Robert Nelson Stanfield Jr (July 9, 1877April 13, 1945) was an American Republican politician and rancher from the state of Oregon who served in the Oregon House of Representatives (1912–18) including as Speaker (1917–18) and was later elected United States Senator for Oregon (1921–27). Early life Robert Nelson Stanfield Jr was born near the city of Umatilla, in Eastern Oregon on July 9, 1877, the first son of Harriet Thankful Townsend and Robert N. Stanfield Sr, the owner of a livery stable and freighting company. He lived in Umatilla until 1882 when his family moved to Pendleton, where his father ran a freight forwarding business. In 1885, the family moved to the former Buel Atwood place on Butter Creek, near Echo, Oregon. After the family moved to Butter Creek, he attended school at the Thomson School and then at the Butter Creek School built on land his father donated to the school district. In the fall of 1895, he enrolled in the state normal school at neighboring Weston. His education was interrupted by the death of his father, Robert N. Stanfield Sr, on April 15, 1896. He left school in 1897, after completing two years, and took over management of the Stanfield ranch on Butter Creek from his mother. From the original ranch on Butter Creek, he and his brothers built up a large livestock operation with multiple ranches. He was also involved in banking in Echo and Baker. He started with cattle and then switched mainly to sheep. During World War I his flocks were estimated to include 350,000 head of sheep, making him the world's largest sheep rancher. Political career In 1912, Stanfield was elected to the Oregon House of Representatives as a Republican representing District 22 which included Morrow and Umatilla counties. He continued in the state house through 1917, serving as Speaker during the 1917 session. The next year, he ran against Charles L. McNary for the Republican nomination to the U.S. Senate, losing in the May primary. In 1920, Stanfield was elected as a Republican to the U.S. Senate and served from March 4, 1921, to March 3, 1927. While in the Senate he was chairman of the Committee to Examine Branches of the Civil Service (Sixty-eighth Congress) and a member of the Committee on Public Lands and Surveys (Sixty-ninth Congress). During his time in Congress, he took hearings about public land use to the