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Q ^oin^enir  of  the  one  hunc/redih  dnnivensary   of  \  ^. 
fhefj'r^f  seffle-me-n-/-    In   Ihe    Si<aJ-e  ^  }fdishinqfon 

under  Jthe  Orherjccin^/t-jg',     On  e\/'enf    u/nich  s   .^ 

occurred  c?/  fhc  mouih  of  i-he  O/cdt/joo'cjn  J^/irer  ^  '^^  ^  ^ 


JOHN  JACOB  ASTOR. 


EARLY  OKANOGAN  HISTORY 

S«/      WILLIAM     C.     BROWN. 


Gives  an  Account  of 

The  Fir^  Coming  o/the  White  Men 
to  this  Sedion 

and 

Briefly  Narrates  the  Events  Leading  up  to  and  Attending 
the  E^ablishment  of 

The  FirS  Settlement  in  the  State  of 

Washington   Under    the 

American  Flag 

An  Event  Which  Occurred  at  the  Mouth  o/the  Okanogan 
River,  September   1  ^,  1 8  H  . 

PRKSS  OF  THE  OKANOCiAX    INDEPENDENT;  OKANOGAN,  WASHINGTON 


ibcLoi' 


THE  LIEW  YORK 
PUBLIC  LIBRARY' 

83777''7 

ASTOR.  LENOX  AND 
TILDEN   FOUNDATIONS 
R  1918  L 


CHAPTER  I. 

THE  COMING  OF  THE  NOR'wESTERS. 

/j^NE  HUNDRED  years  ago  this  summer  the  first  white  men 
^-^  came  to  this  section.  The  first  to  come  was  David  Thompson 
and  his  party,  making  a  dash  down  the  Columbia  river  in  July, 
1811,  in  the  interests  of  the  Northwest  Fur  Company.  Thompson 
is  unquestionably  entitled  to  the  honor  of  being  the  first  white  man 
that  traversed  the  Columbia  from  its  headwaters  to  the  sea.  Lewis 
&  Clark  had  been  before  him  from  the  mouth  of  the  Snake  down  to 
the  ocean,  but  no  explorers  or  traders  were  on  the  Columbia  above 
the  mouth  of  the  Snake  in  advance  of  David  Thompson.  He  is  there- 
fore, beyond  all  dispute,  entitled  to  the  honor  of  being  the  first  white 
man  that  reached  the  mouth  of  the  Okanogan  river.  And  our  river 
certainly  had  a  most  worthy  discoverer,  for  Thompson  is  fit  to  com- 
pare with  the  greatest  of  the  great  pathfinders  of  the  West.  In 
Thompson  was  combined  many  exceptional  qualities.  He  was  a 
skilled  surveyor  and  was  thoroughly  grounded  in  astronomy  and 
capable  of  taking  exact  observations,  and  together  with  these  quali- 
fications he  had  in  him  the  instincts  of  an  interpid,  fearless  and 
painstaking  explorer.  In  short,  he  was  a  scientist  as  well  as  a 
natural  born  explorer.  As  a  young  man  he  entered  the  employ  of 
the  Hudson  Bay  Company  in  the  far  North.  In  about  the  year  1789 
he  left  the  Hudson  Bay  Company  and  cast  his  fortunes  with  its 
great  rival,  the  Northwest  Fur  Company,  and  continued  with  that 
company  until  1812,  by  which  time  he  had  become  one  of  the  com- 
manding figures  in  that  powerful  organization.  From  18 12  on  he 
was  largely  in  the  employ  of  the  Canadian  Government  surveying 
and  map  making.  During  the  latter  days  of  his  life  he  was  for  a 
long  time  engaged  in  highly  responsible  professional  duties  upon  the 
Canadian  Boundary  Survey.  The  record  of  the  greater  portion  of 
the  life's  work  of  this  man  is  still  available  for  his  original  journals 
in  his  own  handwriting  are  preserved  in  the  archives  of  the  Crown 
Lands  Department  at  Toronto.     The  same  occupy  about  forty  vol- 


Early  Okanogan  History. 


umes,  and  one  very  large  map  made  with  his  own  hand  covering  the 
region  from  the  Great  Lakes  to  the  Pacific.  A  copy  of  this  map  is 
before  us  at  this  time,  and  on  it  we  find  that  Thompson  wrote  the 
name  of  our  river  in  large  letters,  "Ookenaw-kane  River."  The  date 
of  the  map  is  1812,  according  to  his  inscription  attached  thereto. 
The  Thompson  Journals,  however,  have  never  been  published,  and 
for  this  reason  the  name  and  fame  of  the  man  is  little  known 
amongst  the  general  public,  and  it  has  long  been  a  matter  of  regret 
among  those  versed  in  the  history  and  geography  of  the  greater 
Northwest  that  the  luminous  record  of  the  life  work  of  this  so  modest, 
so  meritorious  an  explorer,  so  scientific  a  surveyor,  and  so  great  a 
discoverer  as  Thompson  was,  has  never  seen  the  light,  either  under 
government  patronage  or  by  private  enterprise.  Although  Thomp- 
son was  a  partner  in  the  Northwest  Company  and  primarily  en- 
gaged in  its  commercial  ventures  up  till  1812,  he  was  not,  however, 
especially  during  the  latter  years  of  his  connection  with  that  com- 
pany, much  engaged  in  actual  trade,  nor  held  stationary  at  any  of 
the  posts,  but  was  employed  finding  new  routes  and  penetrating  into 
unknown  regions.  To  him  was  delegated  for  many  years  some  of 
the  most  important  expeditions  into  new  and  unexplored  sections  of 
country  for  the  purpose  of  establishing  trading  posts  for  that  great 
fur  company,  and  his  good  judgment  and  sagacity  in  selecting  such 
sites  marked  him  not  only  as  a  great  explorer  and  geographer,  but 
as  a  far  sighted  trader  also,  for  time  almost  invariably  showed  the 
wisdom  of  the  locations  he  selected.  As  his  days  in  the  fur  trade 
were  in  part  during  those  strenuous  years  when  the  Hudson  Bay 
Company  and  the  Northwest  Fur  Company  were  fighting  the  great 
war  for  supremacy  in  the  North,  he  had  ample  opportunity  to  show 
his  qualities. 

After  the  Louisiana  purchase  by  the  United  States  and  the 
return  of  the  Lewis  &  Clark  expedition  with  their  report  upon  the 
conditions  which  they  found  in  the  Pacific  Northwest,  which  report 
was  published  in  1807,  it  became  an  open  secret  that  the  Americans 
and  especially  the  great  fur  merchant  of  New  York,  namely  John 


Coming  of  the  Nor'westers. 


Jacob  Astor,  had  designs  upon  the  Columbia  river  basin.  This 
caused  uneasiness  amongst  the  Nor'westers,  and  they  resolved  to 
anticipate  any  and  all  American  fur  trading  enterprises  at  the  mouth 
of  the  Columbia  or  at  any  point  inland  upon  the  waters  thereof.  The 
Northwest  Company  then  had  trading  posts  from  Montreal  to  the 
Rocky  mountains,  and  their  men  had  already  penetrated  the  passes 
of  the  Rockies,  and  were  trading  with  the  Indians  along  the  west- 
ward flowing  rivers  in  what  is  now  British  Columbia,  western  Mon- 
tana, and  northern  Idaho.  David  Thompson  was  then  upon  the 
Saskatchewan  and  he  was  detailed  to  push  through  to  the  mouth  of 
the  Columbia  and  establish  a  chain  of  posts  along  the  way.  He 
attempted  to  come  through  in  i8ro,  but  became  coufused  where  the 
Columbia  doubles  on  itself  and  makes  a  great  ox  bow  curve  to  the 
north  in  the  Kootenai  Country,  but  he  came  through  another  pass 
and  struck  the  river  again  far  to  the  north  early  in  1811.  At  this 
time  he  came  to  the  Columbia  at  the  mouth  of  what  he  called  Canoe 
river.  (It  has  borne  the  same  name  ever  since.)  This  point  is  sev- 
eral hundred  miles  north  of  what  is  now  the  international  boundary 
line.  Some  of  his  men  had  weakened  and  had  become  discouraged 
to  the  point  of  mutiny,  and  we  find  that  he  was  much  disgusted  at 
this  period,  but  he  was  possessed  of  indomitable  tenacity  and  perse- 
verance. He  went  ahead  Vv^ith  those  he  could  depend  upon;  built 
canoes,  and  began  the  decent  of  the  Columbia.  We  find  him  and 
his  party  at  Illthkoyape  Falls  (Kettle  Falls)  in  the  latter  part  of 
Ma}^  or  the  first  of  June,  181 1.  From  here  he  left  the  Columbia,  and 
about  the  middle  of  June,  1811,  established  a  trading  post  for  his 
company  on  what  he  called  the  Skeetshoo  river  (Spokane  river)  in 
longitude  T17  degrees,  27  minutes  and  45  seconds  west,  according  to 
the  records  he  made  at  the  time,  which  post  he  named  "Spokane 
House."  This  post  was  established  on  the  Spokane  river  near  the 
mouth  of  what  is  now  called  Hangman's  creek  near  the  city  of 
Spokane.  On  June  21st,  his  journals  show  him  back  at  Kettle  Falls 
where  he  remained  until  July  3rd  fixing  his  canoes,  catching  salmon 
and  otherwise  arranging  for  the  trip  to  the  mouth  of  the  Columbia. 


Early  Of^anogan  History. 


These  features  of  his  journey  we  have  gathered  from  various  pub- 
lished works,  and  from  a  partial  transcript  from  his  original  journals 
kindly  furnished  us  by  Hon.  Aubrey  White,  Deputy  Minister, 
Lands  and  Forests,  Toronto,  Canada.  He  traveled  in  a  large  light 
built  canoe  that  was  constructed  at  Kettle  Falls  specially  for  the 
purpose,  scantily  provisioned  and  equipped,  that  they  might 
make  the  journey  with  all  speed  and  swiftness.  This  canoe  was 
manned  with  seven  men,  five  of  them  being  French-Canadians  and 
two  Iroquois  Indians.  There  also  appears  to  have  been  an  interpre- 
ter who  was  evidently  a  local  Indian.  It  was  a  crew  of  long  tried 
men  in  the  service  of  the  Northwest  Company.  We  will  write  down 
their  names  as  they  were  the  first  civilized  men  to  traverse  the  Col- 
umbia above  the  mouth  of  the  Snake,  and  likewise,  of  course,  the 
first  that  ever  set  eyes  on  the  Okanogan.  The  Frenchmen  were: 
Michel  Bordeaux,  Pierre  Pariel,  Joseph  Cote,  Michel  Boullard  and 
Francois  Gregoire.  The  Iroquois  were  Ignace  and  Charles,  or 
Charlo  as  he  was  more  commonly  called.  Charlo  had  been  for  many 
years  in  the  employ  of  the  Northwest  Company,  and  had  been  with 
Mr.  Thompson  the  year  before  on  the  Saskatchewan  and  at  the 
sources  of  the  Columbia.  One  authority  says  he  was  foreman  on 
the  trip  down  the  river.  Michel  Boullard  was  an  old  voyageur  that 
had  seen  long  service  with  the  company.  He  appears  first  with 
Thompson  on  the  upper  Saskatchewan  in  1800,  and  seems  to  have 
served  most  of  the  time  between  1800  and  1810,  with  Thompson, 
Finan  McDougal  and  other  Nor'westers  in  the  Rocky  mountain 
region  of  Northwest  Canada.  In  August,  181 1,  Boullard  was  traded 
by  Thompson  to  David  Stewart  for  a  Sandwich  Islander  that  Thomp- 
son took  a  liking  to.  This  David  Stewart  was  the  founder  of  Fort 
Okanogan  for  the  Astor  Company.  Stewart  wanted  Boullard  for 
his  long  experience  as  an  interpreter,  and  thus  he  came  to  serve  the 
American  company  on  the  Okanogan  river,  and  was  well  known 
through  this  valley  clear  up  to  the  head  of  Okanogan  Lake  from 
1812  to  1814,  and  is  frequentl}^  referred  to  in  the  reports  and  writings 


Coming  of  the  Nor  westers. 


of  that  period.     The  biography  of  the  men  with  Thompson  might  be 
indefinitely  extended,  but  cannot  be  done  here. 

As  above  stated,  Thompson  and  his  party  started  down  the 
river  from  Kettle  Falls  on  July  3rd,  181 1,  and  right  here  where  we 
strike  the  all-important  part  of  his  journey,  we  come  upon  unpub- 
lished history.  For  as  heretofore  noted,  Thompson's  journals  have 
never  been  printed.  They  are  copiously  referred  to,  cited,  and  copied 
in  piecemeal,  but  there  is  nowhere  anything  like  a  complete  print. 
The  journal  of  that  part  of  his  Columbia  trip  which  we  want  most 
exists  only  in  its  original  manuscript  form  and  occupies  Book  27  of 
Volume  XI.  of  the  David  Thompson  Mss.  in  the  archives  of  the 
Crown  Lands  Department  at  Toronto,  and  the  same  runs  from 
July  3rd,  181 1,  to  xA.pril  28th,  181 2,  and  is  entitled  "Voyage  to  the 
Mouth  of  the  Columbia  by  the  Grace  of  God  by  D.  Thompson  &  7 
men  on  the  part  of  the  N.  W.  Company."  The  writer  of  this  article  has 
attempted  to  get  a  transcript  of  this  part  of  Thompson's  journals, 
but  up  to  date  has  been  unable  to  do  so,  and  we  will  have  to  trace 
his  movements  upon  the  authority  of  other  works  that  refer  to  his 
journals  and  his  travels.  On  July  6th  he  was  down  some  place 
about  where  Wenatchee  now  is,  but  just  where  it  is  impossible  for 
us  to  say  from  the  information  before  us,  but  we  have  sufficient  in 
our  possession  to  definitely  assert  that  he  must  have  passed  the 
mouth  of  the  Okanogan  river  about  July  5th,  and  we  can  safely  say 
that  the  Okanogan  river  was  first  seen  by  white  men  on  either 
July  4th  or  July  5th,  181 1.  It  is  necessaril}-  certain  that  it  must 
have  been  one  of  those  days.  The  exact  time,  however,  is  undoubt- 
edly recorded  in  the  old  original  manuscript  and  awaits  only  a 
research  at  Toronto  by  somebody  who  has  the  inclination,  means  and 
opportunity  to  get  it.  On  July  9th  Thompson  reached  the  mouth 
of  the  Snake  river.  Here  he  came  upon  the  old  course  traveled  by 
Lewis  &  Clark  six  years  before,  but  up  to  this  point  he  certainly 
was  first.  At  the  junction  of  the  two  great  streams,  in  the  midst  of 
a  big  Indian  camp  which  he  found  there,  he  erected  a  tall  pole  and 
hoisted  the  British  flag,  and    posted  a    notice    as    follows:     "Know 


Early  Okanogan  History. 


hereby  that  this  coutitry  is  claimed  by  Great  Britain  as  part  of  its 
territories  and  that  the  N.  W.  Company  of  Merchants  from  Canada, 
finding  the  factory  of  this  people  inconvenient  to  them,  do  hereby 
intend  to  erect  a  Factory  in  this  place  for  the  Commerce  of  the 
Country  around."  It  will  be  noted  that  Thompson  uses  the  word 
"factory;"  both  the.  Northwest  Company  and  the  Hudson  Bay  Com- 
pany used  to  call  their  trading  posts  "factories"  and  the  trader  in 
charge  of  the  post  was  called  a  "factor."  On  July  15th,  the  canoe 
containing  Thompson  and  his  men  reached  the  goal  of  their  journey, 
the  mouth  of  the  Columbia.  He  had  faithfully  carried  out  the  task 
that  was  given  him  and  the  operations  of  the  Northwest  Fur  Com- 
pany now  stretched  overland  from  Montreal  to  the  mouth  of  the 
Columbia.  But  the  Nor'westers  had  been  forestalled  in  the  race  to 
the  mouth  of  the  Columbia,  for  when  Thompson  arrived  there  he 
found  the  men  of  John  Jacob  Astor's  "Pacific  Fur  Company"  erect- 
ing their  Fort  "Astoria."  The  men  of  the  American  company  had 
come  around  the  Horn  from  New  York  in  that  company's  ship,  the 
famous  and  afterward  ill-fated  "Tonquin."  They  had  gotten  their 
ship  across  the  bar  at  the  mouth  of  the  Columbia  in  the  latter  days 
of  March,  181 1,  and  their  fort  was  well  toward  completion  when 
Thompson  arrived.  Tompson  was  well  known  to  many  of  the 
Astorians  and  they  to  him  for  Astor  had  recruited  many  of  the  prin- 
cipal partners  in  his  enterprise  at  Montreal  from  Northwest  Fur 
Company  men.  Thompson  frankly  told  them  his  business  in  the 
country  and  that  he  had  already  taken  possession  up-stream  and  had 
established  a  permanent  post  on  the  vSpokane,  and  likewise  the  Astor- 
ians plainly  told  him  that  they  were  after  the  fur  trade  on  the  Col- 
umbia and  all  its  tributaries,  and  here  began  the  struggle  between 
the  powerful  Northwest  Company  and  the  newly  organized  Pacific 
Fur  Company  backed  by  Astor,  for  the  fur  trade  and  for  the  occu- 
pancy of  the  Pacific  Northwest;  the  one  company  for  England  and 
for  British  dominion  on  the  Pacific,  the  other  for  the  United  States 
and  for  American  supremacy  here.  The  very  first  result  of  the  con- 
test was    the   establishment   by   the   American   company   of   its  first 


Coming  of  the  Nor'wesiers. 


inland  post  at  the  mouth  of  the  Okanogan  river.  We  will  now  shift 
our  narrative  to  the  American  company  and  relate  the  events  con- 
nected with  its  coming  and  its  early  doings,  and  especially  in  refer- 
ence to  its  post  at  the  mouth  of  the  Okanogan. 


CHAPTER  II. 

THE  COMING  OF  ASTOR'S  MEN. 

^HK  Louisiana  Purchase  which  transferred  the  vast  and  loosely 
^*^  defined  Louisiana  Territory  from  France  to  the  United  States 
was  consumated  in  1803.  The  purchase  extended  the  territory  of 
the  United  States  to  a  connection  with  the  ''Oregon  Country,"  but 
what  constituted  the  "Oregon  Country"  was  so  absolutely  indefinite 
that  no  one  seems  to  have  known  what  it  meant,  and  opinions  greatly 
differed.  England  claimed  the  country  by  right  of  the  discoveries 
and  explorations  of  her  navigators  along  the  coast.  The  United 
States  laid  more  or  less  definite  claims  founded  on  the  discoveries 
and  voyages  of  American  trading  ships  that  had  visited  the  coast. 
The  consumation  of  the  Louisiana  Purchase  gave  a  great  impetus  to 
the  interest  taken  by  Americans  in  the  north  Pacific,  for  prior  to  that 
time  the  Mississippi  river  was  the  western  boundary  of  the  United 
States  and  Oregon  was  therefore  non-contiguous  territory  prior  to 
1803.  One  of  the  first  results  of  the  Louisiana  Purchase  was  the 
sending  out  of  the  Lewis  &  Clark  expedition  in  1804-05.  They 
returned  in  1806  and  their  published  report  fired  the  zeal  of  John 
Jacob  Astor  of  New  York  to  at  once  establish  a  trading  post  at  the 
mouth  of  the  Columbia  and  occupy  the  great  surrounding  region. 
His  enterprise  was  two-fold;  one  was  commercial  conquest,  the  other 
was  territorial  expansion  for  the  United  States.  At  that  time  Astor 
had  been  in  New  York  some  twenty  odd  years,  and  while  he  had  not 
yet,  by  any  means,  reached  the  full  flood  tide  of  his  great  wealth  and 
prominence  as  a  merchant  and  speculator,  still  he  was  already  one 
of  the  richest  men  in  America  and  was  recognized  as  the  leading  fur 
trader  in  the  United  States.  He  was  well  known  in  all  the  great  fur 
markets  of  the  world.  He  had  become  a  ship  owner  and  had  formed 
commercial  relations  that  extended  around  the  earth. 

Having  fixed  upon  his  general  plan,  Mr.  Astor  proceeded  to 
organize  his  "Pacific  Fur  Company,"  and  fit  out  his  expeditions. 
The  articles  of  agreement  of  the  Pacific  Fur  Company  were  signed  in 


The  Coming  of  jJstor's  Men.  9 


New  York,  June  23rd,  1810.  Mr.  Astor  was  to  be  the  head  of  the 
company  to  furnish  means  not  to  exceed,  however,  an  advance  of 
four  hundred  thousand  dollars,  and  to  bear  all  losses  for  a  period  of 
five  years.  Of  the  hundred  shares  into  which  the  stock  was  divided, 
Mr.  Astor  was  to  hold  fifty  and  his  associates  fifty.  Wilson  Price 
Hunt  of  New  Jersey  was  to  be  first  resident  partner  and  agent  on  the 
Columbia.  Other  partners  were,  Alexander  McKay,  Duncan  Mc 
Dougal,  Donald  McKenzie,  Ramsay  Crooks,  Robert  McLellan, 
Joseph  Miller,  Robert  Stuart,  John  Clarke  and  David  Stuart.  Ram- 
say Crooks,  Robert  McLellan  and  Joseph  Miller  were  fur  traders 
who  had  gained  more  or  less  eminence  in  the  business,  principally 
along  the  Missouri  river.  The  others  were  all  British  subjects  and 
men  who  had  been  partners  in  the  Northwest  Fur  Company,  for  Mr. 
Astor  was  well  acquainted  in  Montreal  and  was  a  great  admirer  of 
the  splendid  organization  of  the  Hudson  Bay  Company  and  of  the 
Northwest  Fur  Company,  and  he  had  turned  to  that  source  to  find  able, 
efficient  and  experienced  men  to  join  him  in  the  enterprise.  They 
were  mostly  Scotch  as  their  names  plainly  show,  in  fact  the  North- 
west Company  was  controlled  at  all  times  by  Scotchmen.  The  reader 
should  note  well  the  name  last  on  the  list  above  set  forth,  for  it  was 
David  Stuart  that  was  in  charge  of  the  expedition  that  established 
Fort  Okanogan,  and  as  our  river  had  a  most  worthy  discoverer,  so 
also  the  man  who  first  placed  an  outpost  of  civilization  upon  our 
river  was  a  most  worthy  individual.  He  had  been  long  with  the  North- 
west Company  before  he  joined  the  Astor  enterprise,  and  he  was  a 
fur  trader  of  the  first  order.  He  was  furthermore  a  most  even 
tempered  and  kindly  old  man,  and  all  the  records  of  the  time  speak 
of  him  in  the  most  commendable  terms. 

The  Astor  enterprise  went  out  in  two  expeditions;  one  overland 
under  Wilson  Price  Hunt  and  Donald  McKenzie  above  mentioned, 
the  other  went  by  sea  around  Cape  Horn.  The  land  expedition 
attempted  to  follow  the  trail  of  Lewis  &  Clark,  and  encountered 
great  difficulties  and  hardships.  It  did  not  reach  the  mouth  of  the 
Columbia    till    January,    1812.     In    fact    they    came    straggling    in 


10  Early  Okanogan  History. 


through  the  months  of  February,  March  and  April,  1812,  and  some 
did  not  arrive  until  May.  The  expedition  by  sea  was  much  more 
successful.  Their  ship,  the  Tonquin,  cleared  New  York  harbor  under 
escort  of  the  famous  frigate  "Constitution,"  September  8,  1810,  safely 
rounded  the  Horn,  touched  at  the  Sandwich  islands  and  entered  the 
mouth  of  the  Columbia,  March  25th,  181 1.  With  this  party  were 
the  partners,  Alexander  McKay,  Duncan  McDougal,  David  and 
Robert  Stuart  and  four  clerks  or  apprentices,  namely  Alexander 
Ross,  Francis  B.  Pillette,  Donald  McLellan  and  Ovide  de  Mon- 
tigny.  All  four  of  these  clerks  were  subsequently  on  the  Okan- 
ogan, the  most  prominent  of  which  was  Ross.  He  was  for  years  on 
the  Okanogan  and  he  wrote  three  books,  as  we  will  hereinafter 
more  fully  mention,  two  of  which  treat  of  the  early  history  of  this 
particular  section  of  the  country.     But  to  return  to  the  Tonquin. 

As  soon  as  a  suitable  site  was  found,  the  same  being  near 
the  present  location  of  the  city  of  Astoria,  the  Tonquin  began  dis- 
charging cargo  on  the  beach,  and  the  work  of  building  the  fort 
began.  The  partner,  Duncan  McDougal,  was  in  charge  pending  the 
arrival  of  the  overland  expedition  under  Mr.  Hunt.  The  work  of 
unloading  the  Tonquin  and  building  the  fort  had  so  far  proceeded 
that  the  Tonquin  set  sail  on  June  5th  for  a  trading  vo3^age  northward 
along  the  coast.  The  vessel  never  returned  and  none  of  her  people 
were  ever  seen  again,  as  she  was  raided  by  Indians  while  trading  in 
a  bay  near  Nootka  sound  on  the  west  coast  of  Vancouver  island,  and 
was  blown  up  either  by  accident  or  design  within  thirty  days  after 
the  departure  of  the  ship  from  the  mouth  of  the  Columbia.  This  left 
the  Astorians  without  a  ship,  and  much  badly  needed  equipment  was 
also  lost,  but  as  she  had  practically  only  the  captain  and  crew  aboard, 
all  of  the  partners,  clerks  and  voyageurs  of  the  company  having  re- 
mained at  the  mouth  of  the  Columbia  to  work  on  the  completion  of 
the  fort,  the  loss  of  the  vessel,  although  a  serious  deprivation  and 
placed  the  enterprise  at  great  disadvantage,  was  not  a  fatal  blow  to 
the  main  plans  of  the  great  undertaking.  As  hereinbefore  noted, 
V  the  Astorians  while  still  busy  upon   the  construction  of  their  estab- 


The  Coming  of  Jlstor's  Men.  11 


lishment,  were  surprised  on  July  15th,  181 1,  by  the  arrival  of  David 
Thompson  and  his  party  of  Nor'westers  from  the  interior. 
The  Astorian  partners  immediately  determined  to  establish  an  in- 
land post  as  a  counter  check  to  the  Northwest  Company,  and  as 
Thompson  was  about  to  return  to  the  interior,  it  was  agreed  that  the 
expedition  of  the  Astorians  to  establish  such  inland  post  should 
travel  with  the  Thompson  party  for  mutual  assistance  and  protection 
against  the  Indians  and  the  perils  of  the  river.  Accordingly  on  the 
22nd  of  July,  181 1,  the  two  parties  started  up  the  Columbia  from 
Astoria.  Old  David  Stuart  was  in  charge  of  the  Astorian  party. 
With  him  were  the  four  young  clerks,  Ovide  de  Montigny,  Francis 
Pillette,  Donald  McLellan  and  Alexander  Ross,  two  or  three  Canad- 
ian voyageurs  whose  names  do  not  appear  any  place  that  I  can  find, 
and  two  Sandwich  Islanders.  It  should  be  understood  that  when  the 
Tonquin  stopped  at  the  Hawaiian  Islands  on  the  way  out,  quite  a 
number  of  natives  from  these  islands  were  employed  and  brought 
along  on  the  ship.  It  appears  that  they  were  very  efficient  boatmen 
and  packers,  especially  during  hot  weather.  Hawaiians  were  much 
used  for  many  years  through  this  section  by  the  fur  companies. 
Alexander  Ross  in  his  "Adventures"  gives  us  a  full  and  complete 
account  of  this  trip  up  the  river,  of  the  establishment  of  the  post  at 
the  mouth  of  the  Okanogan,  and  the  course  of  events  at  Fort  Okan- 
ogan during  the  first  two  years  of  its  existence,  and  in  a  subsequent 
book  entitled,  "Fur  Traders  of  the  West,"  he  gives  us  a  very  com- 
plete history  of  Fort  Okanogan  and  surrounding  country  up  till 
about  1816,  for  Ross  was  in  charge  at  the  post  off  and  on  pretty 
much  all  the  time  between  181 1  and  1816,  when  he  was  transferred 
first  to  Kamloops  and  later  to  the  Walla  Walla.  Fort  Okanogan, 
however,  was  rebuilt  in  18 16  when  Ross  Cox  was  in  charge,  and 
here  again  we  are  fortunate,  for  he  also  wrote  a  book  which  deals 
very  fully  with  the  affairs  at  Fort  Okanogan  along  about  1816. 
For  our  narrative  of  the  first  trip  of  the  Astorians  up  the  Columbia 
in  July  and  August,  181 1,  we  will  follow  the  record  left  by  Ross  in 
his  "Adventures"  which  is  before  us  as  we  write. 


CHAPTER  III. 

FORT   OKANOGAN. 

^HE  joint  parties  of  Stuart  and  Thompson  did  not,  however,  con- 
^  tinue  far  together.  The  Thompson  party  was  traveling  light. 
Their  canoe  was  not  loaded  with  any  merchandise  for  trade.  Fur- 
thermore, Stuart  and  his  men  did  not  have  canoes  suitable  for  up- 
river  work.  They  had  merely  obtained  from  the  Indians  at  the 
mouth  of  the  Columbia  two  ordinary  big  dug-outs  commonly  used 
along  the  coast.  This  style  of  canoe,  while  it  has  its  advantages  for 
some  purposes  and  is  a  very  desirable  affair  when  used  by  the  coast 
Indians  for  the  purposes  that  it  is  intended,  it  is  not  a  good  up-stream 
craft.  Ross  says  in  his  book  that  the  Stuart  party  traveled  in  "two 
clumsy  Chinook  canoes,  each  laded  with  fifteen  or  twenty  packages 
of  goods  of  ninety  pounds  weight."  By  July  24th,  1811,  they  had 
reached  the  mouth  of  the  Willamette.  On  the  28th  the  joint  parties 
reached  and  passed  the  Cascades  of  the  Columbia.  On  the  31st, 
Mr.  Thompson's  party  finding  themselves  able  to  travel  much  faster 
than  the  canoes  of  Mr.  Stuart,  proceeded  on  by  themselves.  It  was 
here,  upon  separating,  that  Thompson  traded  Boullard  to  Stuart  for 
a  Sandwich  Islander.  On  August  8,  181 1,  at  noon,  Thompson 
reached  the  mouth  of  the  Snake  river  (he  called  it  Chapaton  river). 
Here  he  laid  up  his  canoe  and  took  the  over-land  route  back  to 
"Spokane  House."  As  near  as  we  can  now  ascertain  he  must  have 
traveled  a  course  very  much  the  same  as  that  now  followed  by  the 
Northern  Pacifiic  railway  between  Pasco  and  Spokane.  On  August 
13th  he  was  at  Spokane  House,  so  the  trip  across  must  have  taken 
less  than  five  days.  Thompson  was  undoubtedly  the  first  white  man 
to  cross  through  over-land  from  the  mouth  of  the  Snake  to  Spokane. 
On  August  4th  the  Stuart  party  passed  Celilo  rapids.  Day  by  day 
Ross  chronicles  the  progress  of  the  canoes  of  the  Stuart  party  up  the 
Columbia.  He  relates  many  occurrences  of  great  interest,  and  al- 
though he  designates  the  various  localities  by  names  which  are  as 
a  rule  now  obsolete,  yet  the  whereabouts  of  the  party  can  usually  be 


Fort  Okanogan.  13 

readily  determined.  We  will  not  attempt  to  follow  the  itinerary  of 
the  party  day  by  day.  At  "Priest  Rapids"  they  picked  up  an  Indian 
who  was  a  medicine  man  and  he  continued  with  them  to  the  mouth 
of  the  Okanogan  in  charge  of  their  horses,  of  which  they  bought  a 
goodly  number  at  the  numerous  Indian  camps  they  encountered 
along  the  river.  This  Indian  Ross  constantly  refers  to  as  the 
"priest"  and  says  they  named  the  rapids  where  they  got  him, 
"Priest  Rapids."  Hence,  we  learn  the  derivation  of  the  name, 
"Priest  Rapids."  On  the  24th  of  August  they  reached  the  mouth  of 
the  Pisquowsh  river,  the  Wah-na-at-cha  of  the  Lewis  &  Clark  map, 
or  the  Wenatchee  of  today.  The  name  is  Piskowish  on  Thompson's 
map  and  appears  as  Pisscows  on  the  map  of  Ross.  Here  they  met 
Indians  in  great  numbers  and  the  chief,  Sopa,  made  them  a  present 
of  two  horses  and  they  purchased  four  more  giving  for  each,  one 
yard  of  print  and  two  yards  of  red  gartering  which  was  so  highly 
prized  by  the  Indians  that  horses  from  all  quarters  were  brought  to 
them,  but  they  declined  to  buy  more,  not  knowing  what  to  do  with 
them.  On  August  25th  they  passed  the  mouth  of  the  Intyclook, 
the  Entiat  of  today.  They  camped  that  night  on  the  wooded  point 
above  the  mouth  of  the  Entiat.  On  the  26th  they  reached  Whitehill 
Rapids,  a  place  "where  the  river  almost  barred  across  by  a  ledge  of 
low  flat  rocks,  makes  several  quick  bends."  This  place  the  writer 
has  been  unable  to  satisfactorily  identify  but  it  is  either  the  Indian 
rapids  or  the  Chelan  rapids  of  today.  Here  they  saw  big  horn, 
white  goats  and  deer  on  the  bluffs.  On  the  27th,  about  10:00  a.  m., 
they  reached  the  mouth  of  the  Tsill-ane.  This,  of  course,  is  the 
Chelan.  On  the  29th  they  reached  the  foot  of  the  Methow  rapids. 
They  made  a  portage  around  them  and  camped  that  night  at  the 
mouth  of  the  Methow.  Here  the  Indians  assembled  in  great  num- 
bers and  offered  them  many  horses  for  sale,  and  in  all  respects  were 
exceeding  kind.  They  invited  them  to  stay  and  trade  through  the 
winter  asserting  that  their  country  abounded  in  beaver  and  that  there 
was  plenty  of  game  for  food.     They   remained  at  the  mouth   of  the 


14  Early  Okanogan  History. 


Methow  over  the  30th.  We  will  now  copy  verbatim  what  Mr.  Ross 
has  to  say  in  his  book. 

"On  the  31st  we  parted  from  our  friendly  visitors,  and  shaping 
our  course  in  an  easterly  direction  along  the  bend  of  the  river,  we 
pushed  on  for  about  nine  miles  till  we  reached  the  mouth  of  a  smooth 
stream  called  Oakinacken,  which  we  ascended  for  about  two  miles, 
leaving  the  main  Columbia  for  the  first  time,  and  then  pitched  our 
tents  for  the  night.  A  great  concourse  of  Indians  followed  us  all 
day,  and  encamped  with  us.  After  acquainting  them  with  the  ob- 
ject of  our  visit  to  their  country,  they  strongly  urged  us  to  settle 
among  them.  For  some  time,  however,  Mr.  Stuart  resisted  their 
pressing  solicitations,  chiefly  with  the  view  of  trying  their  sincerity; 
but,  at  last  consenting,  the  chiefs  immediately  held  a  council,  and 
then  pledged  themselves  to  be  always  our  friends,  to  kill  us  plenty 
of  beavers,  to  furnish  us  at  all  times  with  provisions  and  to  insure 
our  protection  and  safety." 

"On  the  ist  of  September,  181 1,  we  embarked  and  descended  the 
Oakinacken  again,  landed  on  a  level  spot  within  half  a  mile  of  its 
mouth.  There  we  unloaded,  took  our  canoes  out  of  the  water,  and 
pitched  our  tents — which  operation  concluded  our  long  and  irksome 
voyage  of  forty-two  days." 

"The  source  of  the  Oakinacken  is  280  miles  due  north,  and  in 
its  course  south  the  stream  runs  through  three  lakes  to  its  junction 
with  the  Columbia;  it  is  hemmed  in  on  the  east  by  a  sloping  range 
of  high  rocky  hills  at  the  foot  of  which  the  two  rivers  meet.  On  the 
south  bank  of  the  Oakinacken,  half  a  mile  from  its  mouthy  Was  the  site  pitched 
upon  for  the  new  establishment.  " 

"The  general  aspect  of  the  surrounding  country  is  barren  and 
dreary,  but  to  the  north  the  banks  of  the  river  are  lined  with  the 
willow  and  poplar,  and  the  valley  through  which  it  meanders  presents 
a  pleasing  landscape." 

It  is  clear  from  this  that  the  Stuart  party  camped  in  the  evening 
of  August  31st,  1811,  on  the  banks  of  the  Okanogan  river,  just  about 
where  Mary  Carden's  ranch   is  now   located,  and   that  the  site  of  the 


Fort  Okanogan.  15 

post  which  they  established  next  day  must  have  beeu  almost  exactly 
where  Long  Jim's  stables  and  corrals  are  now  situated.  This  was  the 
first  settlement  under  the  American  flag  in  what  is  now  the  state  of 
Washington.  As  soon  as  they  had  their  building  well  started,  Pil- 
lette  and  McLellan  with  two  voyageurs  were  despatched  back  to  As- 
toria in  one  of  the  canoes,  and  as  soon  as  they  had  the  building  com- 
pleted, Mr.  Stuart  with  Montigny  and  the  two  remaining  voyageurs 
came  up  the  Okanogan  river,  evidently  with  pack  horses  for  they 
carried  a  considerable  amount  of  merchandise  for  trade  with  the 
Indians,  and  they  continued  on  far  to  the  north,  passed  along  by 
Okanogan  lake  and  proceeded  over  the  height  of  land  onto  the 
headwaters  of  the  Thompson  river  into  the  country  of  the  Shuswap 
Indians,  near  where  the  city  of  Kamloops  now  stands,  and  they  did 
not  return  for  one  hundred  and  eighty-eight  days.  While  Mr.  Stu- 
art was  on  the  Thompson  river  he  made  arrangements  to  establish  a 
trading  post  there  the  ensuing  winter.  He  arrived  back  at  Fort 
Okanogan,  March  22nd,  1812.  During  the  six  months  and  over  that 
he  was  absent,  during  the  winter  of  181 1  and  181 2,  Ross  was  in 
charge  at  Fort  Okanogan,  and  he  has  this  to  say  in  his  book  in 
regard  to  what  he  did  there  in  the  way  of  trade  that  winter: 

"During  Mr.  Stuart's  absence  of  188  days  I  had  procured  1550, 
beavers,  besides  other  peltries,  worth  in  the  Canton  (China)  market, 
2,250  pounds  sterling,  and  which  on  an  average  stood  the  concern 
in  but  5^  pence  apiece,  valuing  the  merchandise  at  sterling  cost, 
or  in  round  numbers,  35  pounds  sterling;  a  specimen  of  our  trade 
among  the  Indians!  " 

Ross  devotes  considerable  space  in  his  "Adventures"  to  his  ex- 
periences during  that  first  winter  at  Fort  Okanogan. 

On  March  22,  1812,  another  party  consisting  of  seventeen  men 
was  made  up  at  Astoria  and  placed  under  command  of  Robert  Stuart, 
a  nephew  of  David.  A  portion  of  this  brigade  was  to  proceed  over- 
land to  St.  Louis,  with  despatches  for  Mr.  Astor  at  New  York,  and 
another  portion  carried  supplies  to  Fort  Okanogan  and  was  to  bring 
back  the  results  of  the  winter's  trade.     After  many   vicissitudes  and 


16  Early  Okflnogan  History. 


Indian  fights,  this  party  arrived  at  Fort  Okanogan,  April  24tli,  1812, 
and  after  remaining  five  days,  left  for  Astoria  again,  carrying  approx- 
imately 2,500  beaver  skins.  Mr.  David  Stuart  accompanied  this  party 
and  left  at  Fort  Okanogan,  for  the  summer  only,  Mr.  Ross,  Donald 
M'Gillis  who  had  come  up  from  Astoria  with  the  Robert  Stuart  party, 
and  our  old  acquaintance,  Michel  BouUard.  On  May  6th,  Ross  left 
M'Gillis  in  charge  and  started  with  Boullard  and  an  Indian  with 
sixteen  pack  and  saddle  horses  on  a  trading  excursion  up  the  Okan- 
ogan river  to  the  country  of  the  Shu-swaps,  following  very  closely 
Mr.  Stuart's  route  the  winter  before.  They  had  a  very  successful 
trading  trip  and  they  arrived  back  at  Fort  Okanogan,  July  12,  1812. 
David  Stuart  arrived  back  from  Astoria  with  a  stock  of  goods,  August 
12,  1812,  and  on  August  25th  he  and  his  men  left  Fort  Okanogan 
to  winter  among  the  Shu-swaps  at  Kamloops.  Ross  was  again  left 
in  charge  at  Fort  Okanogan  for  the  winter  of  1812  and  1813.  He 
escorted  Mr.  Stuart  as  far  as  the  mouth  of  the  Similkameen  and  then 
returned  to  prepare  his  post  for  the  winter  operations.  After  spend- 
ing the  fall  of  181 2  in  various  trading  excursions  to  nearby  points, 
he  left  Fort  Okanogan,  December  2nd,  to  pay  a  visit  to  Mr.  John 
Clark,  at  Fort  Spokane,  which  was  a  post  that  had  just  been  estab- 
lished by  the  Astor  Company  along  side  of  "Spokane  House"  which 
was  the  name  of  the  post  as  we  have  heretofore  seen,  that  was  estab- 
lished and  maintained  by  the  Northwest  Company.  The  same  con- 
dition prevailed  at  these  two  posts  which  was  in  vogue  all  over  the 
north  country  in  those  days  at  all  points  where  the  great  fur  com- 
panies were  contending  with  one  another.  Ross  has  this  to  say  of 
his  visit  to  Spokane: 

"During  the  three  days  I  remained  with  him  (Clark)  I  had  fre- 
quent opportunities  of  observing  the  sly  and  underhand  dealings  of 
the  competing  parties,  for  the  opposition  posts  of  the  North- West 
Company  and  Mr.  Clark  were  built  contiguous  to  each  other.  When 
the  two  parties  happened  to  meet,  they  made  amplest  protestations  of 
friendship  and  kindness,  and  a  stranger  unacquainted  with  the  poli- 
tics of   Indian   trade,  would  have  pronounced  them  sincere;  but   the 


Fort  Okflnogan.  17 

moment  their  backs  were  turned  they  tore  each  other  to  pieces.  Each 
party  had  its  maneuvering  scouts  out  in  all  directions,  watching  the 
motions  of  the  Indians  and  laying  plots  and  plans  to  entrap  or  foil 
each  other.  He  that  got  the  most  skins,  never  minding  the  cost  of 
crime,  was  the  cleverest  fellow;  and  under  such  tutors  the  Indians 
were  apt  disciples.  They  played  their  tricks  also,  and  turned  the 
foibles  and  wiles  of  their  teachers  to  their  own  advantage." 

Ross  got  back  to  his  post  from  Spokane,  December  14th,  18 12, 
but  nearly  lost  his  own  life  and  the  lives  of  all  his  men  and  horses 
in  a  big  snow  storm  that  they  encountered  in  the  Big  Bend  country. 
On  December  20th  he  set  out  to  visit  Mr.  Stuart  at  the  Kamloops 
post.  Ross  calls  it  "Cumcloups."  He  arrived  there  on  the  last  day 
of  the  year,  181 2.  Here  we  find  the  enterprise  and  energy  of  the 
indomitable  and  obiquitous  David  Thompson  again  in  evidence.  He 
had  come  through  the  passes  of  the  Selkirks  from  the  upper  reaches 
of  the  Columbia  and  established  a  Northwest  Company  post  along- 
side Mr.  Stuart's  establishment.  Mr.  Ross  has  this  to  say  of  the 
conditions  prevailing  at  Kamloops: 

"There  was  opposition  there  as  well  as  at  Mr.  Clark's  place,  but 
without  the  trickery  and  maneuvering.  M.  La  Rocque,  the  North- 
West  clerk  in  charge,  and  Mr.  Stuart  were  open  and  candid,  and  on 
friendly  terms.  The  field  before  them  was  wide  enough  for  both 
parties,  and,  what  is  more,  they  thought  so;  consequently  they  fol- 
lowed a  fair  and  straightforward  course  of  trade;  with  Mr.  Stuart  I 
remained  five  days,  and  in  coming  home  I  took  a  near  and  unknown 
route,  in  order  to  explore  a  part  of  the  country  I  had  not  seen  before." 

Mr.  Ross  evidently  returned  from  Kamloops  through  by  Nicola 
lake  and  struck  the  Similkameen  some  place  near  where  Princeton 
now  stands.  He  came  down  that  river  and  struck  the  Okanogan 
river  at  the  "forks,"  as  he  says,  and  got  to  Fort  Okanogan,  January 
24th,  1813.  On  May  13th,  1813,  Mr.  Stuart  arrived  at  Fort  Okan- 
ogan from  the  Kamloops  country  with  a  rich  catch  of  fur.  They 
remained  at  Okanogan  ten  days,  packing,  pressing  and  loading  the 
furs,  and  then  Ross  and  Stuart  with  a  crew   of  men  set  out  with  the 


18  Early  Okanogan  History. 


canoes  for  the  rendezvous  at  the  mouth  of  the  Walla  Walla.  Ross 
goes  into  a  world  of  details  in  regard  to  all  of  these  happenings  and 
it ''must  be  admitted  that  he  is  an  entertaining  writer  and  his  chapters 
on  the  Okanogan  Indians  are  very  valuable  from  an  ethnological 
point  of  view,  but  as  a  geographer  and  descriptive  writer  he  was  a 
failure,  although  there  should  be  a  few  exceptions  made  to  this  state- 
ment, as,  for  instance,  his  account  of  the  first  trip  up  the  Columbia. 
But  he  traveled  up  and  down  the  Okanogan  country  from  the  mouth 
of  the  river  to  the  head  of  Okanogan  lake  time  and  again,  yet  he 
scarcely  ever  tells  us  the  name  of  a  landmark,  a  stream  or  a  moun- 
tain. He  made  one  exploring  trip  into  the  Methow  country  and 
evidently  crossed  the  Twisp  pass  and  got  well  down  on  the  Skagit, 
)'et  it  is  impossible  to  tell  from  his  writings  where  he  was  at  any 
time,  perhaps  for  the  very  good  reason  that  Ross  did  not  know.  He 
says  his  Indian  guide  got  lost  on  the  Methow  trip,  but  to  read  his 
account,  one  is  lead  to  believe  that  it  is  just  a  case  of  "blaming  it  on 
the  cat."  He  took  unto  himself,  at  Fort  Okanogan,  an  Indian  girl 
of  the  Okanogan  tribe,  and  when  he  returned  to  Winnipeg,  about 
1825,  he  took  her  and  his  half-breed  children  with  him,  and  the 
Pacific  Northwest  knew  them  no  more.  Ross  became  prominent  in 
Manitoba  and  Assiniboia.  He  was  chosen  first  sheriff  of  the  province 
of  Manitoba,  and  in  1835,  was  appointed  a  member  of  the  first  gov- 
ernment council.  It  is  said  that  his  Indian  wife  was  of  exceptional 
intelligence  and  in  later  life  became  one  of  the  grand  old  ladies  of 
the  Red  River  settlement.  His  third  book  which  appeared  in  1856, 
the  year  of  his  death,  referred  entirely  to  the  Winnipeg  country,  and 
is  entitled  "The  Red  River  Settlement." 

At  first  he  was  faithful  to  Astor  but  later  turned  bitterly  against 
him.  In  fact,  his  works  contain  many  severe  criticisms  of  Mr. 
Astor  and  also  of  his  associates,  the  justice  or  injustice  of  which  is 
difficult  now  to  determine. 

Stuart  and  Ross  reached  the  rendezvous  at  the  mouth  of  the 
Walla  Walla  May  30th,  1813,  and  a  few  days  afterward  the  brigades 
began     arriving  from     up    the     Snake     river    and   overland    from 


Fort  Okanogan.  19 


Spokane.  These  brigades  brought  from  the  Spokane  establishment 
the  tidings  of  the  breaking  out  of  the  war  between  United  States  and 
Great  Britain.  Upon  arrival  of  the  consolidated  brigades  at  Astoria, 
June  14th,  1813,  a  council  of  the  partners  was  held.  There  was 
found  to  be  dissension  amongst  the  partners  and  a  feeling  of  discour- 
agement and  dismay  pervaded  the  meeting  on  account  of  the  news  of 
the  war  and  their  wholly  unprotected  situation  from  an  attack  by  a 
British  war  ship  or  privateer.  There  was  also  great  dissatisfaction 
among  some  in  regard  to  Mr.  Astor's  management  of  the  company, 
and  to  crown  it  all,  the  opposition  of  the  Northwest  Company  was  get- 
ting stronger.  It  was  decided,  however,  after  much  discussion,  to 
attempt  to  continue  the  enterprise  for  another  year  in  spite  of  the 
hazards  and  difficulties,  and  preparations  were  at  once  made  to  send 
out  the  wintering  parties  again.  The  outward  bound  brigades  left 
Astoria  in  a  body  on  July  5th,  1813,  Stuart  and  Ross  for  the  Okan- 
ogan and  Kamloops  country,  Clark  for  the  Spokane  country  and 
McKenzie  for  the  Willamette  country.  Resolutions  were  also  passed 
authorizing  McDougal,  the  head  factor  at  Astoria  to  sell  out  every- 
thing to  the  Northwest  Company  at  any  time  if  the  situation  became 
desperate  and  that  company  could  be  induced  to  buy. 

On  August  15th,  181 3,  the  brigades  reached  Fort  Okanogan. 
Here  Ross  was  left  in  charge  again  for  the  winter.  Clark  and  his 
men  proceeded  with  their  goods  to  Spokane  and  David  Stuart  took 
the  now  well  known  pack  train  route  up  this  river  to  winter  again 
at  Kamloops,  among  the  Shu-swaps. 

We  have  now  reached  the  beginning  of  the  end  of  the  Astor 
Company.  Events  were  fast  culminating  that  were  to  change  the 
course  of  things  for  many  years  to  come,  but  the  influence  of  Mr. 
Astor's  efforts  was  not  lost  as  subsequent  results  proved,  for  al- 
though it  ended  in  commercial  failure,  it  very  materially  strength- 
ened the  case  of  the  United  States  in  establishing  its  claims  to  this 
section  of  the  country  when  the  final  arbitration  of  the  boundary 
dispute  was  settled,  something  over  a  third  of  a  century  later. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

THE   NOR'wESTERS   TRIUMPH   OVER   ASTOR. 

'^HE  Nor'westers  were  quick  to  see  the  opportunity  offered  them  by 
^  the  war  and  the  defenseless  condition  of  the  Astor  establishments 
on  the  Columbia.  The  management  hurried  the  news  across  the 
continent  to  the  Pacific  partners  that  a  British  sloop-of-war,  the 
"Racoon"  was  on  the  way  to  the  mouth  of  the  Columbia,  to  capture 
the  American  trading  post,  also  that  they  had  a  ship  of  their  own, 
the  "Isaac  Todd"  enroute  to  the  mouth  of  the  Columbia  with  sup- 
plies and  equipment  to  enable  the  Northwest  Company  to  establish 
a  trading  post  there;  that  the  Isaac  Todd  was  armed,  and  also  held 
.  letters  of  marque  and  reprisal  and  was  therefore  a  duly  accredited 
privateer  and  in  a  position  to  seize  the  American  post  as  a  prize  of 
war.  As  a  result  of  this  there  suddenly  appeared  at  the  Okanogan 
post,  on  the  last  day  of  September,  1813,  a  big  Northwest  Company 
brigade  of  ten  canoes  under  the  leadership  of  John  George  McTrav- 
ish  and  John  Stuart.  They  stopped  but  a  few  hours  with  Ross  at 
Okanogan  for  they  were  hurrying  down  to  the  mouth  to  meet  the 
Isaac  Todd  upon  its  arrival,  and  likewise  they  were  clothed  with  full 
authority  to  make  a  purchase  of  all  the  holdings  and  property  of  the 
Astor  Company,  if  a  good  bargain  could  be  made.  Ross  says  they 
were  in  high  spirits  and  came  sweeping  gaily  down  the  Columbia, 
with  the  canoe-men  singing  their  boat  songs  in  wild  chorus.  And 
well  they  might  be  jubilant,  for  they  had  every  advantage.  They 
had  the  American  company  between  the  devil  and  the  deep  sea. 
They  would  either  force  them  to  sell  out  or  fall  a  prize  of  war.  This 
brigade  reached  Astoria  October  7th,  1813. 

Without  going  into  details,  Duncan  McDougal,  the  factor  in 
charge  at  Astoria,  sold  out  the  whole  Astorian  enterprise  on  the 
Pacific  to  the  Northwest  Company  on  November  12th,  18 13.  The 
American  flag  was  hauled  down  and  the  Union  Jack  was  run  up 
in  its  stead.  The  name  of  the  place  was  changed  from  Astoria 
to  Fort  George.    ,. 


The  Nor'westers  Triumph  Over  Astor.  21 

Shortly  afterwards  the  Racoon  arrived  and  her  captain  took  for- 
mal possession  of  the  country  for  England.  The  "Isaac  Todd"  was 
however  badly  delayed  on  her  voyage  and  did  not  arrive  till  the 
following  April. 

All  the  inland  posts  including  Fort  Okanogan,  of  course,  now 
passed  to  the  Northwest  Company.  Fort  Okanogan  was  turned  over 
December  15th,  1813.  Ross  entered  the  service  of  the  Northwest 
Company  and  was  placed  in  charge  for  the  new  management.  His 
second  book  starts  with  his  service  under  the  new  regime,  and,  as 
before  stated,  it  is  entitled  "Fur  Hunters  of  the  West."  It  opens 
with  an  account  of  a  trip  from  Fort  Okanogan  overland  to  the  Yak- 
ima country  for  the  purpose  of  acquiring  horses.  Many  horses  were 
maintained  at  Fort  Okanogan  as  long  as  the  fur  from  the  north  con- 
tinued to  come  down  the  trail  along  this  river.  They  grazed  these 
extensive  horse  bands  on  what  is  now  the  southwestern  portion  of 
the  South  Half.  Afterwards,  however,  when  the  Northwest  Com- 
pany and  the  Hudson  Bay  Company  consolidated  and  Fort  Okanogan 
became  a  Hudson  Bay  post,  the  fur  from  the  north  was  not  brought 
down  through  the  Okanogan  valley  by  the  horse  brigades,  but  was 
sent  over  the  mountains  to  the  mouth  of  the  Fraser.  This  greatly 
lessened  the  importance  of  the  place.  There  were  many  wolves  in 
this  country  in  the  early  days  and  both  Ross  and  Cox  in  their  books 
make  frequent  mention  of  the  depredations  of  these  fierce  animals 
upon  the  horse  bands  grazing  in  the  vicinity  of  the  fort.  They  also 
mention  the  existence  of  elk  in  the  country  in  those  days,  but  we 
have  been  unable  to  find  when  or  how  they  disappeared.  Ross  con- 
tinued in  charge  at  Fort  Okanogan  until  the  spring  of  18 16,  when 
he  was  transferred  to  Fort  George  and  the  next  year  we  find  him  as 
factor  at  Kamloops,  and  in  181 7-18  he  was  in  charge  of  the  post  on 
the  Walla  Walla.  He  also  made  one  trip  from  Okanogan  to  the 
buffalo  plains  in  Montana,  returning  with  a  good  catch  of  fur  and 
robes. '  Ross  was  succeeded  at  Fort  Okanogan  in  the  spring  of  18 16 
by  Ross  Cox  who  was  a  very  bright  and  highly  educated  j^oung 
Irishman.     To  him  was  entrusted  the   rebuilding  and   remodeling  of 


22  Early  Okanogan  History. 


the  fort.  He  goes  into  the  matter  in  detail  and  has  left  us  a  very 
fair  map  of  the  immediate  vicinity  around  the  mouth,  even  going  so 
far  as  to  designate  the  places  where  there  were  rattlesnakes.  He  evi- 
dently had  a  true  Irishman's  aversion  for  snakes.  He  has  the  word 
"rattlesnakes"  written  all  over  what  is  now  Brewster  flat.  We  will 
copy  only  the  following  excerps  from  his  work  in  regard  to  the  fort 
which  he  rebuilt  as  above  stated  in  the  summer  of  1816: 

"By  the  month  of  September  we  had  erected  a  new  dwelling 
house  for  the  person  in  charge,  containing  four  excellent  rooms  and 
a  large  dining  hall,  two  good  houses  for  the  men  and  a  spacious  store 
for  the  furs  and  merchandise  to  which  was  attached  a  shop  for  trading 
with  the  natives.  The  whole  was  surrounded  by  strong  palisades 
fifteen  feet  high  and  flanked  by  two  bastions.  Bach  bastion  had  in 
in  its  lower  story  a  light  brass  four-pounder,  and  the  upper  loop-holes 
were  left  for  the  use  of  musketry." 

The  post  was  built  about  a  mile  southeast  of  the  original  fort 
and  was  situated  so  as  to  command  the  Columbia.  It  has  now  en- 
tirel}^  disappeared  but  many  old  timers,  both  Indian  and  white,  re- 
member it  and  there  is  no  question  about  the  exact  location  of  the 
same.  It  stood  on  the  bank  of  the  Columbia  a  little  below  the  old 
Indian  grave  yard  that  is  there  today  and  just  above  the  river  end  of 
Long  Jim's  fence.  We  find  further  on  in  the  work  of  Cox  the  fol- 
lowing commentary: 

"The  situation  of  Okanogan  is  admirably  adapted  for  a  trading 
post,  with  a  fertile  soil,  a  healthy  climate,  horses  in  abundance  for 
land  carriage,  an  opening  to  the  sea  by  the  Columbia  and  a  commu- 
nication to  the  interior  by  it  and  the  Okanogan.  The  river  is  well 
stocked  with  fish  and  the  natives  quiet  and  friendly.  It  will,  in  my 
opinion,  be  selected  as  a  spot  pre-eminently  calculated  for  the  site  of 
a  town  when  civilization  (which  is  at  present  so  rapidly  migrating  to 
the  westward)  crosses  the  Rocky  mountains  and  reaches  the 
Columbia." 

Cox  wrote  these  words  well  nigh  a  hundred  years  ago,  but 
events  up  to  date  show  him  to  have  been  a  poor  guesser,  for  there  is 


The  Nor'westers  Triumph  Oxier  Astor. 


less  at  the  mouth  of  the  Okanogan  now  than  in  his  day,  but  the 
prospects  at  present  are  that  time  may  yet  vindicate  his  prediction. 

Cox  wrote  in  a  very  interesting  manner  of  the  Okanogan  Indians, 
and  in  this  regard  it  tallies  quite  closely  with  the  writings  of  Ross 
on  the  same  subject,  but  differs  in  some  quite  important  particulars. 
Both  men,  however,  were  eminently  qualified  to  speak  on  the  sub- 
ject of  which  they  wrote;  both  of  them  became  proficient  in  the 
Indian  language  and  Cox  became  very  popular  amongst  these 
Indians.  The  writer  has  inquired  extensively  amongst  old  Indians 
to  find  out  if  they  had  any  recollection  or  were  familiar  by  tradition 
or  otherwise,  with  the  names  of  the  old  traders  and  voyageurs  at 
Fort  Okanogan.  Such  efforts  have  been  absolutely  barren  of  results, 
except  that  old  Doctor  John,  who  died  a  year  ago  last  fall,  gave  proof 
when  interviewed  on  the  subject,  shortly  before  his  death,  that  he 
had  heard  of  Cox.  There  are  old  half-breeds  living  on  the  Spokane 
reservation  and  in  the  Colville  valley  that  were  born  at  Fort  Okan- 
ogan three-quarters  of  a  century  and  more  ago.  If  these  men  were 
properly  interviewed,  undoubtedly  much  valuable  information  could 
be  obtained.  We  quote  the  following  from  the  work  of  Ross,  which 
is  of  local  interest: 

"The  principal  family  of  the  Oakinacken  nation  bears  the  title 
or  name  of  Con-con-ulps,  being  the  name  of  the  place  where  members 
of  it  generally  reside,  which  is  situated  about  nine  miles  up  the 
beautiful  stream  of  that  name." 

This  gives  us  the  derivation  of  the  name  "Conconully"  and  the 
Indian  name  for  Salmon  creek  is  "Con-con-ulps"  to  this  day,  they 
call  it  by  that  name  now,  but  the  geography  of  Ross  never  is  any 
too  good  as  to  exact  location  anywhere  in  his  books,  and  when  he  says 
they  commonl}^  resided  nine  miles  up  the  stream  we  are  led  to  believe 
that  either  he  or  his  publisher  made  a  mistake,  for  the  topography 
of  the  couutry  nine  miles  up  Salmon  creek  is  an  unlikely  locality 
for  Indians  to  be  habitually  camped. 

Who-why-lo£f  or  "Red  Fox"  was  the  head  chief  of  the  Okan- 
ogans  when  the  Astor  men   arrived.     Ross  has  this  to  say   of  him: 


24  Early  Okanogan  History. 


"The  old  chief  was  a  venerable  and  worthy  savage;  his  influence 
was  great  over  a  wide  circle,  not  only  at  home  but  abroad  among  the 
neighboring  tribes.  The  Red  Fox  had  been  many  times  with  his 
young  men  to  the  Great  Salt  lake  as  they  call  it,  meaning  the  Pacific, 
the  direct  road  to  which  across  the  mountains  was  almost  due  west 
to  where  they  fall  on  the  sea-coast  in  about  the  forty-ninth  degree  of 
north  latitude.  They  take  generally  fifteen  days  to  make  the  jour- 
ney, sometimes  more,  sometimes  less  according  to  circumstances. 
Traffic  is  their  object." 


CHAPTER  V. 

LATER    HISTORY. 

/TTHE  history  of  Fort  Okanogan  could  be  spun  out  indefinitely  but 
^  it  is  of  course  impossible  to  go  into  any  lengthy  discussion  of  the 
same  in  this  brief  work.  We  will  however  attempt  to  set  forth  a  few 
of  the  more  important  and  interesting  features  that  marked  the 
course  of  events  in  subsequent  years  as  the  closing  chapter  of  this 
narrative. 

In  182 1  the  Northwest  Company  and  the  Hudson  Bay  Com- 
pany, tired  of  the  long  and  ruinous  strife  and  struggle  between  the 
two  organizations,  by  a  mutual  agreement  entered  into  in  London, 
consolidated  the  two  companies  together  under  the  name  of  the  lat- 
ter, and  from  that  time  forward  till  its  abandonment  in  the  middle 
fifties,  the  trading  establishment  at  the  mouth  of  this  river  was  a 
Hudson  Bay  Company  post.  That  company  in  the  old  days  was 
noted  for  the  secretiveness  of  its  operations,  especially  when  in  con- 
tact with  American  traders  and  we  can  derive  but  little  light  on  the 
inside  history  of  the  fort  from  American  sources,  and  Canadian  lines 
of  information  must  be  followed  up,  and  these  have  been  but  to  a 
very  limited  extent  available  to  the  writer.  Just  when  Fort  Okan- 
ogan ceased  to  be  a  trading  post  of  importance  the  author  hereof  is 
unable  to  definitely  state,  but  certain  it  is  that  during  the  last  fifteen 
or  twent}'  3^ears  of  its  existence  the  place  was  reduced  to  a  small  es- 
tablishment. Various  causes  brought  about  this  condition  which  are 
too  intricate  and  numerous  to  discuss  here.  The  result  is  that  the 
early  history  of  Fort  Okanogan  is  much  more  complete  and  definite 
than  the  later  history.  In  fact  we  know  but  very  little  that  is  defi- 
nite and  reliable  about  the  last  years.  Many  travelers,  however,  vis- 
ited the  place  through  the  thirties,  forties  and  fifties  and  the  general 
run  of  events  can  be  fairly  well  traced.  The  histor}'  of  the  Okan- 
ogan country  in  the  middle  and  latter  fifties  is  fairly  accessable  and 
could  be  written  quite  complete  with  some  research.  General  Mc- 
Clellau's  expediton  came  through  the  Okanogan  valley  in  1853  ^^^ 


26  Early  Okanogan  History. 


there  was  much  travel  through  the  valley  in  the  late  fifties  and  early 
sixties  by  the  placer  miners  going  north  to  the  "diggin's"  on  the 
Caribou  and  elsewhere.  It  was  one  of  these  parties  of  gold  seekers 
going  north  that  encountered  the  well  known  Indian  fight  in  Mc- 
Laughlin's canyon.  The  party  was  following  the  old  Hudson  Bay 
Company  trail.  We  strike,  however,  a  long  period  prior  to  about 
1883  when  the  history  of  this  section  is  pretty  much  of  a  blank. 
There  appears  to  have  been  no  one  in  the  country  at  the  time,  except 
"Okanogan  Smith"  and  a  few  more  old  time  cattle  men  and  miners 
on  the  Fifteen  Mile  Strip.  The  result  is  that  the  pioneers  of  our 
later  period  knew  little  of  the  old  order  of  things  which  had  disap- 
peared many  years  before  they  came,  and  the  same  general  ignor- 
ance of  those  early  times  has  continued  down  to  the  present,  how- 
ever, there  has  all  along  existed  more  or  less  faint  and  fragmentary 
knowledge  of  those  remote  days  and  the  same  has  always  been  a  local 
theme  of  interest  frequently  mentioned  and  discussed,  but  definite 
and  reliable  information  has  all  along  been  lacking.  But  this  old- 
time  fog  of  oblivion  has  within  the  last  year  or  two  been  to  a  large 
extent  dispelled  in  the  general  awakening  of  interest  in  "Old  Ore- 
gon" which  has  brought  forth  old  publications  and  records  that  have 
lain  long  in  obscurity  and  by  the  light  of  which  we  are  now  able  to 
retell  the  long  forgotten  story  with  accuracy  and  precision,  and  the 
bringing  back  of  the  memories  of  the  old  regime  in  this  centennial 
year  of  its  advent  in  this  region  seems  very  much  like  conjuring  up 
the  phantom  legend  of  "La  Chasse  Gallerie"  as  the  spirits  of  Ross, 
David  Stuart,  Cox,  Thompson,  Alexander  Henry  and  the  rest  come 
back  from  the  past  to  be  with  us  this  summer  in  our  celebrations  of 
the  events  of  one  hundred  years  ago  among  these  scenes  and  along 
these  rivers  we  now  call  ours,  but  which  they  then  called  theirs. 

To  those  who  wish  to  inform  themselves  in  regard  to  the  early 
history  of  this  region  we  will  refer  them  to  the  following  books: 
"Adventures"  and  "Fur  Hunters  of  the  West,"  by  Alexander  Ross; 
"Adventures  on  the  Columbia,  Including  the  Narrative  of  a  Resi- 
dence of  Six  Years  on  the   Western  Side  of  the   Rocky  Mountains," 


Later  History.  Z7 

by  Ross  Cox.  This  book  was  published  in  183 1  and  is  now  out  of 
print  and  is  listed  as  a  scarce  work.  "Franchere's  Narrative," by  Gab- 
riel Franchere,  written  about  1825.  This  book  is  in  print.  The 
"Henry  and  Thompson  Journals,"  by  Elliott  Coues.  This  is  a 
splendid  new  work  that  has  just  made  its  appearance.  "Chritten- 
don's  History  of  the  American  Fur  Trade."  This  is  also  a  very 
recent  work.  In  Hudson  Bay  House,  London,  there  is  said  to  be 
the  daily  journals  kept  by  the  factors  at  Fort  Okanogan  for  many 
years,  but  these,  of  course,  are  not  obtainable  except  at  great  cost 
and  expense.  "Couquest  of  the  Great  Northwest,"  by  Agnes  Lout; 
Washington  Irving's  "Astoria,"  Dunn's  "History  of  Oregon."  The 
works  of  Ross,  Cox,  Franchere  and  the  "Henry  and  Thompson 
Journals,"  by  Elliott  Coues,  are  the  most  valuable  and  should  be  in 
the  school  libraries  of  Okanogan  county  that  the  rising  generation 
may  become  familiar  with  the  history  of  this  section,  for  it  certainly 
deserves  attention,  as  it  is  rich  in  incident  and  had  a  great  influence 
upon  the  ultimate  acquisition  of  all  this  section  as  part  of  the  terri- 
tory of  the  United  States. 


THE   END. 


7t 


THE  NEW  YORK  PUBLIC  LIBRARY 
REFERENCE  DEPARTMENT