| Henry Leroy Hess | |
| Term Start: | 1945 |
| Term End: | 1954 |
| State Senate1: | Oregon |
| District1: | 21st |
| Term Start1: | January 9, 1933 |
| Term End1: | January 11, 1937 |
| Birth Date: | 12 October 1890 |
| Death Place: | Washington County, Oregon, United States |
| Spouse: | Madeline Owsley (m. 1964–74) |
| Children: | 1 |
Henry Leroy Hess (October 12, 1890 - March 15, 1974)[1] was an American lawyer and politician from Oregon.
Hess was born in 1890 in Rexburg, Idaho.[1]
A Democrat, Hess served a term in the Oregon State Senate from 1933 until 1937, representing Union and Wallowa counties.[2] [3] In 1938, he ran for Governor of Oregon. In the Democratic primary, he ran against incumbent Governor Charles Martin, as well as state representative O. Henry Oleen.[4] Harold L. Ickes, Roosevelt's Secretary of the Interior and a key implementer of New Deal policies, indicated his support for Hess, though Roosevelt himself stayed officially neutral.[5] He defeated Martin and Oleen with 49% of the vote.[4] [6] In the general election, Hess lost to Republican candidate Charles A. Sprague with 43% of the vote.[7]
Following his defeat, Hess served as U.S. Attorney for the United States District Court for the District of Oregon from 1945 until 1954. He was also a delegate to the 1944 Democratic National Convention.[8]
Hess married Madeline Mae Owsley (1911–2003) on March 30, 1964, in Stevenson, Washington.[9] He had a son, Henry L. Hess Jr., from a different relationship.[9]
Hess died on March 15, 1974, in Washington County, Oregon.[1]