Archives West Finding Aid

Charles Henry Carey was a Portland lawyer and judge from 1883 to 1940. He was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, on October 27, 1857. Carey graduated from Denison University and received a law degree from Cincinnati College in 1883. He began his career as an associate in the Thayer and Williams law firm in Portland, Oregon, from 1883 to 1885. Carey lived and practiced, briefly, in Michigan from 1887 to 1889, before returning to Portland and organizing the law firm of Williams and Carey. He served for a time as President of the Willamette Steam Mills Lumbering and Manufacturing Company while organizing another law firm: Carey, Idleman, Mays and Webster (1894-1896), later renamed Carey and Mays (1895-1907). In 1907, Carey established a law firm with James B. Kerr, which survived until 1930. He also served as a municipal court judge from 1890 to 1894.

Carey was instrumental in establishing the Multnomah Law Library (1890) and the Oregon Bar Association (1892), serving as its secretary for years and twice elected it's president (1912-1913, 1922-1923). He was vice-president of the American Bar Association from 1894 to 1914, and in 1904 was a delegate to the International Congress of Lawyers and Jurists in St. Louis, Missouri. He was instrumental in reorganization of judicial administration, procedures, and methods in Oregon.

Carey was active in other organizations, including: The League to Enforce Peace, League of Nations Association, Oregon World Court Committee, and Institute of Pacific Relations. He served as president (1927-1937) of the Oregon Historical Society and of the Lang Syne Society (1928-1929) and also as a board member for the Portland Art Association (1928-1933). In addition, he served on the boards of the Portland Arts and Crafts Society and the Portland Garden Club.

Carey authored a book and several articles on Oregon History. Included in his collection are drafts of articles, and a manuscript of his History of Oregon (1922). He also was a collector of historical maps.