Simon, Joseph, 1851-1935

Joseph Simon (February 7, 1851 – February 14, 1935) was a German-born American politician and attorney. A member of the Republican Party, he represented Oregon in the U.S. Senate from 1898 to 1903. Simon was the first Jewish Republican senator.

Born in Bechtheim, Hesse, his family immigrated to the United States when he was one year old, settling in Portland, Oregon in 1857. In Portland, Simon attended the local Portland Public Schools before studying law. He read law at the Portland law firm owned by Joseph N. Dolph and John H. Mitchell, and passed the bar in 1872. After passing the bar he entered private legal practice at Mitchell and Dolph’s firm. In 1873, he formed a partnership with Dolph and Dolph's brother Cyrus.

He entered politics as a member of the Portland City Council serving from 1877 to 1880. In 1880, he was elected to and served in the Oregon State Senate as a Republican. Simon represented Multnomah County in several districts during his tenure due to reapportionment, and served through the 1891 legislative session. During both the 1889 and 1891 sessions he served as the President of the Senate. Simon did not serve in the 1893 session but returned to the state senate in 1895 and was again the President.

As the Oregon Legislative Assembly failed to fully organize in 1897, they did not elect a United States Senator, and Simon was then elected during the 1898 session, replacing incumbent and former employer John H. Mitchell. Simon served from October 8, 1898, until the term expired on March 4, 1903, and did not seek re-election. While in the Senate, he was chairman of the Committee on Irrigation and Reclamation of Arid Lands during the Fifty-sixth and Fifty-seventh Congresses.

After serving in Congress, Simon returned to Portland and the practice of law at the firm of Dolph, Mallory, Simon & Gearin. He held political office one final time, serving as Portland Mayor from 1909 to 1911. He was never married. Joseph Simon died on February 14, 1935 in Portland, and was buried at Beth Israel Cemetery in that city.