{{short description|19th century American politician}} {{Infobox person | name = Solomon Hirsch | image = Solomon Hirsch.jpg | caption = | birth_name = | birth_date = {{birth date|1839|03|25}} | birth_place = | death_date = {{death date and age|1902|12|15|1839|03|25}} | death_place = | death_cause = | nationality = | education = | known_for = {{unbulleted list|Co-founder of Fleischner, Mayer and Co.|President of the Oregon State Senate}} | spouse = Josephine Mayer | occupation = {{flatlist| * Businessman * politician * ambassador}} | children = 4 | parents = | family = }}
'''Solomon Hirsch''' (March 25, 1839 – December 15, 1902) was a businessman and United States politician from the state of Oregon. He was one of the leaders of Portland's early Jewish community.<ref name=Vote>{{cite web |url=http://centuryofaction.org/index.php/main_site/document_project/portland_equal_suffrage_league_and_the_council_of_jewish_women_in_the_1912 |title= Portland Equal Suffrage League and the Council of Jewish Women in the 1912 Woman Suffrage Campaign |work= Century of Action Oregon Women Vote 1912-2012}}</ref>
==Early life and immigration== Solomon Hirsch was born on March 25, 1839, in Württemberg, Germany.<ref name=":0">{{Cite book |last=Gaston |first=Joseph |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XvYUAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA144 |title=Portland, Oregon, Its History and Builders: In Connection with the Antecedent Explorations, Discoveries, and Movements of the Pioneers that Selected the Site for the Great City of the Pacific |date=1911 |publisher=S.J. Clarke Publishing Company |language=en}}</ref> Immigrating to New York in 1854 at the age of 15, Hirsch's journey to the United States began with forty-two days at sea.<ref name=":0" /> His early career saw him working as a clerk and salesman in various cities before he moved to the Pacific Coast, influenced by his brothers' success in Oregon.<ref name=":0" />
== Business career == Settling in Portland in April 1858, Hirsch opened a retail store in Dallas, Oregon, and later engaged in business in Silverton. He later joined L. Fleischner & Company, eventually co-founding Fleischner, Mayer & Company in 1875 with Jacob Mayer<ref>{{Cite web |last= |first= |author-link= |date=December 31, 1908 |title=Jacob Mayer, Pioneer Merchant, Is Dead |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/28818697/jacob_mayer_obit_dec_1908/ |publisher=The Oregon Daily Journal}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last= |first= |author-link= |date=January 1, 1909 |title=Jacob Meyer Dies At His Home In Portland |url=https://cdnc.ucr.edu/?a=d&d=SFC19090101.2.26.14&e=-------en--20--1--txt-txIN--------1 |publisher=San Francisco Call, Volume 105, Number 32}}</ref> and {{Interlanguage link|Louis Fleischner|de}}, the largest wholesale dry goods and men's furnishings enterprise in the region.<ref name=":0" /> Hirsch remained a pivotal figure in the firm until his death, contributing to its expansion across Oregon, Washington, Idaho, and Montana.<ref name=":0" />
== Political and civic engagement == Hirsch's political career began with his election to the Oregon State Legislature in 1872, where he played a key role in electing United States Senator John H. Mitchell. Hirsch served in the Oregon State Senate from 1874 to 1885, including a term as Senate President in 1880, and was instrumental in enacting significant legislation, including an assignment law benefiting the poor to which he introduced an amendment giving it many features in common with the more recently adopted national bankruptcy law.<ref name=":0" /> He was a respected Mason, achieving recognition within the order alongside Cyrus A. Dolph in 1902. He also served as chairman of the Oregon Republican State Committee, having been elected to that position in 1882.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2011-05-14 |title=Biography of Solomon Hirsch |url=https://accessgenealogy.com/connecticut/biography-of-solomon-hirsch.htm |access-date=2025-07-08 |website=Access Genealogy |language=en-US}}</ref>
Hirsch served as Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary to the Ottoman Empire from 1889 to 1892.<ref>{{cite web |title=President Benjamin Harrison Names Solomon Hirsch Minister to Turkey |url=http://www.shapell.org/manuscript.aspx?president-benjamin-harrison-appoints-third-jewish-minister-to-turkey-1889 |work=Shapell Manuscript Collection |publisher=Shapell Manuscript Foundation}}</ref> His diplomatic service was highly regarded, earning commendations from both the U.S. Department of State and missionaries in the Ottoman Empire. Although offered further diplomatic roles, Hirsch declined to focus on his business and community commitments.
Hirsch was a life member of the Portland Library Association, president of the Beth Israel Congregation, and actively involved in the Chamber of Commerce.
== Death == Solomon Hirsch died on December 15, 1902. Eulogies at his memorial service, including those by Rabbi Stephen S. Wise and then-Mayor George H. Williams, highlighted his virtues, achievements, and the respect he commanded across all sectors of society.
Hirsch was buried at Beth Israel Cemetery in Portland, Oregon.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Solomon Hirsch: Early Jewish Pioneer Businessman and Politician of Portland Oregon. – JMAW – Jewish Museum of the American West |url=https://www.jmaw.org/hirsch-jewish-oregon/ |access-date=2024-03-08 |website=www.jmaw.org}}</ref>
==Family and legacy== thumb|right|220px|Hirsch memorial wing at the Portland Art Museum Hirsch's wife Josephine was the leader of the Portland Equal Suffrage League.<ref name=Vote/><ref>{{Cite web|first=Patricia A. |last= Schechter |author-link= |title=Biography of Josephine Hirsch, 1855-1924 |publisher=Biographical Database of NAWSA Suffragists, 1890-1920|date=September 28, 2017 |url=https://documents.alexanderstreet.com/d/1009860133 }}</ref> Josephine was the daughter of Solomon's business partner Jacob Mayer;<ref name=Vote/> they had 4 children: Ella Hirsch (born 1871); Sanford Hirsch (born 1873); May Hirsch (born 1875), and Clementine Hirsch (born 1880). Like his business partner Louis Fleischner, Hirsch's brother :de:Edward Hirsch served as Oregon State Treasurer.
A wing at the Portland Art Museum was dedicated to Solomon and Josephine Hirsch in 1939 after their daughter Ella bequeathed $853,000 (${{Formatprice|{{Inflation|US|853000|1939}}}} in {{inflation-year|US}} dollars) to the museum.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.gftpln.org/Article.do?orgId=6045&articleId=17034 |title= The Ella Hirsch Legacy Society: The Impact of a Legacy Gift |publisher= Portland Art Museum |access-date= April 13, 2014}}</ref>
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== *[https://web.archive.org/web/20140413143106/http://www.willametteheritage.org/LaRC/bios_histories/The_Hirsch_Family.pdf The Hirsch Family] (PDF) from Willamette Heritage Center *[https://books.google.com/books?id=XvYUAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA144 Hon. Solomon Hirsch], ''Portland, Oregon, Its History and Builders'' *[http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/11757-oregon Oregon], the ''Jewish Encyclopedia'' *The Pacific Monthly, January 1903
{{US Ambassadors to Turkey}} {{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hirsch, Solomon}} Category:Jewish American people in Oregon politics Category:Presidents of the Oregon State Senate Category:Republican Party Oregon state senators Category:Ambassadors of the United States to Turkey Category:1839 births Category:1902 deaths Category:Politicians from Portland, Oregon Category:19th-century American Jews Category:19th-century American diplomats Category:19th-century members of the Oregon Legislative Assembly