John B. Waldo

John Breckinridge Waldo was born October 6, 1844, growing up in the countryside east of Salem known famously as the Waldo Hills. He was the third son of Virginians Daniel and Malinda Waldo. The Waldo Family had joined the "Great Emigration" wagon train to Oregon only the year before and were fresh arrivals to the Willamette Valley when John was born. John suffered asthma from an early age, so the family would take trips to the Cascades to keep him out of the smoggy Willamette Valley. It was the beginning of a life-long love for the majestic mountains of Oregon.

In 1863, Waldo graduated from Salem's Willamette University and later married Clara Humason of The Dalles. After studying law and passing the bar, he spent the 1870s as an attorney in Salem, with another office in Portland. In 1880, he won election to the Oregon Supreme Court, spending the last two years of his six-year term as chief justice.  He had the distinction of being the first Oregon Supreme Court chief justice born in the state. Defeated for re-election in 1886, in 1888 he was elected to the state legislature from Marion County, and served one term before retiring. During the 1889 legislative session, Waldo unsuccessfully introduced a "Memorial to Congress," urging the establishment of a huge forest reserve stretching the length of the Cascades, from the Columbia River to the California state line, to protect its "wildness, game, fish [and] fowl, its scenery, the beauty of its flora, the healthfulness of its atmosphere." (Benson) His efforts achieved a partial victory in 1893 when President Grover Cleveland proclaimed the Cascade Forest Reserve.Throughout the 1890s and until his death in 1907, Waldo wrote countless letters in support of forest conservation to Oregon newspapers, and became known as “Oregon’s John Muir.” (LaLande)

As an early proponent of forest conservation in Oregon, his legacy can be discerned in the state's six national forests, eighteen wilderness areas, and one national park. Waldo Lake north of Willamette Pass and Waldo Glacier (south-southeast slopes of Mount Jefferson) are direct tributes to John Breckinridge Waldo and his passion about preserving the pristine landscape of the Northwest. 

LaLande, Jeff. "John B.Waldo (1844-1907) | Oregon Encyclopedia - Oregon History and Culture." John B.Waldo (1844-1907) | Oregon Encyclopedia - Oregon History and Culture. Oregon Encyclopedia, n.d. Web. 17 Feb. 2013. <http://www.oregonencyclopedia.org/entry/view/waldo_john_b_1844_1907_/>.

Benson, Arthur F. "John B. Waldo Biography." John B. Waldo Biography. State of Oregon Law Library, n.d. Web. 09 Feb. 2013.