Portal:Oregon/Selected biography/32

Reuben Patrick Boise (June 9, 1819 – April 10, 1907) was an American attorney, judge and politician in the Oregon Territory and the early years of the state of Oregon. A native of Massachusetts, he immigrated to Oregon in 1850, where he would twice serve on the Oregon Supreme Court for a total of 16 years, with three stints as chief justice. He served during both the territorial period and after statehood. Early in his legal career, he worked as a district attorney. A Democrat, Boise was a member of the Oregon Constitutional Convention in 1857, served in the Territorial Legislature, and helped to codify the laws of the Oregon Territory. He also served as a circuit court judge, and was a trustee at several colleges. In addition to his legal career, he was proponent of education and served on the boards of several schools in the Willamette Valley. Educated at Williams College, he was twice married to women from Massachusetts, and had a total of five children.