Thomas Hurley Brents was an American politician and attorney in the Pacific Northwest

Pacific Northwest

The Pacific Northwest is a region in northwestern North America, bounded by the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains on the east. Definitions of the region vary and there is no commonly agreed upon boundary, even among Pacific Northwesterners. A common concept of the...

. A native of Illinois

Illinois

Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...

, he was raised in Oregon where he served in the Oregon House of Representatives

Oregon House of Representatives

The Oregon House of Representatives is the lower house of the Oregon Legislative Assembly. There are 60 members of the House, representing 60 districts across the state, each with a population of 57,000. The House meets at the Oregon State Capitol in Salem....

. A Republican he later lived in California

California

California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

 and then Washington Territory

Washington Territory

The Territory of Washington was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from February 8, 1853, until November 11, 1889, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Washington....

 where he was the Congressional Delegate for the territory from 1879 to 1885.

Early life

Thomas Brents was born near Florence, Illinois

Florence, Illinois

Florence is a village in Pike County, Illinois, United States. The population was 71 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Florence is located at .According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of , all land....

, in Pike County

Pike County, Illinois

Pike County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. According to the 2010 census, it has a population of 16,430, which is a decrease of 5.5% from 17,384 in 2000...

 on December 24, 1840. Brents attended the common schools and in Oregon

Oregon

Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...

 he attended Portland Academy, the Baptist Seminary in Oregon City

Oregon City, Oregon

Oregon City was the first city in the United States west of the Rocky Mountains to be incorporated. It is the county seat of Clackamas County, Oregon...

, and then McMinnville College (now Linfield College

Linfield College

Linfield College is an American private institution of higher learning located in McMinnville, Oregon, United States. As a four-year, undergraduate, liberal arts and sciences college with a campus in Portland, Oregon, it also has an adult degree program located in eight communities throughout the...

. He served as a Justice of the Peace

Justice of the Peace

A justice of the peace is a puisne judicial officer elected or appointed by means of a commission to keep the peace. Depending on the jurisdiction, they might dispense summary justice or merely deal with local administrative applications in common law jurisdictions...

 in 1862 and then moved to Canyon City, Oregon

Canyon City, Oregon

Canyon City is a city in Grant County, Oregon, United States. It is the county seat of Grant County, and is about a mile south of John Day on U.S. Highway 395. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 703.-History:...

, where he was engaged in the general mercantile business from 1863 to 1864. There he served as postmaster at the same time, and then from 1864 to 1866 he served as clerk of Grant County

Grant County, Oregon

Grant County is a county located in the U.S. state of Oregon. It is included in the 8 county definition of Eastern Oregon. In 2010, its population was 7,445. It is named for President Ulysses S. Grant, who served as an army officer in the Oregon Territory, and at the time of the county's creation...

.

Political career

In 1866, he served as delegate to the Union-Republican convention of Oregon, and was elected that year to the Oregon House of Representatives

Oregon House of Representatives

The Oregon House of Representatives is the lower house of the Oregon Legislative Assembly. There are 60 members of the House, representing 60 districts across the state, each with a population of 57,000. The House meets at the Oregon State Capitol in Salem....

 from Grant County. Brents then studied law and was admitted to the bar

Admission to the bar in the United States

In the United States, admission to the bar is the granting of permission by a particular court system to a lawyer to practice law in that system. Each U.S. state and similar jurisdiction has its own court system and sets its own rules for bar admission , which can lead to different admission...

 in 1866 and commenced practice in San Francisco, California

San Francisco, California

San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...

, in 1867.

Brents moved to Walla Walla, Washington

Walla Walla, Washington

Walla Walla is the largest city in and the county seat of Walla Walla County, Washington, United States. The population was 31,731 at the 2010 census...

, in 1870 and served as city attorney of Walla Walla in 1871 and 1872. He then presided over the Republican Territorial convention at Vancouver

Vancouver, Washington

Vancouver is a city on the north bank of the Columbia River in the U.S. state of Washington. Incorporated in 1857, it is the fourth largest city in the state with a 2010 census population of 161,791 as of April 1, 2010...

 in 1874. Brents was elected as a Republican

Republican Party (United States)

The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...

 to the Forty-sixth

46th United States Congress

The Forty-sixth United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1879 to March 4, 1881, during the last two years of...

, Forty-seventh

47th United States Congress

The Forty-seventh United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1881 to March 4, 1883, during the administration...

, and Forty-eighth

48th United States Congress

The Forty-eighth United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1883 to March 4, 1885, during the last two years...

 Congresses (March 4, 1879-March 3, 1885).

Later life

He was an unsuccessful candidate for renomination in 1884 and then resumed the practice of law, later serving as judge of the superior court of Walla Walla from 1896 to 1913. Thomas Brents died in Walla Walla, Washington

Walla Walla, Washington

Walla Walla is the largest city in and the county seat of Walla Walla County, Washington, United States. The population was 31,731 at the 2010 census...

, on October 23, 1916, at the age of 75 and was interred in Blue Mountain Cemetery.