
    District Attorney Reames has signified his intention of tendering his resignation in the near future. The reason given by Mr. Reames is that he is unable to attend to his private practice and at the same time give sufficient attention to the duties of his office. The appointment of his successor will lie in the hands of Governor Chamberlain, and it is said that J. R. Neil, of Jacksonville, and H. D. Norton, of Grants Pass, have both expressed a willingness to immolate themselves upon the altar of official duty.
Medford Mail, May 4, 1906, page 1


Death of James R. Reames.
    James R. Reames, who died at his farm home, near Phoenix, on Friday, July 6, 1906, was born in Grayson County, Kentucky, in 1844. In 1852 he crossed the plains with his parents to Oregon, and in 1853 the family settled on the farm which afterward became the property of Mr. Reames and upon which he passed his life. Mr. Reames followed the mercantile business for several years, but in 1880 he returned to the home farm and devoted his energies and business knowledge to the successful tilling thereof. He was married in 1875 to Miss Alice Strong and to them six children were born, who, with his wife, still survive him.
    Mr. Reames was a man upright in his dealings, earnest in his convictions and a good citizen in every sense of the word.
    The funeral took place Sunday, interment being made in Phoenix cemetery. Rev. Robt. Ennis, of Jacksonville, officiated.
Medford Mail, July 13, 1906, page 1


CHANGE MADE IN LAW FIRM
The Firm of Colvig & Dunham Has Been Dissolved and Hereafter
the Firm Name Will Be Colvig & Reames--Both Able Lawyers
    The law firm of Colvig & Durham has been dissolved, and the new law firm is Colvig & Reames. The new firm is composed of Hon. W. M. Colvig and his son-in-law, C. L. Reames. Both these gentlemen are well known, and especially Mr. Colvig, who has for several years past been employed on one or other other side of nearly every case which has been tried in Jackson and Josephine counties.
    Mr. Colvig is unquestionably one of the best attorneys in the state. Mr. Reames, while having had not so much experience, is nonetheless an unusually bright young man and has had a goodly amount of actual practice at the bar while serving as deputy district attorney for several years past.
Medford Daily Tribune clipping dated October 15, 1908, William M. Colvig scrapbook.


CHANGE IN LAW FIRM.
The Firms of Colvig & Durham and Reames & Reames Dissolved.
    In addition to the dissolution of partnership of the law firm of Colvig & Reames, notice of which appeared in the Morning Mail a few days ago, the law firm of Reames & Reames has also been dissolved. A. E. Reames will continue the practice of law at Jacksonville and C. L. Reames has gone into partnership with William M. Colvig.
    Mr. Durham, who was formerly associated with Mr. Colvig, will continue the practice of law in Grants Pass.
Medford Mail, October 23, 1908, page 4


REAMES GETS JOB
Medford Man Is Chosen for District Attorney.
    WASHINGTON, April 12.--C. L. Reames, of Medford, Or., has been chosen for United States Attorney for the district of Oregon, it was learned here today.
*    *    *
REAMES' PUBLIC CAREER BRIEF
Medford Man Chosen for Federal Job Is Native of Oregon.
    MEDFORD, Or., April 12.--(Special.)--Clarence L. Reames is a native son of Oregon, having been born in Jacksonville, April 17, 1879, the son of Mr. and Mrs. Thomas G. Reames, early pioneers. His father came to Jacksonville in 1853 from Kentucky and was the leading merchant and banker in the county seat, being the partner of C. C. Beekman, now proprietor of the Beekman Bank.
    Mr. Reames held his first public office when elected last fall Joint Representative from Jackson and Douglas counties. At Salem he was an active Democratic leader and formed a close personal and political friendship with Governor West. He is also well acquainted with Senator Chamberlain and Senator Lane, taking an active part in the latter's campaign last November. Mr. Reames attended the University of Oregon at Eugene, but left before graduating to study law in the office of his brother, A. E. Reames, of Medford. In 1904 he was admitted to the bar and from 1900 to 1908 was deputy prosecuting attorney when his brother, A. E. Reames, held the office.
    In 1906 he ran for the State Legislature, but was defeated. Mr. Reames was then a member of the law firm of Reames & Reames. He entered partnership with Judge W. M. Colvig, and since Mr. Colvig's retirement, a year ago, he has been in business for himself. Mr. Reames is a prominent Elk, former exalted ruler of the order, and was high priest of the Royal Arch Chapter of Masons. He married Clara Colvig, daughter of his former partner, in 1903. They have no children.

Sunday Oregonian, Portland, October 3, 1909, page 47
Clarence L. Reames, February 6, 1910 Sunday Oregonian
February 6, 1910 Sunday Oregonian

    Mrs. T. H. Tongue and daughters, Mrs. Elizabeth Freeman and Miss Bertha Tongue, are guests of Mrs. Tongue's daughter, Mrs. A. E. Reames, at Medford. They will visit Crater Lake before returning home.

Sunday Oregonian,
Portland, October 6, 1912, page 39



    Clarence L. Reames, Jackson and Douglas--First Democrat to be elected from the Ninth District; native son of Jacksonville, Or., and has resided in Jackson County all his life. For the last 12 years he has practiced law in Jacksonville and Medford; served for seven years as Assistant District Attorney for the First District. Mr. Reames made speeches all over the district, advocating equal suffrage, and was elected by a majority of 1380. Being a former student of the University of Oregon, he may be expected to support that institution loyally during the session. He is an ardent supporter of good roads. Considering the large majority that he received in such a heavy Republican district, he will probably be the choice of the minority in the lower house for Speaker.
"Young Men Will Predominate in Next Oregon House," Sunday Oregonian, Portland, November 24, 1912, page 46
Clarence L. Reames, April 13, 1913 Sunday Oregonian
April 13, 1913 Sunday Oregonian

    C. L. Reames, of Medford, Or., has been chosen for United States Attorney for the district of Oregon, it was learned here today.

"Reames Gets Job,"
Oregonian, Portland, April 13, 1913, page 2


REAMES' PUBLIC CAREER BRIEF
Medford Man Chosen for Federal Job Is Native of Oregon.
    MEDFORD, Or., April 13.--(Special.)--Clarence L. Reames is a native son of Oregon, having been born in Jacksonville, April 17, 1879, the son of Mr. and Mrs. Thomas G. Reames, early pioneers. His father came to Jacksonville in 1852 from Kentucky and was the leading merchant and banker in the county seat, being the partner of C. C. Beekman, now proprietor of the Beekman Bank.
    Mr. Reames held his first public office when elected last fall joint representative from Jackson and Douglas counties. At Salem he was an acting Democratic leader and formed a close personal and political friendship with Governor West. He is also well acquainted with Senator Chamberlain and Senator Lane, taking an active part in the latter's campaign last November. Mr. Reames attended the University of Oregon at Eugene, but left before graduating to study law in the office of his brother, A. E. Reames, of Medford. In 1904 he was admitted to the bar and from 1900 to 1908 was deputy prosecuting attorney when his brother, A. E. Reames, held the office.
    In 1906 he ran for the state legislature, but was defeated. Mr. Reames was then a member of the law firm of Reames & Reames. He entered partnership with Judge W. M. Colvig, and since Mr. Colvig's retirement, a year ago, he has been in business for himself. Mr. Reames is a prominent Elk, former exalted ruler of the order, and was high priest of the Royal Arch Chapter of Masons. He married Clara Colvig, daughter of his former partner, in 1903. They have no children.
Oregonian, Portland, April 13, 1913, page 2


REAMES DEFIES FOES
RAILROAD AFFILIATION DECLARED REMOTE.
Appointee to District Attorneyship Says He Is Proud of Land-Grant Record, Too.
    MEDFORD, Or., April 17.--(Special.)--"Let them go to it," said C. L. Reames tonight when informed that an effort was being made to defeat his confirmation as United States District Attorney because of his Southern pacific affiliation and land grant record. "I am proud of my stand on both questions.
    "I was one of the first attorneys in Oregon opposing the withdrawal of the Southern Pacific land, and I publicly urged the return of land to actual settlers. I spoke in every schoolhouse in the county in 1906 when a candidate for the Legislature, favoring action against the railroad by the state.
    "In the recent Legislature I introduced House Bill No. 515, which was a railroad blue sky law, preventing any railroad in the state from issuing stocks and bonds without first securing permission from the State Railroad Commission. It passed the House but was killed by a Southern Pacific representative in the Senate.
    "As to my Southern Pacific affiliations, they are too remote to be taken seriously by anyone. My partner, W. M. Colvig, was Southern Pacific attorney in Medford for years and when he resigned about a year ago the business fell to me. I resigned as the road's representative the day I was elected to the State Legislature.
    "Of course, any man in the public service expects criticism, and his record should be strong enough to withstand any scrutiny. Opposition to my appointment, however, on these grounds is rather surprising. It is certainly a compliment when one's enemies can find no more damaging evidence to produce."
Morning Oregonian, Portland, April 18, 1913, page 6


    The ranch home of Mrs. J. C. Horton, on the old Reames place near Talent, was destroyed by fire about 10:30 o'clock Tuesday night, entailing a loss of $12,000, covered by $8000 insurance, due to a defective flue in the kitchen.
"Diamond Lodging House and Talent Home Burn Up," Medford Mail Tribune, September 23, 1914, page 6


    Mrs. C. L. Reames, who has been attending the funeral of Mrs. Birdseye, returned to her home in Portland last evening.

"Local and Personal," Medford Sun, April 10, 1915, page 6


A. E. REAMES LOSES FISHING CLOTHES
    A. E. Reames, while returning from a fishing trip on the Rogue River Monday evening, lost his fishing clothes and wading shoes, somewhere between Bybee bridge and Medford. They were in a canvas sack. The door of the tonneau flew open and the sack dropped to the road. The loss was not discovered until Mr. Reames reached home. The route traversed by Mr. Reames was over the Agate road and the newly built shortcut road that joins the Pacific Highway near the Pacific and Eastern crossing.
    A blue flannel shirt, flannel underwear, wading pants, and spiked moleskin shoes were among the articles lost. The finder will please notify Mr. Reames.
Medford Mail Tribune, August 10, 1915, page 2


IN EARLY DAYS
By Fred Lockley
    "I was born in Jackson County in the fifties," said Mrs. Evan R. Reames of Klamath Falls.
    "My father, General John E. Ross, was the first man to be married in Jacksonville and his marriage was the second in Jackson County. When he was married it was the era of the red shirt, high boots and greasy overalls. Mother wanted him to be dressed up for the wedding, so he tried to secure proper garb for the occasion. A careful canvass of Jacksonville and the nearby camps resulted in finding one 'boiled shirt,' as the miners called white shirts, and a dress coat. The dress coat was too small to go on, so the difficulty was solved by splitting the coat up the back, putting it on and lacing it up to keep it on. There was a gap of three inches up the back, so Father had to keep his back to the wall during the ceremony and also face the guests after the ceremony. He certainly was a wallflower until they could get rid of the company.
    "This was in January, 1853, just a year after the discovery of gold in Rich Gulch by James Clugage and J. R. Poole that led to the stampede which resulted in the founding of the town. Appler and Kenny put up a tent in February, 1852, and started the first store and saloon. Next month W. W. Fowler, who later married Mrs. Goss, the mother-in-law of Alexander Martin, my husband's associate in business here, put up the first log cabin built in Jacksonville. Mr. Fowler was chosen as judge in the trial of the first murder at Jacksonville. The man tried was hanged and buried within an hour of the trial.
    "The winter of 1852 was a severe one. Several thousand people had rushed to the new camp of Jacksonville and very little supplies had been hauled in. Flour was $50 a sack, tobacco $16 a pound and salt was exchanged weight for weight for gold dust. There was no salt in the camp and the miners on the nearby creeks who had small amounts could hardly be induced to sell any. Neighbors would share their small supply, and a pinch of salt was the most acceptable present you could give. Father had to have salt to put in his sausages, and he bought it by paying an ounce of gold dust for an ounce of salt.
    "My father was appointed brigadier general. He had served in the Cayuse war in '46 and '47, in the Indian troubles in 1853 and '54, and also in the Rogue River war of 1855 and '56. In 1869 my husband started to work in Major J. T. Glenn's store on Klamath agency. In 1871 he went to work for Alexander Martin, with whom he is still associated. My husband was a lieutenant in the Modoc war. He can tell you all about that."
•    •    •
    Mr. Reames went to his desk and brought out his commission as lieutenant in Co. A., first brigade, Oregon militia. It was dated December 2, 1872, and was signed by Governor L. F. Grover and Secretary of State S. F. Chadwick.
    "We had 60 men in our company and they were raised inside of six hours,' said Mr. Reames. "When the word came that volunteers were wanted, a meeting was held at the court house at Jacksonville, 60 men signed the roll and we started next morning, each man furnishing his own horse, gun and ammunition. Oliver Harbaugh, who still lives at Jacksonville, had just come in from California with his wagon and a four-horse team, so we hired him to take our camp equipment and provisions.
    "There were about 60 Modoc Indians in the lava beds and there were about 400 troops, both regulars and volunteers. The Indians were too many for us. We couldn't get at them and they could pick us off. We had one carefully planned battle on December 17, which resulted in our troops losing some men, and finally retiring. Then the government decided to try a peace treaty in place of whipping the Indians, so the volunteers went back to Jacksonville.
•    •    •
    "I was born in Illinois and came to Oregon in 1852 when I was a baby. My father, Woodruff Reames, and my mother, Mahulda White Reames, were both born in Kentucky. We spent the winter of 1852 at St. Helens, and the following spring moved to Jacksonville. In the winter of 1853 eggs were $1 apiece, apples 25 cents each, flour was $1 a pound and everything else was in proportion, so you will see that ham and eggs, with applesauce, was something of a luxury. I went to school with Colonel Robert A. Miller, now of Portland. J. N. T. Miller was his father, and General John F. Miller was his uncle. General J. F. Miller was a most interesting man. Like my parents, he was a Kentuckian. He was a member of Colonel Doniphan's famous Missouri regiment that took part in the Mexican War and made such a remarkable march. He settled in Southern Oregon in 1851. He served in the Oregon Indian wars under General Joseph Lane as captain of Company A, First Regiment Oregon Volunteers. President Pierce appointed him agent of the Grand Ronde Reservation and he was reappointed by Buchanan. During the Civil War he lived at Salem and built the Willamette Woolen Mills Company, of which he was president. Later he was vice president of the Willamette Falls and Lock Company at Oregon City. He ran for governor against A. C. Gibbs, the Republican candidate who was elected, and he ran for U.S. Senator against George H. Williams. It is interesting to check over the former citizens of Jacksonville and see how many have won distinction in politics and business."
Oregon Journal, Portland, August 12, 1915, page 6


IN EARLY DAYS
By Fred Lockley
    "Linkville was a tough town," said Mrs. Evan R. Reames, when I visited her recently at her home in Klamath Falls. "It knew that it was tough and was proud of the fact. The first 33 funerals we had were of persons who died violent deaths. They 'died with their boots on,' as they used to say.
    "In 1873 Mr. Reames and I were married. He always remembers the date of our marriage by saying it was the day before Captain Jack was hanged for his part in the Modoc lava bed war and the murder of General Canby. We were married on October 2, 1873, by Rev. Stahl. We came to Linkville, as Klamath Falls was then called, in 1880. At that time there was not a tree nor a bush nor a flower here. Dust and sagebrush were to be seen in all directions. To look at the tree-shaded streets, the gardens and orchard now one would hardly believe that it has all been done since 1880.
    "One of the first dances I attended was given to raise money to lay the first sidewalk put down in town. We raised money enough to lay a sidewalk from the Linkville hotel to the post office. In this day of law and order you can have no conception of the anxiety we women had to endure in the early days of Linkville history.
•    •    •
    "In the early '80s H. C. Law, with his family, moved from California and settled at Steel Swamp. A little later a man named Kerwin, who came from the same neighborhood of California as Law, moved up into the Steel Swamp country and took up a place. They were both stockmen and they soon began quarrelling about the range. Two of the Kerwin boys were out looking up their cattle and met H. C. Law. Law drew his gun and ordered them off his range. One of the Kerwin boys drew his revolver and shot Law in the leg. They then wheeled their horses and rode off. Law dismounted, and taking careful aim, shot the younger boy, who was 17 years old, through the body. His brother managed to get him home and then went to Bonanza, 22 miles distant, for a doctor. The boy died. Lakeview was then the county seat and was 120 miles distant. Law defied the authorities, as he claimed the boy was in Oregon when shot and that he was just across the state line and was standing in California when he shot him. The sheriff of Lake County, for this was all Lake County then, turned the matter over to the California officials. They refused to take action, as they claimed that while the murderer had been in California, yet the murder had been committed in Oregon. Finally the deputy sheriff of Lake County found H. C. Law on the Oregon side and brought him to Linkville. Deputy Sheriff Lewis brought him to the Linkville hotel to stay overnight on his way to Lakeview, the county seat. Just before supper a man came into the store where my husband was at work and told him a mob from Big Valley in California, the former home of the Kerwins and Laws, was on the way to Linkville to administer lynch law on H. C. Law.
    "My husband notified W. A. Wright, the justice of the peace, who at once had the prisoner put upstairs in the hotel under special guard, sworn in hurriedly. Wright then notified all men capable of bearing arms to meet in the bar room at the Linkville hotel with their guns to resist the mob. My husband came home to get his rifle. I asked him what he wanted it for, so he told me. I had our baby in my arms and I begged him not to go and leave me. While I was holding onto him and begging him not to go, the mob came into town. They had stopped at the slaughter houses and taken the rope from windlass and had left their horses there. There were about 20 or 25 of them. There were nearly 100 of our men gathered in the saloon, but they were all busy drinking and loading their guns. They did not expect the mob to come until dark. The mob stepped into the bar room and shot into our men. Justice of the Peace Wright was shot through the shoulder and jumped through the window, taking the glass with him. Our men made a rush to get away. They tore the doors off and broke the windows out, trying to get away. C. S. Moore and some others dropped to the floor and crawled under the table. One of the members of the mob was killed in the mixup.
•    •    •
    "When the lynching party failed to find Law, they started upstairs and were fired at by the special guards. The mob in returning the fire killed Deputy Sheriff Lewis. They brought Mr. Wright, who was shot through the shoulder, to our house. The mob came and looked under our house for Law. Our house was set on stilts and I was afraid they would tip us over or set fire to our house. Most of the citizens knew who were in the mob. They were well-known stockmen, but they left word that if any action was taken against them they would put the witnesses out of the way. At the coroner's jury over Lewis no one would give evidence, so the case was dropped, and not knowing what to do with H. C. Law, he was released. Later a few men began talking, but when they went hunting or fishing or out to look up cattle they would not return and later their dead bodies would be found. The feud started then resulted in 17 murders. The two Law boys were shot and H. C. Law fled to Salt Lake."
Oregon Journal, Portland, August 14, 1915, page 4


    Clarence L. Reames was nominated today by President Wilson as United States Attorney for Oregon.
    On the receipt of news yesterday that he had been reappointed United States Attorney, Clarence L. Reames announced that he had reappointed his three deputies, Robert R. Rankin, John J. Beckman and Barnett H. Goldstein.
     Mr. Reames. whose home is Medford, Or., was appointed United States Attorney for this district on April 28, 1913, for a four-year term. He took office June 2, 1913. His term expired April 28 of this year.
    The reappointment of Mr. Reames has been a foregone conclusion for a long time. Mr. Reames won the right to another term by his record in office, and although there was some talk of opposition, George F. Alexander, Democratic county chairman, being among those mentioned, it has not been taken seriously.

"Mr. Reames Chosen," Morning Oregonian, Portland, May 2, 1917, page 4


C. L. REAMES ON JOB
Commission as Assistant to Attorney General Received.
SEATTLE WILL BE HOME
Ex-United States District Attorney to Leave for Puget Sound on Sunday
to Direct Enforcement of Espionage Act.
    Clarence L. Reames, ex-United States Attorney, yesterday received his commission as special assistant to the Attorney General. He immediately qualified by taking the oath of office in the federal court. Accompanied by Mrs. Reames he will leave for Seattle Sunday, preliminary to assuming the duties of his new office the following day.
    With his commission came instructions from the Attorney General directing Mr. Reames to go to Seattle immediately and take charge for the government of all suits, both civil and criminal, connected with the enforcement of the President's proclamation relating to alien enemies, sedition, shipping act and trading with the enemy act. His specific work will be the prosecution of all cases arising from the enforcement of the various measures of war legislation enacted by Congress since the United States entered the world war.
Residence to Be Changed.
    "Until my work is finished it will be necessary for me to become a resident of the state of Washington," said Mr. Reames yesterday. "In the performance of the work in which I shall be engaged, it is required that I have an official residence in the city where I am stationed. My duties will be devoted entirely to war work until the war ends."
    Mr. Reames is a native of Oregon and has lived all of his life in this state. Before coming to Portland in 1913 he served for eight years as Assistant District Attorney of the First Judicial District under his brother, A. E. Reames, and afterwards practiced law for four years in Medford with Judge W. M. Colvig. He was first appointed United States Attorney in June 1913, and was reappointed for a second four-year term in June 1917. Mr. Reames was the second United States Attorney to take office under the first administration of President Wilson, and at the time of his retirement from the office last week was the oldest United States Attorney in point of service in the United States.
Official Will Give Address.
    Mr. Reames yesterday accepted the invitation of the Snohomish County Bar Association and will deliver an address at Everett, Wash. on Washington's birthday, next Friday, February 22.
    No intimation has come from Washington as to who will probably be named to succeed Mr. Reames. The latest candidate for this appointment is James H. Nichols, prominent lawyer and Democrat, of Baker.
Morning Oregonian, Portland, February 14, 1918, page 9


REAMES--In this city, July 27, 1918, Edith Tongue Reames, age 46 years, beloved wife of A. E. Reames, of Medford, Oregon; daughter of Mrs. Thomas H. Tongue, of Portland; sister of E. B. and Thomas H. Tongue, Jr., of Hillsboro, Or.; Mrs. Gay Lombard, Mrs. Florence Munger and Miss Bertha Tongue, of Portland; Mrs. Frank Fey, of Seattle. Funeral services will be held at 2 p.m. today (Monday), July 29, 1918, at the residence of E. B. Tongue, Hillsboro, Or. Friends invited to attend. Interment in family plot, Hillsboro.

"Funeral Notices," Morning Oregonian, Portland, July 29, 1918, page 9



Funeral to Be Today.
    The funeral of Mrs. Edith Tongue Reames, wife of A. E. Reames, of Medford, and sister-in-law of Clarence Reames, formerly United States Attorney of Oregon, now a special representative of the Department of Justice, will be held this afternoon at 2 o'clock from the residence of E. B. Tongue, of Hillsboro. Burial will be at the Hillsboro Cemetery. Clarence Reames passed through Portland from Seattle yesterday en route to the funeral.
Morning Oregonian, Portland, July 29, 1918, page 12


    A. E. Reames, popular resident and well-known attorney of Southern Oregon, is at the Hotel Portland for a few days, registering from his home town of Medford. "The 'flu' is all but a thing of the past in Medford," said Mr. Reames, referring to the severity of the epidemic there. "I am doubtful if the masks, which were universally worn, had much to do with stopping the course of the disease, but believe that the stringent quarantine restrictions helped more than anything else. At any rate, the influenza in Medford appears to have just about 'petered out.' By the way, there was a fine winter run of steelhead in the Rogue, and the egg fishermen scored heavily. Most of the Medford boys, however, use the fly, so we didn't participate."
"Those Who Come and Go," Morning Oregonian, Portland, January 14, 1919, page 12


BOY KILLED IN DIVE OFF RAIL AT NAT. SUNDAY
Phillip Anderson, Age 15, Victim of Tragedy--Foot Slips, Strikes Head on Concrete Walk--
Nephew of A. E. Reames--Fall Causes Broken Neck.

    Phillip Anderson, 15-year-old son of Mrs. Ira R. Anderson, and nephew of attorney A. E. Reames, died this morning at 11 o'clock at the Sacred Heart Hospital from injuries received when he fell from the balcony at the Natatorium yesterday to the concrete siding, 10 feet beneath. Young Anderson, who is an expert swimmer and has been a daily visitor at the Nat. during the summer, was preparing to make a dive from the balcony railing when his foot slipped and instead of clearing the short walk around the edge of the pool he struck it, the body rolling into the water. The fall caused little excitement at the time, no one thinking Anderson was fatally injured, but examination showed he had suffered a broken wrist and two broken vertebrae in the neck. From the first doctors Barber and Thayer gave little hope of recovery, the wonder being the young man lived as long as he did. He was at once taken to the Sacred Heart Hospital and everything possible done, but he never regained consciousness and sank gradually until the end.
    Attorney A. E. Reames was telephoned for and is expected to arrive from Portland on the afternoon train. Mrs. Anderson and her two sons, Tom and Phillips, have been living on South Central, Mr. Anderson being dead. The funeral announcement will be made later.
    A particularly pathetic feature of the tragedy was the fact that Mrs. Anderson had planned to take her two sons to a military academy tomorrow, all plans having been made for the departure of the family.
Medford Mail Tribune, August 9, 1920, page 1


REAMES ELECTED PRESIDENT BY HI SCHOOL STUDENTS
    Ed. Reames was named president of the Medford High School student body for 1929-30 in an election held at the school yesterday noon and after school. Charles Thomas, prominent football and basketball star, was the other candidate, and received a large number of votes.
    The candidates elected to the other offices were: Vice-president, Oliver Hughes; secretary, Evelyn Snyder; treasurer, Robert Carter; Crater editor, Curtis Barnes; property manager, Oswald Newland; yell leader, Junior Porter; and song queen, Margery Hon.
    The amendment to the constitution which would make the song queen a student body officer, and a member of the student council, passed by a large majority.
Medford Mail Tribune, May 9, 1929, page 6


DEATH SHOCKS MEDFORD FOLK
Mrs. Reames Well Known in City, Where Family Resides.
    MEDFORD, Or., July 15.--(Special.)--The death of Mrs. Clarence L. Reames came as a distinct shock to scores of friends in this city, where she had lived for many years and was well known. She was a daughter of Judge William M. Colvig, and a sister of Mrs. William Warner, Medford's postmaster, and Mrs. Helen Gale. A brother, Vance Colvig, resides in San Francisco, Cal., and another brother, Don Colvig of Klamath Falls, was expected to arrive here tonight.
    Mr. and Mrs. Reames lived in this city for years, moving to Portland, and thence to Seattle, when Mr. Reames became special assistant United States attorney general.
    The body was expected to arrive tomorrow, when funeral arrangements will be announced.
Oregonian, Portland, July 16, 1921, page 7


ALFRED EVAN REAMES.
    As one reads the history of early Oregon the name of Reames will frequently appear upon its pages, for the family was among the earliest pioneers of the state and its members have done much to develop and upbuild the country. Woodford Reames, a native of Kentucky, in which state his people settled in pioneer times, came to Oregon in 1852 and for a brief period resided at St. Helens. A year later he took up a donation claim in Jackson County and thus the name became identified with the progress of southern Oregon. His son, Thomas G. Reames, was a small boy when the family came to this state and after reaching manhood he turned his attention to mining, while later he became a merchant and eventually a banker. In 1886 he concentrated his attention upon banking business as a member of the firm of Beekman & Reames, who succeeded to the banking business of Beekman's Banking House. Mr. Reames held many positions of public honor and trust in Oregon and left the impress of his individuality and ability for good upon many lines of the state's development. He held the office of sheriff of Jackson County for several years and under the Cleveland administration he served as post office inspector for the district embracing Oregon, Idaho, Washington and Alaska. He was one of the most popular residents of southern Oregon, as is evidenced by the fact that he came within but a few votes of election as secretary of the state, although the Democratic candidate in a commonwealth that normally gives a strong Republican majority. He married Lucinda Williams, whose parents came to Oregon in 1853. To this marriage was born on the 5th of February, 1870, at Jacksonville, Oregon, a son, Alfred Evan Reames, now residing in Medford.
    Alfred Evan Reames acquired his education in the common schools of his native city and in the University of the Pacific at San Jose, California, in the University of Oregon and the Washington and Lee University of Virginia, being graduated from the last named institution in 1893. He was admitted to the bar in that state, after which he returned to Oregon and was admitted to practice in the courts here. He entered upon the active work of his profession in connection with E. R. Shipworth of Eugene, under the firm style of Shipworth & Reames, there remaining until 1894, when he removed to Portland and became associated with C. M. Idleman up to the time the latter was elected attorney general of the state. Mr. Reames then associated himself with William M. Colvig at Jacksonville, Oregon, and the partnership was maintained until 1902, when Mr. Reames was elected district attorney, in which office he continued to serve for eight years. In 1906 he became associated with his brother, Clarence L. Reames, in a partnership that was terminated with the appointment of the latter as deputy United States attorney for Oregon. After that time Alfred E. Reames practiced alone in Medford until 1921, when he admitted his younger brother, Charles W. Reames, to a partnership, the latter having recently served as deputy United States district attorney. Thus the firm has again become Reames & Reames, a style that is well known in Oregon, for they enjoy an extensive practice of an important character, the brothers ranking high as able representatives of the Oregon bar.
    Alfred E. Reames was united in marriage to Miss Edith L. Tongue, a daughter of Congressman Thomas L. Tongue of Hillsboro. She passed away in 1918, her death deeply deplored by many friends.
    Upon the death of his father-in-law in 1903, the Democratic Party nominated Mr. Reames to succeed him as candidate for the office of congressman and though the Republicans carried the district he succeeded greatly in reducing their usual majority. In fact his vote was so large that for a time the result was in doubt. The large vote accorded him was certainly an indication of his personal popularity and of the confidence and trust reposed in him.
    Mr. Reames has always been active in the upbuilding of his state and has contributed to its development in many ways. He has been interested in mining and in timber and has been the active head of large companies which have done important development work along these lines. His native town of Jacksonville is indebted to him for its lighting plant, which he built almost alone. As a lawyer he is a member of the Southern Oregon Bar Association and of the Oregon State Bar Association. He is also a member of the American Bar Association. His status as a lawyer requires no comment, for his ability is conceded on all sides and his name is known in legal circles throughout the West as that of one of the strongest representatives of the bar in the Pacific coast country. Fraternally he is a Mason, having attained the Knights Templar degree of the York Rite, and he is a past high priest of his chapter and a Noble of the Mystic Shrine. He likewise belongs to the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks. His activities and his interests are thus broad and varied. While appreciative of the social amenities of life and a valued representative of the different orders to which he belongs, it has been by reason of his connection with important business and professional interests that he has come to the front as one of the prominent residents of his state. He is a man of broad vision, displaying keen insight into the opportunities of a situation and readily recognizing and utilizing opportunities which have not only resulted in the upbuilding of his individual fortunes but have constituted a splendid element of public progress and improvement.
Charles Henry Carey, History of Oregon, 1922, page 304


OLD PIONEERS OF JACKSONVILLE VISIT MEDFORD
    Mr. and Mrs. Evan P. Reames are here for their annual summer visit with their nephews, Evan and Charley Reames, and niece, Mrs. John F. White, and they will all spend several weeks camping on Wagner Creek later on.
    Mr. and Mrs. Reames were pioneers in Jacksonville, Mr. Reames arriving with his parents, Mr. and Mrs. Woodford Reames, in 1852. Mrs. Reames was born in Jacksonville and was the daughter of Colonel Ross, of Oregon Indian war fame. The Colonel Ross homestead was on what is now Ross Lane.
    Evan and Thomas Reames, the latter was Mrs. White's father, were in the mercantile business in Jacksonville for several years, Evan later moving the stock to Klamath Falls. He sold the business and engaged in banking. A few years ago he retired and although he calls Klamath Falls their home, he and Mrs. Reames spend the winters in California.
    Thomas Reames entered the banking business with C. C. Beekman in Jacksonville after his brother moved to Klamath Falls, and remained in that business until he died.
    Mr. and Mrs. Evan Reames remember many interesting incidents connected with pioneer life in Jacksonville during the gold rush and its balmy days, as well as the Indian outbreak and the settlement of the country in general.

Medford Mail Tribune, June 19, 1923, page 6


EVAN REAMES IS MARRIED, SEATTLE
    A. E. Reames of Medford was married Wednesday, June 27th at the apartment of his brother, Clarence Reames, in Seattle to Miss Lillian Opie, daughter of Captain and Mrs. Edward J. Lanning of Tacoma, Washington. Mr. and Mrs. Reames are now on a motor trip in the Puget Sound country. Captain and Mrs. Lanning formerly lived in Oregon and the Lanning and Reames families have been close friends for many years. Mr. and Mrs. Reames' return is indefinite.
Medford Mail Tribune, June 30, 1923, page 5


CLARENCE L. REAMES MARRIED IN SEATTLE
    SEATTLE, Wash., Aug. 16.--Clarence L. Reames, ex-Oregonian, United States district attorney, and Mrs. Sylvia Hurst, former wife of S. B. H. Hurst, Seattle writer, were married Tuesday and left for a wedding trip through the Canadian Rockies. Reames was recently made special United States shipping board counsel here.
    Clarence Reames is brother of A. E. Reames and Charles Reames of Medford, and is well known throughout Southern Oregon.
Medford Mail Tribune, August 16, 1923, page 1


CHARLES REAMES TO OPEN OFFICE
    Following association of six years with his brother, Evan Reames, in the law business in the Liberty building, Charles W. Reames is dissolving partnership and will open his own office in the Medford Center building immediately, according to an announcement today.
    Attorney Reames is a graduate of the University of Oregon and has had general law practice in federal and state courts for 12 years. For two years he was assistant United States district attorney at Portland and is well known throughout the state.
Medford Mail Tribune, January 26, 1927, page 3


    Alfred Evan Reames is one of the best known and best liked attorneys in Southern Oregon. When I visited him recently at his office in Medford, he said:
    "My grandfather, Woodford Reames, was a blacksmith. My father was a merchant and miner. My father, Thomas G. Reames, was born in Litchfield, Ky., Dec. 15, 1838. He crossed the plains in 1852. He put in the winter of 1852 working on the dock at St. Helens, for in those days St. Helens was the head of navigation on the Columbia and was a formidable rival of Portland. My mother, whose maiden name was Lucinda Williams, came across the plains to Oregon in 1853. She was 17 when she married Father. My father and his people settled near Phoenix in 1853. In 1860 he went up to Idaho and during the next two or three years he mined in Boise Basin and elsewhere in that territory. Father was appointed deputy sheriff in 1864 and moved to Jacksonville. He was deputy sheriff till 1868, at which time he was elected sheriff. After Father had sold out his livery stable in Jacksonville he opened a general merchandise store in Phoenix, the firm name being Reames & Sachs. After four years he and his brother bought out White & Martin's store at Jacksonville. My father served as a member of the common council of Jacksonville and also as mayor of Jacksonville for several terms. He ran for secretary of state on the Democratic ticket in 1878 and, in spite of the fact that Oregon was strongly Republican, he only lacked 191 votes of election, Rockey P. Earhart winning the office by this small margin.
    "I was the second child in a family of 11 children, 10 of whom grew to maturity. I was born February 5, 1870, at Jacksonville. My earliest recollections of Jacksonville are of a busy city, the trading point of Southwestern Oregon. I think Jacksonville had a population of at least 2000 when I was a boy. I remember hundreds of Chinese miners lived in Jacksonville's Chinatown, most of them working the abandoned dumps and tailings on the creeks near Jacksonville.
    "The town of Medford was not started till I was about 14 years old. In 1888 I went to Pacific University of Oregon and was a student there for three years. The following year I attended Washington-Lee University at Lexington, Va. I graduated from the law course there and was admitted to the bar in Virginia in 1893 and was also admitted to the Oregon bar that same year. I formed a partnership with Eugene Skipworth at Eugene, the firm name being Skipworth & Reames. In 1894 I went to Portland and formed a partnership with C. M. Idleman. In 1896 I went to Jacksonville and became a partner of William M. Colvig. After four years I was elected district attorney for this district and was re-elected, serving till 1908. My brother Clarence came in with me, read law, was admitted to the bar and became my partner. He was with me till 1910, when my brother Charlie became my partner. I married Edith Tongue, the daughter of Tom Tongue. She died six years ago. Two years later I married Lillian L. Opie of Tacoma. Some years ago I built the city lighting plant at Jacksonville, and I have also been interested in mining and lumbering."
Fred Lockley, "Impressions and Observations of the Journal Man," Oregon Journal, Portland, May 5, 1927, page 14; reprinted (with errors) in the Medford Mail Tribune, May 8, 1927, page B2


IMPRESSIONS AND OBSERVATIONS
OF THE JOURNAL MAN

By Fred Lockley
    "My father, Woodford Reames, was born on April 4, 1811, in Kentucky," said Mrs. Medora Reames Harbaugh when I interviewed her at her home at Jacksonville recently. "My mother, whose maiden name was Hulda White, was born, like my father, in Hart County, Kentucky, on April 2, 1825. My grandfather, Aaron Reames, was a slave-owner, but when slaveholding became an issue he liberated his slaves and at the breaking out of the Civil War enlisted in the Union army and became a colonel. His people came from Scotland to Virginia and thence to Kentucky. My father, Woodford Reames, moved to Illinois when he was a young man. Father crossed the plains to Oregon in 1852. He wintered at St. Helens and next spring, with his family, he moved to Southern Oregon, taking up a place a mile south of Phoenix, Jackson County. I was born on this place on June 4, 1857. Father worked for the Hudson Bay Company during the winter of 1852 and '53 both at St. Helens and Vancouver. During the Indian wars of 1855 and '56 my people and the Hill family took refuge at Fort Wagner near Talent. Mrs. Russell of Ashland, probably the only woman marble-cutter in Oregon, was a bride at that time. Her maiden name was Hill. Mrs. Mary Dunn, who was also a Hill, now lives in Portland. My father died in 1884 and my mother in 1890.
    "I was married in 1881 to Oliver Harbaugh. He was born in Ohio. He went to California in 1849. He was married there, and when I married him his children were grown up and scattered. My husband died two or three years ago at the age of 96. My oldest brother, Thomas G. Reames, was born at Litchfield, Ky., December 15, 1838. He was deputy sheriff from 1864 to 1868, at which time he was elected sheriff. He ran a livery stable at Jacksonville for a while and later started a store at Phoenix. Still later he bought out a store at Jacksonville and, with my brother, ran it for some years. He served as mayor of Jacksonville for several terms. Governor Thayer appointed him brigadier general of the First Brigade of Oregon militia. He ran for secretary of state on the Democratic ticket in 1878. R. P. Earhart won the place by less than 200 votes.
    "My sister Martha married Joseph Rapp. James was the next child. He was born in Grayson County, Kentucky, January 6, 1844. He was 8 years old when he crossed the plains. For a while my brother Jim ran a livery stable in Jacksonville. Later, with C. S. Sergent, he ran a general merchandise store at Phoenix. He married Alice Strong in 1875. I was the fifth child of the family and the first one to be born in Oregon.
    "I should have said that my brother Evan R. Reames was born in Illinois, April 5, 1850. When Evan was 19 years old he was a clerk in Major J. T. Glenn's store. At the breaking out of the Modoc War he became a second lieutenant in Company A, First Oregon volunteer cavalry. Captain Harris Kelly was captain of the company. My brother was wounded in the leg with a bullet. He and Tom ran a store in Jacksonville under the firm name of Reames Brothers. They also started a branch store in Klamath Falls, which was managed by my brother Evan. He went to California for some years so that his children could go to school, and in 1890 he came back to Klamath Falls and for the next eight years he and George P. Baldwin ran a hardware store. Later he was a partner of Alexander Martin, whom he bought out. He became vice president of the Klamath County Bank. He was married in 1873 to Jennie E. Ross, the daughter of General John E. Ross. If you will see some of my brothers, they can tell you all about early days in Southern Oregon."

Oregon Journal,
Portland, July 10, 1927, page 8


Jennie Ross Reames, October 23, 1927 Oregonian
Mrs. Jennie Ross Reames.
    Funeral services for Mrs. Jennie Ross Reames, 72, past grand matron of the Oregon Eastern Star, were held at Medford last Sunday, and interment was made in the old Jacksonville cemetery near the resting places of her parents and grandparents.
    Mrs. Reames was the wife of Evan R. Reames, late of Klamath Falls, Or., and was the daughter of Colonel and Mrs. John E. Ross, early pioneers of Jacksonville. She spent her life in southern Oregon and died at her country home on Wagner Creek near the old Reames donation land claim. For 40 years she and her husband were closely linked with the growth of Klamath Falls. In recent year she spent much time in California and Honolulu.
    Surviving her are her husband and a daughter, Mrs. Frank Jennings, Honolulu.
    Mrs. Reames was a member of the Daughters of the American Revolution.

Oregonian, Portland, October 23, 1927, page 15


Hattie Reames-White.
    Hattie Reames-White prefers to locate her studio in her residence on South Laurel Street. Here, classes are received for piano instruction, and this well-known musician is one of Medford's busiest in the artists group.
"Business and Professional Women," Medford Mail Tribune, January 1, 1928, page E4


REAMES, ALFRED EVAN
    Lawyer
b. Jacksonville, Ore., Feb. 5, 1870; educ., public schools, Jacksonville; Univ. of the Pacific, San Jose, Calif.; Univ. of Oregon; Washington and Lee Univ. of Virginia graduate 1893. Married Edith L. Tongue, (dec'd.) of Hillsboro. Admitted to bar of Va. and Oregon; practice of law with E. R. Skipworth as Skipworth and Reames, Eugene, Ore., until 1894; in association with C. M. Idleman, Portland, Ore.; in partnership with William M. Colvig, Jacksonville, until 1902; District Attorney, Jackson County, 1902-10; in partnership with brother, Clarence L. Reames; in practice alone at Medford, Ore.; 1921 in partnership with brother, Charles W. Reames, as Reames & Reames. Active in politics. Interested in mining and timber. Built lighting plant for Jacksonville. Mem. Southern Ore. State, and Am. Bar Assns. K.T. Mason. Shriner. Elk. Member Exec. Com., Demo. State Central Committee. Home: 816 W. 10th St. Office: Liberty Bldg., Medford, Oregon.
Capitol's Who's Who for Oregon 1936-37, page 454


Reames Named U.S. Senator
Succeeds Fred Steiwer
    Evan Reames, Medford attorney and frequently mentioned for the federal judgeship here to succeed the late John McNary, Saturday was appointed United States senator from Oregon by Gov. Charles H. Martin.
    Reames succeeds Frederick Steiwer, who has resigned his U.S. senatorship, effective Monday, to enter the private practice of law in Washington, D.C.
    Reames is one of Oregon's outstanding Democrats and during the last campaign served as chairman of the Democratic Party's executive committee.
Follows Conferences
    Appointment of Reames climaxed a long series of conferences between the governor and his advisors Friday night.
    While many of those close to the governor urged the appointment of some man who had little if any political experience, the preponderance of sentiment for Reames made the appointment of the Medford man a certainty.
Lengthy Career
    The elevation of Reames to the senatorship climaxes a long career in Democratic politics in Oregon. Reames was one of the few Democrats who stood staunchly by his party in the years when Oregon was overwhelmingly Republican.
    He never hesitated to take the lead in trying to rally Oregon's disheartened Democrats and served in many positions of leadership in the party.
    Reames, the first U.S. senator from southern Oregon, was born in Jacksonville, Ore., Feb. 5, 1870.
    He received his early education in the Jacksonville schools, later attending University of the Pacific at San Jose. He took pre-law at [the] University of Oregon, but completed his law course at Washington and Lee University at Lexington, Va. He is a member of Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity.
    After graduation he entered law partnership with E. R. Skipworth for a year at Jacksonville, coming to Portland where he was associated with C. M. Idleman for four years. At the end of that time he returned to Jacksonville to become a law partner of the late Judge William M. Colvig.
    That partnership lasted until he formed a partnership with his brother, Clarence Reames, later appointed United States District Attorney for Oregon by President Woodrow Wilson.
Mine Owner
    He was elected district attorney for the first judicial district, comprising Jackson, Josephine and Lane counties, in 1908.
    Reames has taken a particular interest in water and mining law, and is a mine owner himself. He is considered one of the best authorities in the United States on those complicated law points.
    A member of a pioneer Oregon family, he is now president of the Southern Oregon Pioneers Association. He is a member of the Masonic and Elks fraternal organizations, and is a Shriner. In his law practice, he is a member of the American Bar Association, the Oregon State Bar Association and the Southern Oregon Bar Association.
Fishing Enthusiast
    His one active hobby is fly fishing.
    The new senator's parents crossed the plains to Oregon in the early 1850s. His grandfather, Woodford Reames, arrived from Kentucky in 1852, settling near what is now St. Helens. In the spring of 1853 Woodford Reames and Thomas Reames, the senator's father, went to southern Oregon.
    Alfred Evan Reames was married to Lillian L. Laning of Albany. They have one son, Edward L. Reames, now associated with his father in the Medford law practice.
Portland News-Telegram, January 29, 1938, page 1


ROGUE FISH LORE TOLD OREGONIAN BY EVAN REAMES
    The following news story about a well-known Medford lawyer and sportsman appeared in the Wild Life Lines column of the Oregonian yesterday, written by Philip H. Parrish:
    "Rarely do you find a 'fish hog' among the ranks of veteran anglers. It is instinctive for a boy to catch as many fish as he can. There is a fascination about pulling the trout from the waters that adolescence cannot seem to resist. But the years teach moderation in fishing as in other things. Unless they did there would be little human progress.
    "Evan Reames is a veteran angler of Medford. He received his baptism as a fisherman wading the waters of the Rogue River when he was a barefooted boy in old Jacksonville, his native town. Until recent years he was an advocate of wet-fly fishing, but he has changed recently to the dry fly and 'floating' technique.
    "There is something of the poet about this Medford sportsman, as will be seen in the following interview he gave our Rogue River Valley correspondent:
    "'Observation has taught me at last that the correct and intelligent use of the dry fly is not only practical but effective on Rogue River. By this I do not mean that the dry fly will always, or even usually, bring more fish to the creel than certain kinds of bait or other lures.
    "'Every year I have become increasingly opposed to killing a large number of trout, and consequently my efforts have been restricted largely to a study of the habits and peculiarities of the large fish. Judging angling technique by its efficacy to kill the greater number of fish is to my mind the lowest plane on which angling methods may be considered.
    "'From the viewpoint of satisfaction in work well done and sportsmanlike achievement, I believe that nothing in the angling sport offers the opportunities of the dry fly. One late afternoon in July I was watching the evening "rise" at a favorite pool on the Rogue and I learned something.
    "'It was too early in the evening for the "big rise," and I was passing the time in dreamily gazing at the sun on our violet-tinted summer hills. The Rogue at the point I refer to takes a sharp bend, to plunge down a long, white rapid into a rocky band, then gradually subsides into a deep pool of many eddies and swirls. The lower end of the pool is smooth just before the river begins to break into the next rapid.
    "'The largest steelheads in the pool always feed, it has seemed, in one particular spot, where the two currents met. Here for half an hour or so each evening the heavier fish would feed hungrily on flies and millers. The place was hard to reach and only to be gained by wading more than waist deep. Even then only an occasional lucky cast would hit the right spot. I was not at all anxious to occupy my casting position before the rise of the fish was in full progress.
    "'During the interim I noticed a rise in the smooth water at the very lip of the pool. The current was ruffled by a submerged boulder. On both sides of this rock trout were striking. Wading to the position, I tried a dry fly. The cast was fortunate, and the fly floated below the rock. A swirl broke the surface and I was fast to a big and savagely fighting steelhead.'
    "The Medford angler skips all that happened thereafter until he had creeled his prize. Then he resumes:
    "'After beaching the fish I laid my rod aside and watched the shadows deepen on the pool. Thousands of insects, large and small, were hovering over the seething waters. A score or more of the big fish rose steadily and with a businesslike precision to the feast, while the smaller ones were busy in the shallow water near the edge of the pool.'"
Medford Mail Tribune, February 24, 1930, page 5


EVAN R. REAMES, ROGUE PIONEER, ANSWERS CALL
Retired Southern Oregon Merchant and Banker
Dies at Summer Home on Wagner Creek Today
    Evan Rogers Reames, retired Klamath County, Oregon, merchant and banker, and early resident and merchant of Jackson County, Oregon, died at his summer home on Wagner Creek, near Talent, on the morning of June 30th, 1931.
    He leaves surviving him a daughter, Mollette Jennings, wife of Frank W. Jennings. Mr. and Mrs. Jennings have a plantation residence in the Hawaiian Islands, and Mrs. Jennings was with her father at the time of his death. He also leaves a widowed sister, Mrs. Dora Harbaugh, of Jacksonville, Oregon.
    Mr. Reames was a son of Woodford and Hulda Reames, whose donation land claim embraced the '49 Diggings, near Talent, and on which the Reames family settled in 1853. Woodford and Hulda Reames moved to Jacksonville, Oregon, in 1884, where they spent their remaining days. The deceased left numerous relatives in Jackson County
    Evan Rogers Reames was born in Litchfield, Illinois, April 5th, 1850, and in April, 1852, his parents brought him in an ox team caravan to their future home in Jackson County. Mr. Reames was educated in the public schools at Phoenix, Oregon, and at the age of nineteen he entered upon a six years' clerkship in the general mercantile store of Major James T. Glenn, pioneer merchant of Jackson County. While thus employed, he enlisted in the Modoc War as a lieutenant, November 26, 1872, in Company A, First Oregon Volunteer Cavalry, in which service he remained until April, 1873, the close of that war. The company was in command of Captain Harris Kelly, and was detailed to service at both Klamath and Siskiyou counties. In one of the important battles Mr. Reames was wounded, but not seriously.
    In 1881, he engaged in the mercantile business in Jacksonville, in partnership with his older brother, Thomas G. Reames, under the firm name of Reames Brothers. This institution became one of the strong mercantile stores of Southern Oregon, and furnished the United States regiment at Fort Klamath with its store supplies. Subsequently, about 1881, Reames Brothers established a sutler's store at Fort Klamath, as a branch of the Jacksonville store. In 1881, they established a store at Klamath Falls, and Evan Rogers Reames moved there and conducted that business. Subsequently, they took into partnership Alec Martin and Rufus and Charles Moore, and the business proceeded under the name of Reames, Martin and Company, until about 1886, when E. R. Reames retired from that business and engaged in stock raising at Klamath Falls and vicinity. Subsequently, he went to San Jose, California, where he conducted a general merchandising store; afterwards, in 1890, he returned to Klamath Falls, and entered into the general hardware business with George T. Baldwin. The Baldwin store is still a substantial institution at Klamath Falls.
    Following that, he went again into the mercantile business in Klamath Falls, and then, with his associates, organized the Klamath County Bank, afterwards the First National Bank, and was the head of that institution for a great many years. These mercantile firms had much to do with the development of Klamath County. They established the Midway Telephone and Telegraph Company, which was the first institution of its kind in that county. Mr. Reames was one of the builders of the water system and the electric light system at Klamath Falls, selling those interests subsequently to the present California Oregon Power Company.
    He never entered politics. However, when Klamath County was cut off from Lake County, he was appointed by the governor as county treasurer of Klamath County and was subsequently elected to that office.
    On October 3rd, 1878, he was married to Miss Jennie E. Ross, who was a daughter of General John E. Ross, one of the best known of the Indian fighters of
the Northwest. The Ross family has always been among the prominent pioneer families of Jackson County, and a large number of the General's descendants are here.
    Mr. Reames' great love for outdoor work, both in the fields and in the garden, is perhaps to a large extent responsible for his enjoying through the 81 years of his life almost always the best of health. He would leave his store or the bank, during the haying seasons in Klamath County, and work as any other hand in the field. He
surrounded himself with all of the comforts for outdoor  life and sports, all of which he enjoyed to the fullest extent. He saw the cheerful side of everything, and closed a very happy and beautiful life.
Medford Mail Tribune, June 30, 1931, page 1


IMPRESSIONS AND OBSERVATIONS
OF THE JOURNAL MAN
By Fred Lockley
    Mrs. Lillian Coleman lives just north of the old Colver home, at Phoenix, in Southern Oregon. The old Colver home is one of the landmarks of Phoenix. It was built in 1855.
    "I was born in Phoenix," she said. "My father, James R. Reames, was born January 6, 1844, in Grayson County, Kentucky. In 1848 his father, Woodford Reames, moved with the family to Illinois, where he ran a blacksmith shop. My father was 8 years old when they headed across the plains, in 1852. They spent that winter at St. Helens, coming to Jackson County in 1853. My grandfather, Woodford Reames, took up a claim here and put up a log cabin. Not long after the folks arrived, the Rogue River Indian war occurred, so my grandfather, with his family, went to Fort Wagner. Grandfather Reames lived to be 72 years old, dying in 1882. My grandmother lived till 1891. Her maiden name was Melinda White. My father was one of six children. Thomas G. was the oldest. Then came Martha, who married Joseph Rapp; my father, James R.; then Evan R.; then Medora, who married Oliver Harbaugh of Jacksonville, and then Richard, who died when he was a boy.
    "Father ran a livery stable at Jacksonville for awhile and later worked with his brother in the store here in Phoenix. Later my father and C. S. Sergeant bought the store and continued as partners till 1876, when my father started in business for himself. Father and Mother were married in 1875. My mother's maiden name was Alice Strong. Father and Mother were married in Ashland. I am one of their six children.
    "I went to school in Phoenix. I was married on February 21, 1894, when I was 18 years old. My husband's name was E. W. Carver. After his death I was married in 1908 to Elmer G. Coleman. My husband was president of the Medford Irrigation Company and was a farmer and merchant. He was born a mile west of Phoenix about 68 years ago and was the son of Hubbard Coleman, who came to Oregon in 1852. My husband died six years ago.
    "My father's oldest brother, Thomas G. Reames, was born at Litchfield, Ky., December 15, 1833. He farmed and mined in and about Jacksonville till 1864, when he was appointed deputy sheriff. In 1868 he was elected sheriff and served one term. He ran a livery stable at Jacksonville for awhile and later started a store here at Phoenix, the firm name being Reames & Sachs. After four years he and a brother started a store at Jacksonville under the title of Reames Bros. He served as mayor of Jacksonville several terms. Governor Thayer appointed him brigadier general of the 1st brigade of Oregon militia.
    "At one time he was a partner of C. C. Beekman, the pioneer banker of Jacksonville, the firm name being Beekman & Reames. When Grover Cleveland was President he appointed my uncle, Thomas G. Reames, postal inspector for Oregon, Idaho, Washington, Montana and Alaska. This job kept him away from home all the time, so after a year and a half he resigned.
    "He married Lucinda Williams, who was born in Missouri. They had 10 children. He died in 1900. You must have met his son, Alfred Evan Reames, who was born in Jacksonville in 1870. He attended school at Jacksonville and later was a student at the University of the Pacific at San Jose, Cal. Later he attended the University of Oregon and in 1883 graduated from Washington and Lee University, at Lexington, Va. He went into partnership with Eugene Skipworth of Eugene. Later he practiced law with C. M. Idleman of Portland. Still later he was a partner of William M. Colvig at Jacksonville. In 1900 he was elected district attorney for the southern tier of counties. He married Edith L. Tongue, daughter of Congressman Thomas H. Tongue.
    "Clarence Reames, another son of my uncle Tom, served as federal district attorney. Evan and Charles Reames were for some years partners and practiced law at Medford."
Oregon Journal, Portland, October 23, 1933, page 8


    Thomas G. Reames was born in Kentucky in 1838. He came with his parents to Oregon in 1852, and to Jackson County in 1853, settling near Phoenix. In 1864 he moved to Jacksonville and for four years was deputy sheriff. He was then elected sheriff. He ran a livery stable awhile, and later had a store at Phoenix and one at Jacksonville. He was mayor of Jacksonville several terms.

Fred Lockley, "Impressions and Observations of the Journal Man," Oregon Journal, Portland, July 3, 1936, page 4


Anvil Chorus Is Heard Over Reames Selection
But Appointee Voices Praise of Bonneville
Medford Attorney Named by Governor Also for Social Security
Hosch Views His Choice as Showing Martin's New Deal Attitude

    PORTLAND, Jan. 29--(AP)--Dr. J. F. Hosch, president of the People's Power League, terms the appointment of Evan Reames, of Medford, to replace Frederick Steiwer in the United States Senate "another indication of Governor Martin's contempt for the New Deal."
    "Governor Martin's selection of a power trust attorney for the United States Senate will make it more difficult than ever to give all the people the benefits of Bonneville Dam," Hosch said.
    Reames was formerly attorney for the California-Oregon Power Company.
    Queried today as to his views on Bonneville, Reames replied: "I want to see the President's program go through."
    "The fact that I represented the company makes no difference," he added. "If one can't be above those things he had better go home."
    Reames described Social Security as "one of the most wonderful things I ever saw--too bad it didn't start 25 years ago."
    "No, I don't believe in spending the reserves for current expenses," he went on. "Putting in an IOU is another form of inflation. We must not shake the people's confidence."
    Regarding war: "We should keep out of all foreign entanglements that we can. We must develop our air defense and with it our navy. We must be sufficiently armed to keep the respect of the most greedy nations. The government cannot be parsimonious. War? No. Everyone wants peace. I know no one who doesn't."
----
    Albert Evan Reames, Democrat, prominent Medford attorney, was appointed Saturday by Governor Martin to serve out the unexpired term of Frederick Steiwer as United States Senator from Oregon.
    Steiwer's resignation, received at the executive department here early yesterday, is effective Monday night.
    Names of more than 40 prominent Oregon men were said to have been presented to Governor Martin in connection with the appointment.
    Reames will not be a candidate to succeed himself at the primary election. He was expected to leave for Washington today. He will be the first Democrat to serve as United States Senator from Oregon since George E. Chamberlain. Chamberlain served in this capacity from 1909 to 1921.
    Born in Jacksonville February 5, 1870, Reames received his early education in the public schools of that city. After a year of freshman work at University of the Pacific in San Jose, Calif., he matriculated in the pre-law course of the University of Oregon. He completed his law work in Washington and Lee University at Lexington, Va. The senator is a member of the Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity.
    On completion of his law course in 1893 Reames returned to Oregon and established a law partnership with E. R. Skipworth of Jacksonville. A year later he moved to Portland and was an associate in the law office of C. M. Idleman for four years.
    On his return to Jacksonville the senator became a law partner of William M. Colvig. This partnership was later dissolved when Mr. Reames established the law firm of Reames & Reames with his younger brother, Clarence Reames.
    In 1908 the senator was drafted by the Democratic convention and was elected district attorney for the first judicial district, which then comprised Jackson, Josephine, Klamath and Lake counties. He rode the circuit in stages and hired rigs with judges H. K. Hanna and Henry Benson, the latter being elevated to the Oregon supreme court.
    Senator Reames has specialized in water and mining law, and is regarded by his colleagues as an outstanding authority on these complicated subjects. He is a member of the American Bar Association, the Oregon State Bar and the Southern Oregon Bar Association.
    Aside from his practice of law Senator Reames has had only one business interest in his life, that of mining. He is the principal owner of the Deep Gravel Mining Company, which has a placer mine near Waldo in Josephine County.
    Senator Reames married Lillian L. Laning of Albany and they have one son, Edward L. Reames, who is associated with his father in the practice of law in Medford. He is active in the Masonic and Elks lodges and president of the Southern Oregon Pioneers Association.
    Steiwer's term expires January 3, 1939. He was first elected United States Senator in 1926 and took office in 1927. He successfully sought renomination in 1922 and was reelected.
    Steiwer will reengage in the private practice of law.
Oregon Salesman, Portland, January 30, 1938, page 1

A. E. Reames in his Senate office, February 14, 1938
A. E. Reames in his Senate office, February 14, 1938

New Senator Describes Self as New Dealer
By A. C. Holloway
    Evan Reames, Oregon's new U.S. senator, described himself Saturday as an ardent New Dealer, adding that he wanted to "cooperate with the president because I am certainly in sympathy with his program."
    Reames was one of the original supporters of the president.
    The new senator referred to the president's social security program as "one of the most wonderful things we have ever had. It should have been started 25 years ago."
    He said he did not believe in shaking the confidence of the people by diverting funds raised to finance the social security program to other purposes.
    He referred to the labor question as one of the "big problems of the age."
    "Security in employment, decent working conditions and opportunity for the future--these are the things that ought to be preserved," he declared.
    Speaking of international affairs, Reames declared that "everybody wants peace. I think we should keep out of all foreign entanglements. I think we should develop our aircraft defense and with it the navy defenses to keep pace with armament development and demand the respect of the most greedy nations."
    Reames said he would clear up his private business affairs as quickly as possible and start immediately for Washington, D.C.
    "I will at once get actively into the duties and hope to have an early conference with the president and our representatives in congress. It is too early to give any indication as to my position upon matters that will demand my attention, except to say that I will, as far as possible, and consistent with my own belief and judgment, uphold to the fullest extent the president and his administration in the great efforts that are being put forth to definitely and permanently improve conditions."

Portland News-Telegram, January 29, 1938, page 1


APPOINTMENT OF REAMES UPSETS RECORD
    When attorney Evan Reames of this city took the oath of office to the United States Senate last Tuesday morning, he became the second person from Jackson County (at least since 1883) to hold a state office that is subject to election by the people of the state of Oregon.
    The other was W. H. Leeds, of Ashland, former publisher of the Ashland Tidings, who was years ago elected to the office of state printer.
    Throughout the years, several Jackson County men have sought state office at the polls, always to be defeated, with the exception of Leeds. Also, when appointments were made by the Governor to fill unexpired terms of elective state officeholders, Jackson County was always passed up.
    Appointment of attorney Reames to the U.S. Senate breaks that rule, Governor Charles H. Martin being the first Governor of Oregon to recognize a Jackson County man in such manner.
    Also, as nearly as can be learned, the resignation of Senator Frederick Steiwer, a Republican, from the U.S. Senate, with appointment to fill his place in the hands of a Democratic governor, is the first time in modern history in the United States that a United States Senator has resigned, voluntarily, when a man of the opposite political party would be certain to be named. Such is the belief of Marion Nealon of Table Rock, whose reservoir of political history is unexcelled by anyone in the West.
    Attorney Reames served two terms as district attorney for the district which, at that time, included Lake, Klamath, Josephine and Jackson counties, the terms running from 1900 to 1908.
    In 1903, the office of Representative in Congress from this district became vacant upon death of the incumbent, and Reames was nominated by the Democrats to run at a special election. Binger Hermann was the Republican candidate. Reames lost by a narrow margin.
Medford News, February 4, 1938, page 1


Appointment of Evan Reames to Senate Recalls His Race for Congress in 1904, When Welcoming Band Got Marooned in Jacksonville
    Appointment of attorney Evan Reames of Medford to the position of U.S. Senator from Oregon has brought to light many interesting goings-on of early days in Jackson County, in which Senator Reames took a leading part.
    It was an incident during the year 1904, when attorney Reames was the Democratic nominee for Congress from the First Oregon District, opposed by Binger Hermann, Republican, that Fred Strang called to mind this week. Hermann defeated Reames by a narrow margin, by less votes, in fact, than were cast for Hermann in Jackson County.
    Strang tells the story like this:
    "Evan had just been nominated by the nominating convention in Salem, and the Democrats in the county made plans for a rousing reception for him when he got in on the train. The town band was rounded up, and I think there are about three of the boys left in town who played in that band. They are Wilson Wait, Bert Orr and myself. Prof. Narregan directed the band.
    "We met the train at the old depot, where the freight depot is now [currently site of KeyBank in Medford, 2 East Main], and gave him a warm welcome. Then the Democrats suggested that we go over to Jacksonville and play for him when he got there. The chairman of the Democratic Central Committee, I've forgotten who he was, told the Barnums that if he'd take the boys over, there were about 20 of us, the central committee would pay for the fares.
    "We got to Jacksonville and everything was fine. We played there and Evan made another speech, and then trouble began. John Barnum, the conductor, decided that their train was a first-class train just like Southern Pacific, and they couldn't be hauling people around on charge accounts, so they told us we couldn't ride back unless the tickets were paid for. That made it bad.
    "Wally Mahoney, telegraph operator for the Southern Pacific, was with us, and he said he could run that old peanut roaster, so we all made a run for the train. All of the boys but four got on, and they locked the door, but the four of us were left on the platform. The Barnums promptly and without ceremony kicked us off, about a mile out of town.
    "Then we [walked] back to Jacksonville, and went up to Evan's office. We told him about what had happened and thought he'd be good and mad and do something about it.
    "Well, Evan, after we'd told him the story, leaned back in his chair and laughed and laughed. Pretty soon we got to laughing too, and all felt better. Then Evan called the livery stable and had them send over a hack and team, and he drove us back to Medford."
    Strang said that a photograph of Binger Hermann, on a train platform with Theodore Roosevelt, was what defeated Evan for Congress. Hermann took the photograph all over Jackson County and used it to campaign. The Oregonian printed it too [on May 22, 1903, page 8].
Medford News, February 4, 1938, page 1


Evan Reames: He Wanted to Be a Telegrapher
A Brief Biography
    Evan Reames, junior senator from Oregon until November of this year by virtue of his appointment to fill the unexpired term of Senator Steiwer, is a native Oregonian, born at Jacksonville when that historic city was a thriving gold mining center.
    Upon completing his preparatory schooling in Jacksonville, he enrolled at the pre-college academy at the University of the Pacific, San Jose, Cal., studied three years at the University of Oregon, then completed his law training at Washington and Lee University.
    He first practiced his profession in Eugene, and in 1894 moved to Portland; here he remained until he lost an election bet--and returned to his native city to stay until 1909. Since that year he has been located at Medford.
    Mr. Reames believes he is probably the only lawyer in public life today who was admitted to practice because he couldn't answer the legal examiner's questions.

Salary Seemed Attractive to a Boy, but Paternal Ideas Were Different
By David W. Hazen
Staff Writer, The Oregonian
    Alfred Evan Reames, Oregon's very new junior United States senator, entered the bar through the Virginia gateway. He is perhaps the only lawyer in public life today who was admitted to practice because he could not answer the legal examiner's questions.
    Mr. Reames graduated from the law school of Washington and Lee University in 1893, the year of the Cleveland panic. The young man planned to leave for his home in faraway Jacksonville, Or., the day after the graduating exercises.
    As he was packing his trunk, one of his classmates remarked:
    "Say, Evan, why don't you get admitted to the Virginia bar before going home? Then it would be easier for you to be admitted in Oregon."
    It was a good idea. The youth from the West thought it over.
    "Tomorrow morning you can go up and see Judge McLoughlin; he can give you an examination, and get you a certificate before you leave Lexington," continued the Virginia friend.
    Evan Reames--the Alfred had dropped by the wayside when the boy crossed the Rocky Mountains--called on the old jurist, who was one of the lecturers in the law school, bright and early the next morning. The caller was received very kindly. And when Evan explained what he wanted, the judge smiled and beckoned him to come into the library.
Admits He Doesn't Know
    After they were seated, and the youthful bachelor of laws was given time to catch his breath, Judge McLoughlin began his examination.
    "How many does it take to form a corporation in Virginia?" the jurist asked.
    Young Reames thought a minute, then replied, "I don't know, judge!"
    The old man smiled, then asked the next question.
    "What are the grounds for divorce in Virginia?"
    "I don't know, judge," was the reply.
    The examination was getting along rapidly. The quizzer proceeded to the third query:
    "How many does it take to form a partnership in Virginia?"
    "I don't know, judge," quoth Evan Reames.
    Judge McLoughlin smiled broadly as he said, "Mr. Reames, sir, go down to the district clerk and tell him to give you a certificate to practice in my court, then you send it to our supreme court of Virginia and they'll admit you on my certificate. But if you don't want to do that, I'm sure your court will admit you on it."
    Senator Reames chuckled as he told of this weird law examination. These quizzes have changed somewhat since 1893, even in Virginia.
Frankness Won Him Admission
    "I had a clean score," said the attorney, who has long been a leader of the Oregon bar. "But the old judge knew I didn't know the answers to those questions, and I made a hit with him by not stammering around trying to let on that I did. He knew I could pick up a copy of the Virginia statutes and find the answers in a minute.
    "They hadn't taught us the Virginia laws in schools. I had studied the fundamentals, had passed the school examinations with a fine score, and the judge had been one of my instructors."
    On his way home, the Oregonian stopped in Chicago and took in the World's Columbian Exposition; he saw Little Egypt dance, took a ride on the ferris wheel, heard a German military band play in the typical German beer garden, had a fine time for several days. When he could see the bottom of his purse, he started home over the Union Pacific.
    "I spent the summer in Jacksonville," he explained, "waiting for my library to come from Virginia. My library! It sounds funny now, but it was a big thing to me then. There were my textbooks, and all the other volumes we had been advised to read. It was a nice collection of law books for a student.
    "I shipped them by freight, and they must have gone all over the country before they got into southern Oregon, for I didn't receive them until September. I had made up my mind to go to Helena, Mont. to practice. It was a Democratic state, and it had a lot of gold mines. I was a Democrat and I liked mines.
    "But I used to go to the little courthouse there in Jacksonville and listen to the lawyers present motions, and sometimes I would sit through a trial. I was sitting in the back of Judge Hanna's court one afternoon when Eugene Skipworth of Eugene was there to try a divorce case.
    "He wanted to get back on the afternoon train. A referee was needed, and he looked back, saw me, and told Judge Hanna he would like to have me appointed as referee. I didn't know any more about what to do than I knew about Virginia law, but I went back into the judge's chambers, they explained it to me, and I was on my way to become a member of the Oregon bar.
    "Skipworth wanted to know what I was going to do when I was ready to start practicing. I told him I was going to Helena, and I also told him why. He suggested I come to Eugene and go in with him. But I told him I thought I'd have a better chance in Montana, where there was more gold."
    Young Reames got through his chore in the divorce case in fine shape. Skipworth wrote down that he, Evan, had better change his mind about Helena.
    "I talked the matter over with Father, and he suggested that I stay with Skipworth," the senator stated. "So when I went to Eugene, I took my certificate from Virginia with me. The judge at Eugene took it, sent it with his motion to the supreme court at Salem, and I was admitted."
    Senator Reames says he thinks he is the only man admitted to practice in the courts of Virginia and of Oregon for having failed to answer a single question asked him at the bar examination.
Came Here in 1894
    He remained in Eugene from September until January 1894, when he came to Portland to practice. The lure of the big city overcame him. He officed with Cicero M. Idleman, ex-attorney general of Oregon, for a year or two, then opened his own office in the Portland Savings Bank building.
    "My reason for leaving Portland was about as queer as my law examination had been," said the barrister. We were talking in his room at the Portland Hotel the morning he was appointed United States senator to succeed Frederick Steiwer. It was a difficult interview, because the telephone would ring every few minutes, and about every five minutes there was a knock at the door--another deserving Democrat called to say he was so happy that Reames had been appointed--and wondering just whom the senator was going to name as his secretary.
    But in between calls, Mr. Reames told briefly the story of happy days in old Oregon. "Times were hard in Portland then, very hard," he said. "One could get plenty of clients who didn't have any money, but getting clients who could help pay office rent was very difficult.
    "I had one client who had money. He was wealthy, and wasn't afraid to pay me for my work. We became good friends, too, but he was the cause of my leaving this city and going back to southern Oregon. When the Bryan-McKinley campaign of 1896 came along, I was very bitter against the Mark Hanna-William McKinley ticket. Of course, my client, being wealthy, was supporting the Republican crowd.
    "I was sure Bryan would be elected. Anyone seeing the large numbers of men wandering up and down the country looking for work, seeing the great crowd of unemployed here in Portland, and realizing that most of these voters would be for a man who was fighting Wall Street and the money power, anyone seeing this couldn't help but think Bryan would win. At least, that's what I thought.
Makes Wager with Client
    "The people of means were for McKinley, but then they were in a small minority. As I said, of all the clients that came to my office, only one had any money worth mentioning. We used to discuss 16-to-1 [the proposed silver-to-gold coinage value ratio] and protective tariff and such things until we were black in the face.
    "At last, one day, I said to this rich client: 'Say, I'll make a bet with you; if McKinley wins, I'll move out of Portland and seek some other place to live; if Bryan wins, you move away from Portland and I'll continue to live here!'
    "He took me up right away, and after that we didn't discuss much politics. The election came in November. McKinley won. Mark Hanna had been able to collect so much money that Bryan couldn't equal the war chest. So I got ready to move. It took me a little while to get my affairs straightened around, but just as soon as the news came, I started to pack up.
    "My friend came in and said he was willing to forget the bet, but I replied, 'No, a bet's a bet. I lost. If you had lost, I would have insisted that you keep your word!'
    "And so I moved way from Portland because William Jennings Bryan wasn't elected president of the United States."
Became Partner of W. M. Colvig
    Evan Reames returned to Jacksonville and formed a law partnership with the late William M. Colvig. The following year he made a trip to Alaska with a congressional committee that went up to investigate matters in the gold-lined territory. Mr. Reames' father-in-law Thomas H. Tongue Sr., of Hillsboro, was a member of the committee.
    Mr. Reames continued practicing in Jacksonville until 1909, when he moved to Medford. The pear metropolis of Oregon was since been his home. For eight years, 1900-1908, he was district attorney for the district composed of a group of counties; at first they were Jackson, Josephine and Klamath counties, but during his last two years in office, the district consisted of Jackson and Josephine.
    "Were you ever a judge?" the lawyer was asked.
    "No, never," he snapped. "The 'judge' is just a nickname that's no good at all. I don't like it!"
    "Where were you born, senator?"
City, Then Metropolis
    "In Jacksonville, Or., on February 5, 1870. If I could be back in Washington in time, I could be sworn in as senator on my birthday. But I can't make it. This appointment came so suddenly that I have to get my office affairs a little bit in order before I leave. By golly, I would like to be in Washington for my birthday. That would be something, wouldn't it?"
    At the hour Alfred Evan was born, Jacksonville--the little city of once-upon-a-time--contained at least 1200 white people. It was teeming with business. It was a proud city, with many southern folk residing there; it had wealth and culture and refinement; its boys went east to school, to Yale, Washington and Lee, Columbia, West Point.
    "On those streams around there--Jackson Creek and Daisy Creek ran through the town, and Jackass Creek was nearby--were the richest gold mines then known in America," Senator Reames declared. "We didn't know about the Alaska and Yukon gold when I was a boy.
    "My father, Thomas G. Reames, was in the mercantile business with his brother, Evan R. Reames. They had a big store in Jacksonville and one in Phoenix, Or. C. C. Beekman, father of Ben B. Beekman, a Portland attorney, had a bank and the Wells-Fargo Express office and was buying gold there; Ben is a little older than I am, and had gone to Yale before I went east.
    "Peter Britt had the pioneer photograph gallery in southern Oregon, and his son Emil, who has been mayor of Jacksonville many times, was a boyhood friend of mine.
    "While we are talking about pioneers, I might tell you that my father crossed the plains in a covered wagon from Grayson County, Kentucky, in 1852; his father, Woodford Reames, reached St. Helens, Or. in the fall of '52. At that time St. Helens was quite a seaport, and it was thought it was going to be the big commercial city of this section; Portland was on the map, but that was about all that could be said of the place.
Settled First at St. Helens
    "My grandfather with his family settled in St. Helens for the winter, and he and my father worked on the dock loading and unloading boats. They made good wages, but when spring came they moved to southern Oregon, where my grandparents took up a donation land claim of 640 acres between Phoenix and Talent. Grandfather built a blacksmith shop flush with the road, and carried on this work and farming until 1887, when he moved to Jacksonville. My father worked in the placer gold mines along Jackson Creek when he was a young man.
    "My mother before her marriage was Lucinda Williams. She came across the plains from a farm near Kansas City, Mo. in 1853. She and Father were married in Phoenix.
    "In 1886, Father joined C. C. Beekman in the banking business."
    Senator Reames, between phone calls and door knocks, told about his boyhood playmates--Frank H. Huffer, now a retired admiralty lawyer in Seattle; Billy Blackford, who made a fortune practicing law in Helena, Mont.; Robert A. Miller, an attorney, poet and painter of Portland; Charley Nickell, an entertaining, bustling young printer who bought the Jacksonville Sentinel and changed it into the Times.
Built Community Telegraph Line
    "One of the things we did was to build a telegraph line connecting 14 families in the town," the new statesman declared, "and we had a great time talking with each other, boys and girls, late at night and on stormy days. My boyhood ambition was to be a telegrapher.
    "One day Father asked me what I was going to do when I grew up. I told him I was going to be a telegraph operator.
    "What makes you think that's a good business?" he asked.
    "I had been offered a job at $75 a month to start with, and that seemed like big money. So I said, 'Why, look at Fred Overbeck, he gets $250 a month!'
    "'Well, what of it?' said Father. 'He's 50 years old, and that's the most he'll ever make. You might never even get that much.'
    "I was 16 years old at the time, and Father kept me from making a great mistake. He wanted me to keep on going to school, and I took his advice. I graduated from high school in Jacksonville in the spring of 1888, and that fall I went to the University of the Pacific, a Methodist college in San Jose, Cal. There was an academy attached to the college.
    "My roommate was Billy Miller, Robert's brother. Billy is dead long since. I enrolled in the academic department. When school was out in the spring, I sent my grades to the president of the college, and told him I would like to enter as a freshman in the college that fall.
President Wrote Acceptance Letter
    "He wrote me saying that my grades were all right, and that I could enter the college as a freshman when I returned. But when I went to enroll in the academic department I was told by a faculty committee that I couldn't be listed as a freshman. I read them the president's letter, but they insisted I had some academic work to do. You see, I was a boarding student, and good pay.
    "After some discussion, I threw the president's letter down on the table, and told them in a very plain voice:
    "'I don't care to stay in a school where the president's word isn't any good.'
    "Then I hurried to my room, got my things, and went downtown to await a train. This caused the faculty committee to think again, and they sent my roommate downtown to ask me to come back.
    "'Billy,' I said, 'will you tell them what I say?'
Went to Eugene for Three Years
    "'No,' he replied, 'I don't care to do that, I know what you are going to say.'
    "So I returned to Jacksonville, and a day or two after getting home, I went to Eugene and enrolled in the University of Oregon. I took three years there, then I beat it for Washington and Lee University, where I took the two years' law course in one.
    "No, I've never been back to Lexington, Va. since the morning I took my bar examination. But as soon as I can after going to Washington, I will go down to the old school and pay my respects to the memory of dear old Judge McLoughlin."
    In 1895 Mr. Reames married Edith L. Tongue of Hillsboro, who passed away a short time after their marriage. Some years later the attorney wed Lillian L. Laning of Albany. They have one son, Edward.
    Senator Reames' only hobby is fly fishing in Rogue River.
    "I took a few golf lessons from Chan Egan but never learned how to play," he confessed, sadly.
The Sunday Oregonian, February 13, 1938


REAMES, Charles Wilkinson
Lawyer.
b. Jacksonville, Oregon April 5, 1891; son of Thomas G. and Lucinda (Williams) Reames (father and mother crossed plains in ox team; father was partner in Jacksonville, famed Beekman and Reames Bank; was one of first sheriffs of Jackson County); educated grade and high schools Berkeley; University of Oregon; LL.B. 1917; Phi Alpha Delta; m. Bess Myall of Oakland, California Feb. 10, 1914; children Thomas (U.S. Army), Carvel (Mrs. Harold Wall), Betty (Mrs. Vernon Plank); began as chief clerk U.S. Attorney's office, Portland, also assistant U.S. Attorney, admitted to Oregon Bar 1917; partner, brother late A. E. Reames; private practice 1926 to date; special assistant in charge of war work, World War II, U.S. Attorney's office; admitted to practice, U.S. District Court 1917; member of state and local bar associations; Lion; Elk; K.T. Mason; Hillah Shriner; Presbyterian; home 27 Geneva St.; office Medford Center Bldg., Medford
.
Capitol's Who's Who for Oregon 1948-49, page 461


Woodford Reames Among Earliest Settlers in Area
    Among the earliest settlers in the Southern Oregon country was Woodford Reames, who in 1853 located with his family on a donation claim of 320 acres midway between the present towns of Phoenix and Talent.
    Reames, a native Kentuckian, came to Oregon directly from Montgomery County, Ill., where he had lived for several years and where he had learned the blacksmith trade.
    It was because of his ability in this trade that he spent the winter of 1852-53 at St. Helens in northern Oregon in the employ of the Hudson Bay Co.
    Soon after Reames built a log cabin home on the land where he had decided to locate such serious trouble with the Indians developed that it was necessary that Mr. Reames and the children be taken to Fort Wagner near Talent, where stockades had been built by the settler for protection.
    After the conclusion of the Rogue River Indian war, life and property were assured greater safety, so the family returned to their own land and started to develop a home.
    Reames lived on this farm until 1879 when he retired to Jacksonville, where he died in 1884. His wife, the former Hulda White, lived until 1891. Five children were in the family.
    Direct descendants of this pioneer family who still live in Southern Oregon are Charles W. Reames, Mrs. Lucinda Hubbard, of Medford, Earnest E. Reames, of Crater Lake Highway, Mrs. Lillian Coleman and Harry W. Reames of Phoenix, and Fred Rapp of Talent.
Medford Mail Tribune, June 20, 1954, page B13


Prominent Medford Lawyer Dies at 74
    MEDFORD (Special)--Funeral for Charles W. Reames, 74, Medford lawyer since 1920, who died July 23, was held Tuesday at Perl Funeral Home.
    Mr. Reames, a Jackson County native, was the son of Thomas G. Reames, who crossed the plains to Jacksonville in 1848. His mother, Mrs. Lucinda Reames, came to Oregon in 1853. His father was a partner of C. C. Beekman in the old Beekman Bank in Jacksonville.
    He attended law school in Portland from 1914 to 1917 and from 1917 to 1920 he was assistant United States attorney in Portland. He moved to Medford in 1920.
    He was a member of Westminster Presbyterian Church, Medford Elks, Medford Masonic Lodge, Royal Arch Masons, Malta Commandery Knights Templar, Hillah Temple Shrine, Jackson County Shrine Club, Izaak Walton League, Oregon State Bar Association and Federal Bar Association.
    Survivors include the widow, Bessie Reames; one son, Thomas G. Reames, Medford; two daughters, Mrs. Bette Gottfried, Medford, and Mrs. Carvel Wall, Medford; three sisters and five grandchildren.

Oregonian, Portland, July 29, 1965, page 32



Last revised January 25, 2024