Samuel B. Huston

Samuel Bruce Huston (March 16, 1858 – November 30, 1920) was an American politician and lawyer in Oregon. Originally a Democrat and later a Republican, he served in both chambers of the Oregon Legislative Assembly and was twice the mayor of Hillsboro, Oregon. A native of Indiana, he served in the state senate as a Democrat from one county his first term, but moved and changed parties by his second term 20 years later.

Early life Samuel Huston was born in New Philadelphia, Washington County, Indiana on March 16, 1858, to Oliver Wolcott Huston and Lucretia Pearson Huston (née Naugle). His father died while Samuel was young, with his mother remarrying in 1866. The family moved from the southern Indiana town to Illinois, where Samuel received his education at a private school and the public schools in Grand Glade. Another son, Oliver, attended the University of Oregon and Yale University. The couple had two other children, Samuel Carl and Blanche. Huston was involved with other cases of the land fraud as well as more than ten murder trials, primarily as a defense attorney. In 1889, he won the election for mayor of the city, the eleventh person to serve as mayor of Washington County's seat, he was in office from December 2, 1889, until December 5, 1890. In 1892, Huston was elected to a four-year term in the Oregon State Senate. A Democrat at the time, he represented District 29 and Washington County, serving through the 1895 session. During this time he also served as mayor of Hillsboro a second term from December 4, 1894, until December 5, 1895. He left the Democratic Party due to the party's views on the silver question and how U.S. currency was backed. He represented District 13 and Multnomah County, and served in the 1919 regular session and 1920 special session as a Republican.

Later years During his later life, Huston served as a director at the Oregon Historical Society. On November 30, 1920, Samuel Huston died of a heart attack while in the Federal Courthouse in Portland in Judge Charles E. Wolverton's courtroom while waiting for a trial to resume from the lunch recess. Age 62 when he died, Huston was buried at River View Cemetery in Portland.