John R. Kinnear

author

John R. Kinnear

A lawyer, Civil War veteran, and early Washington state politician, he moved from Indiana to the Pacific Northwest and helped shape public life in Seattle during the late 19th century. His story connects frontier-era politics with the lives of veterans building new communities after the war.

1 Audiobook

About the author

Born in West Point, Indiana, on July 26, 1842, John Ritchey Kinnear served in the Civil War before going on to build a legal and political career in the American West. He later settled in Seattle, where he became part of Washington's early state political life.

Kinnear served in the Washington State Senate from 1889 to 1895, representing constituencies during the state's first years after admission to the Union. Remembered as both a public figure and a member of a prominent Seattle family, he was active during a period when the city and the state were rapidly growing.

He died in Seattle on March 31, 1912, at age 69. Today, he is noted as one of the figures connected to Washington's early political history and to Seattle's civic development in the late 1800s and early 1900s.