2A01:B340:84:327A:49FA:A4C6:C651:5D2B at 15:05, 30 June 2025

2025-06-30T15:05:54Z

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{{Short description|American politician (1823–1899)}}

{{Use mdy dates|date=September 2011}}
{{Infobox officeholder
|name= Benjamin F. Harding
|image name= Benjamin F. Harding - Brady-Handy.jpg
|jr/sr and state= [[List of United States Senators from Oregon|United States Senator]]<br/>from [[Oregon]]
|party= [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]]
|term= September 12, 1862 – March 3, 1865
|preceded= [[Benjamin Stark]]
|succeeded= [[George Henry Williams]]
|office2 = [[Oregon Secretary of State|Secretary]] of the [[Oregon Territory]]
|term_start2 = January 27, 1855
|term_end2 = March 3, 1859
|predecessor2 = [[George Law Curry]]
|successor2 = [[Lucien Heath]] (under state government)
|office3 = 2nd [[List of Speakers of the Oregon House of Representatives|Speaker]] of the [[Oregon House of Representatives]]
|term_start3 = 1860
|term_end3 = 1861
|predecessor3 = [[William G. T'Vault]]
|successor3 = [[Joel Palmer]]
|birth_date= {{birth date|1823|1|4}}
|birth_place= [[Tunkhannock, Pennsylvania]], U.S.
|death_date= {{death date and age|1899|6|16|1823|1|4}}
|death_place= [[Cottage Grove, Oregon]], U.S.
|spouse= Elizabeth Cox (d. 1868)<br/>F. W. Bush
|profession= Attorney
|religion=
|footnotes=
}}
'''Benjamin Franklin Harding''' (January 4, 1823{{spaced ndash}}June 16, 1899) was an American attorney and politician born in [[Pennsylvania]]. He held political offices in the [[Oregon Territory]] and later served as a [[United States senator]] from the state of [[Oregon]].

==Early life==
He was born near [[Tunkhannock, Pennsylvania]], on January 4, 1823.<ref name=cong>[http://bioguide.congress.gov/scripts/biodisplay.pl?index=H000189 United States Congress Bioguide: Benjamin Harding]</ref> Harding was educated in the public schools before he studying law. He passed the [[bar (law)|bar]] in 1847, and then set up practice in [[Joliet, Illinois]], in 1849.<ref name=cong/> In 1850, he moved first to California, and then to the Oregon Territory.

==Oregon politics==
Harding was elected to the [[Oregon Territorial Legislature]] in 1850 to represent [[Marion County, Oregon|Marion County]].<ref name=ter1850>[https://sos.oregon.gov/archives/Pages/records/legislators_guide.aspx Oregon Legislative Assembly (2nd Territorial) 1850 Regular Session]</ref> Two years later he returned to that body and served as Speaker of the House of Representatives.<ref name=ter1852>[https://sos.oregon.gov/archives/Pages/records/legislators_guide.aspx Oregon Legislative Assembly (4th Territorial) 1852 Regular Session]</ref> Harding was then selected as [[United States Attorney|United States district attorney]] in 1853. From 1854 to 1859 he served as the Secretary of the Oregon Territory, predecessor to the office of [[Oregon Secretary of State]].

In 1858, Harding was elected to the [[Oregon State Legislature]], but as Oregon had not yet been admitted to the Union, the assembly only met briefly before disbanding until 1859, when a special session was held and Harding served at the session.<ref>[https://sos.oregon.gov/archives/Pages/records/legislators_guide.aspx Oregon Legislative Assembly (1st Pre-Admission) 1858 Regular Session]</ref><ref name="sos.oregon.gov">[https://sos.oregon.gov/archives/Pages/records/legislators_guide.aspx Oregon Legislative Assembly 1859 Special Session]</ref> In 1860, he was elected again as a [[United States Democratic Party|Democrat]] representing Marion County.<ref name="sos.oregon.gov"/> At the next session of the legislature Harding was elected as Speaker of the Oregon House of Representatives, and this would be his final session in the state legislature.<ref>[https://sos.oregon.gov/archives/Pages/records/legislators_guide.aspx Oregon Legislative Assembly (1st) 1860 Regular Session]</ref>

Harding was elected to the [[United States Senate]] to fill [[Edward D. Baker]]'s seat after the latter had died.<ref name=cong/> He served from September 12, 1862, to March 3, 1865. While in the Senate, he and fellow Oregon Senator [[James Nesmith#Congress|James Nesmith]] were the only Democrats in that chamber to vote for the [[Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution]] to abolish slavery.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Voteview {{!}} Plot Vote: 38th Congress > Senate > 134 |url=https://voteview.com/rollcall/RS0380134 |access-date=2023-01-06 |website=voteview.com}}</ref>

==Later life and family==
Harding was married twice, first in 1851 to Elizabeth Cox, with whom he had several children. After she died in 1868, he married F.W. Bush, a relative of [[Asahel Bush]].<ref name=Oregon>Corning, Howard M. ''Dictionary of Oregon History''. Binfords & Mort Publishing, 1956.</ref> After serving in the Senate, Harding retired to his farm near [[Salem, Oregon|Salem]].<ref name=cong/> A few years later he moved to [[Cottage Grove, Oregon]], where he died on June 16, 1899, and was buried at Cottage Grove Cemetery.<ref name=cong/>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Portal|Biography}}
*{{Find a Grave|5891369|accessdate=2009-03-24}}

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{{U.S. Senator box
|state=Oregon
|class=2
|before=[[Benjamin Stark]]
|after=[[George Henry Williams|George H. Williams]]
|alongside=[[James W. Nesmith]]
|years=1862–1865}}
{{s-end}}

{{USSenOR}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Harding, Benjamin F.}}
[[Category:1823 births]]
[[Category:1899 deaths]]
[[Category:Speakers of the Oregon House of Representatives]]
[[Category:Democratic Party members of the Oregon House of Representatives]]
[[Category:Union (American Civil War) political leaders]]
[[Category:Members of the Oregon Territorial Legislature]]
[[Category:People from Tunkhannock, Pennsylvania]]
[[Category:People from Cottage Grove, Oregon]]
[[Category:United States attorneys for the District of Oregon]]
[[Category:Democratic Party United States senators from Oregon]]
[[Category:Secretaries of state of Oregon]]
[[Category:19th-century United States senators]]

Benjamin F. Harding - Revision history

2A01:B340:84:327A:49FA:A4C6:C651:5D2B at 15:05, 30 June 2025