until September 14, 1870. An 1870 portrait of Woods by one who had heard him speak on numerous occasions characterized the "positive and magnetic" Governor as "...tall, graceful, and commanding, with a handsome, cheerful face, which is set off by a full, flowing beard and manifesting the utmost mental activity.... His manner of speaking is rapid, but distinct and impressive, never using long or high-sounding words or indulging in any extravagance or impropriety or metaphor. He seems to depend on the natural forces of ideas rather than upon the sonorousness of words; and although never written, unless by some very swift reporter at the time of their delivery, his speeches would be considered well adapted to the most refined of lecture-rooms.... Perhaps no American orator is capable of a quicker or keener retort, but it is a cut from a rapier, rather than a stroke with a bludgeon." Woods' prowess as a public speaker placed him in demand for other candidates around the country, and he made campaign speaking tours on behalf of Republican candidates in California in 1867 — where he made 30 speeches in 35 nights — and the New England states of New Hampshire and Connecticut in 1868. Woods failed to win re-election but was immediately appointed by new Republican President Ulysses S. Grant as the Governor of Utah Territory in 1871. Woods proved to be a critic of Mormon leader Brigham Young, and was not reappointed in 1875 at the conclusion of his term. Later life After leaving the Utah governorship Woods moved to California, where he remained for ten years. He then returned to Oregon in 1885, where he died on January 7, 1890. Woods was buried at River View Cemetery in Portland, Oregon. Footnotes Further reading Oscar T. Shuck, Representative and Leading Men of the Pacific: Being Original Sketches of the Lives and Characters of the Principal Men, to which are Added Their Speeches, Addresses, Orations, Eulogies, Lectures and Poems, Including the Happiest Forensic Efforts of Baker, Randolph, McDougall, T. Starr King, and Other Popular Orators. San Francisco: Bacon and Co., 1870. External links Governor George L. Woods' Administration from the Oregon State Archives Oregon State Library: George Lemuel Woods 1832 births 1890 deaths People from Boone County, Missouri Republican Party governors of Oregon Governors of Utah Territory Oregon state court judges Linfield University alumni Burials at River View Cemetery (Portland, Oregon) Utah Republicans