Levi Branson Reeder

Levi Reeder was born in Eureka, Woodford County, Illinois, to Daniel A. and Eliza Reeder (née Kelsay) on September 7, 1865.[1] At the age of nine the family immigrated to Oregon, settling in Eastern Oregon.[1] Reeder attended school in Athena and Weston before enrolling in college at Christian College (now Western Oregon University) in Monmouth.[1] He graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in 1887, and then earned a B.S.D. degree at the institution.[1] On July 3, 1890, he married Laura L. Zeigler.[1] After a year of course work and the University of Michigan, Reeder then earned a Bachelor of Laws degree from the school in 1891.[1] He was admitted to the bar in Washington on August 1, 1891.[1]

After passing the bar, Reeder entered private legal practice in Stevens County, Washington, remaining there until 1895.[1] From 1893 to 1895 he served as a prosecuting attorney in the county.[1] In 1895, he returned to Oregon where he passed the bar and began practicing in Pendleton until 1904.[1] In 1898, Reeder was elected as a Republican to the Oregon House of Representatives from Umatilla County.[2] He was re-elected in 1900, and served as the Speaker of the Oregon House during the 1901 legislative session.[3] In 1904, Reeder relocated to Portland.[1]

Reeder advocated for opening a shipping channel on the Columbia River from Pendleton to the Pacific Ocean.[4] He died in Portland on January 26, 1930.[5]