1825-1850: A Period of Immigration and Change

A quarter of the way through the nineteenth century Oregon remained predominantly wilderness. The Willamette Valley at this time is described as "an oak orchard," a distant reality of what it is today. Early settlers were predominantly young men who were engaged in local fur trading. American missionaries also came west during the 1830s hoping to spread the word of God to the distant frontier.

The Hudson's Bay Company was the most dominant government and economic entity in the Pacific Northwest during this time. By the 1830s the Hudson's Bay Company held a virtual monopoly on cattle in Oregon. American efforts to thwart this British dominance in the area resulted in the creation of the Willamette Cattle Company in 1837. This venture gave American settlers a growing sense of independence from British interests. It is seen as the first cooperative venture among early Oregon settlers. Settlers would continue to invite U.S. influence by seeking legislation to protect settled lands.

By the middle of the 1840s, Oregon was becoming known as a place of cheap and fertile land. Stories of abundant and free land, as well as bountiful agricultural potential, brought the first significant numbers west in the early 1840s. These immigrants came predominantly from the Midwest, and also from other northern and eastern states.

The Oregon Trail was the main route followed by overland migrants. Water ways were used as primary sources of transporting agricultural goods and other products as rails and roads were virtually unknown for transportation purposes. Settlers traveling along the Columbia and Willamette Rivers frequently cut down trees along the banks for use as firewood and construction materials. This resulted in the creation of a significant open space at the junction of these major water ways known as "The Clearing." Because of its location next to abundant waters, The Clearing was one of the early destinations of settlers.

Also attractive to settlers was the town of Oregon City located a short distance down the Willamette River from The Clearing. While Oregon City prospered initially, it's location adjacent to the Willamette Bar hindered accessibility by ship. The Clearing, with its deep river channels, replaced Oregon City as the major port city in the area.

The typical homestead during this time period consisted of a one-room log cabin with a vegetable garden and modest wheat fields. There was little hard currency available in this remote territory and as a result wheat was used as the primary medium of exchange.

Exploration & Settlement

1836 - Lieutenant William Slacum of the U.S. Navy arrives in Oregon to find the Hudson's Bay Company holding a virtual monopoly on cattle in the area.

1837 - January. Willamette Cattle Company is formed to purchase California cattle for relocation to Oregon giving American settlers a growing sense of independence from British influences such as the Hudson's Bay Company.

1837 - An economic depression initiates large-scale migration from the Midwest.

1840-1860 - An estimated 53,000 settlers come to Oregon by way of the Oregon Trail which stretched some 2,000 miles from Independence, Missouri.

F.W. Pettygrove and Lawerence Lovejoy purchase The Clearing for $50 and rename it Portland after Lovejoy's hometown in Maine.

Hudson's Bay Company headquarters is moved from Fort Vancouver to Fort Victoria on Vancouver Island.

1846 - The United States and Great Britian agree to divide the Oregon Country at the 49th parallel, the present-day border with Canada.

1849 - Oregon Country is declared a United States Territory bringing change in the form of the army, postal service, Bureau of Indian Affairs, harbor improvements and road construction.

Population

1840 - The non-native Willamette Valley population is 105-140 individuals.

1840 - The Kalapuya population drops to 500-800 individuals.

1843 - Over 900 immigrants arrive in Oregon Country, marking the beginning of the large-scale westward migration.

1845 - The non-native Willamette Valley population increases to 2,000 (3,000) settlers.

1847-48 - The Cayuse War takes place after Indians, outraged at a the epidemic of measles brought by immigrants that devastated their population, attack the Whitman Mission at Waiilaptu killing 14 people.

1849 - Some 11,500 pioneers are now settled in Oregon Country.

Slavery and exlusion of blacks and mulattoes is prohibited by congressional act.

Transportation

The Barlow Road overland route is established on the south side of Mt. Hood.

The Applegate Trail is established as a major spur off of the Oregon Trail linking PLACE to PLACE.

1850's: A Changing Landscape An utilitarian attitude prevailed throughout the Willamette Valley during this decade. The economy and industry thrived on the abundance of timber, water, prairies, grasses, and suitable climate. In 1855 fences enclosed much of the Calpooia landscape. Congress passed the Donation Land Act, which recognized most of the land claims filed under the provisional government. Single white males over the age of twenty-one could claim 320 acres. If they were married, they could claim an additional 320 acres for their wife. Widows could hold title to land, but single women could not. The introduction of cattle caused serious changes to the landscape of the Willamette Valley. During the peak of the gold rush in California, the number of cattle increased in Oregon and agriculture declined. Fires were suppressed and introduced grasses became prominent. Post offices, stage coaches and express companies were being established throughout the state. Markets of the southern Willamette Valley expanded to service the gold miners in California. For example, flour mills built to grind and export flour. The agricultural production of wheat was 2,265 bushels. The Columbia and Willamette rivers were used to ship lumber and were the locations of sawmills and ferry crossings. Washington Territory is created from land north of the Columbia River. Willamette University is chartered. A treaty is made creating the Oregon Territory's first Indian Reservation at Table Rock. On February 14, 1859, Congress admits Oregon as the thirty-third state. population 1850 census Clakamas, Yamhill, and Washington county 6023 Polk and Marion county 3800 Benton and Linn county 1808

1860's Most of the land throughout the Willamette Valley was owned in title, but mu ch of the prairie was still uncultivated. Drainage of land, lakes, and swamps increased the amount of agriculture on the valley floor but caused a decline in birds and mammal species. Gold has been discovered creating the need for new supply trails and roads. Many of the roads were built to access the rivers because steamboat traffi c on the Willamette between Oregon City and Eugene was the main transportation rou te for goods and people. The railroad was initiated through the Willamette Valley increasing wheat production. Family farms merged into community agriculture. The valley floor was now more important land than the foothills surrounding the valley, although fl ooding still posed a significant threat. There were four flour mills in Linn county.

1870's Most of Oregon had been surveyed by this time. Wheat was the number one agricultural product. The suppression of fires caused a brush invasion throughout the Calpooia river valley. There was a diptheria epidemic in 1876-77.

1880's Agriculture and the production of wheat declined due to soil exhaustion. Farmers focused more on dairy cattle and planting orchards. Lumber was the primary economic source within the Calapooia River Valley and the river was the main source of power and transportation. Another flood in the Willamette valley. The first railroad was built through the Gorge along the Columbia River. Location of the railroads throughout Oregon caused towns such as Boston to die because it was 1.5 miles off of the railroad right-of-way. Another flood in the Willamette valley. population There were 174,768 people in the state. Brownsville population was 450 Crawfordsville population was 58

1890's 80% of the southern Willamette Valley was drained and improved for agriculture and development. Soil erosion was rampant. Dams were being built on the rivers. Flooding continued throughout the Willamette valley. For the most part, the Kalapuya were gone from the region. Animal extinctions and local declines included the grizzly, cougar, wolf, grasses, shrubs, trees, and camas. Fish habitat was lost. First half of the twentieth century Malaria was eliminated from the Willamette Valley due to draining the land and confining rivers and streams to narrower channels. Astoria was the second largest city in OR, but in 1920, fire destroyed Astoria's business district. Citizenship was granted to Indians finally. Bonneville Dam destroyed the last traditional fishing ground on the Columbia River. this time period was characterized by commercial salmon fishing, beaver trapping, over-grazing cattle, building hydroelectric facilities, and irrigation projects. Vanport, OR was destroyed by flood.

1950 to present day By the early 1950's there were less than 400 native Americans in Multnomah County The Dalles Dam was built before 1960. Oregon enacted the nation's first land-use planning laws in 1973. These laws were based on an agricultural and forest economy, and were designed to protect that economy. Today the major industries evolve around electronics, services and transportation and these different economies often compete for space and place. Majors issues being dealt with in Oregon today include traffic congestion, air quality, efficient land use in downtown areas, and how to protect farmland. Salmon are part of the heart and soul of the Pacific Northwest. They have defined its history, and its culture, and hopefully its future. Wille Stelle Jr. NMFS The Willamette River is not considered drinkable or swimmable today Of the 1000 native anadromous stocks 106 are extinct and 314 are at risk. In 1996 the floods in Oregon were the worst in 30 years Today there are nine federally recognized native American tribes and four reservations in Oregon. population * There are 1 million more people in Oregon today than there were in 1973. * 1993-1995, the tri-county region's population has increased by 51,000; 69,00 0 if Clark County is included. That is the equivalent of adding a new Hillsboro (a nd then some) to the region in just two years. * 23,000 new houses and apartments have been built in the Metro area; * there are nearly 41,000 additional cars on the road; * 44,000 new parking spaces have been built covering more than 400 acre of land. * Clackamas County has 130,000 more people today than in 1973. * Wilsonville today is almost 10 times the size it was in 1973. * Clarke County, fastest growing county in the Portland metro market with a population increase of over 46 % since 1980.