The timeline has a new look! Let me know what you think. You can contact me through chasinghistory.org;xNLx;;xNLx;Also, many updates and revisions have been made as of August, 2015. Thanks to all who wrote with ideas and corrections.;xNLx;;xNLx;FAQ:;xNLx;;xNLx;Who made this? Chase. You can visit his website at ChasingHistory.org ;xNLx;;xNLx;Why does the timeline start in 1730? What about all the history before that? ;xNLx;The format of this website and spacing between dates made the addition of events more than 300 years ago too unwieldy. Had to start somewhere. ;xNLx; ;xNLx;;xNLx;What do the colors mean?;xNLx; Green indicates a noteworthy event in the (West) Columbia River Gorge or on Mount Hood.;xNLx; .;xNLx; Gray for events of importance elsewhere, and anything else that didn't fit into the color scheme.;xNLx; Purple is Presidents and Politicians.;xNLx;;xNLx; Why are the Presidents on here?;xNLx; Historical context, as well as matching Presidents to policies and laws affecting the area.;xNLx;;xNLx; How reliable is this information? "Some of it seems to be linked to Wikipedia. I don't trust Wikipedia.";xNLx; Just about every fact on this timeline is supported by a source I could cite for you should you email me. Most sources were books and the Oregonian archives.;xNLx;Some events were dated January 1 because the date within the year was unknown to me. Other dates are approximated within the year, especially Oregon Trail-era events and several fires, which I approximated to September 1 of that year.;xNLx;;xNLx;;xNLx;;xNLx; Are there any errors?;xNLx;Quite possibly! E-mail me and I will be happy to look into fixing them. ChasingHistory.org
Trading from the Great Plains and southern regions brings goods northwest through tribe bartering.
Ezekial Williams, a trapper, travels as far as modern-day Wyoming.
Last major eruption of Mount Hood, "Old Maid Flats".
Hudson's Bay Company establishes a trading post in Saskatchewan. A trade route extending between Fort Vancouver and Hudson Bay would open in 1824 (often called the York Factory Express).
Smallpox outbreak. Started by ships coming east on the Columbia River. This lasted into the 1780's. History of Hood River County lists this epidemic as starting in 1770 and that it "decimated Indians."
Robert Gray became the first white explorer to sight the Columbia River (1792)(some sources cite April 29th as the date)
(please give a better month if you know it). Scottish naturalist Archibald Menzies aboard was able to make observations.
Wy'east volcano was given the name Mount Hood by William Broughton, its new namesake being after Samuel Hood, a British Admiral.
A British map showed a dotted line connecting the Columbia River to the Missouri River, speculating a Northwest Passage.
During this time and up to about 1860, Bradford Island was used as an Indian burial ground. Other sources cite Memaloose ("Sepulchar") Island as being a burial ground. Lewis and Clark mentioned a burial location just east of Bonneville as well, possibly closer to Table Mountain From their journals: "In a verry thick part of the woods is 8 vaults which appeared very closely covered and highly deckerated with orniments. In several of those vaults the dead bodies were raped verry securely in Skins and tied with cords, laid on a mat, and some of those vaults had as many as four bodies laying on top of each other. I observed the remains of Vaults rotted entirely into the ground and covered with moss. This must bee the burying place of many ages for the inhabitants of those rapids."
This outbreak was spread by overland travel and trade and lasted until 1802.
Interested in mapping west of the Mississippi, looking for a Northwest Passage, and more!
October 30 - November 1, 1805. The Corps of Discovery sighted Mount Hood on October 18, 1805. The call it Falls Mountain and Timm Mountain. When Clark returned east, he drew a complete map of his journey and known lands. This map includes the name Mt. Hood, as he would have cross-checked his Corps' place-names and corrected them if applicable. The Corps of Discovery reached the Columbia River Gorge on October 30, 1805. Joseph Fields and William Clark sighted an Indian burial place on the banks of the Columbia. November 1: The Corps of Discovery portage "a mile and a half around lower rapids. The canoes rand this rapids without much damage." November 3: Lewis and Clark spot the Seal River (now known as the Washougal). November 4: Captain Clark trades with Indians and receives a tomahawk. It was stolen thereafter. November 5: Lewis and Clark refer to the Indians near Cascade Locks as "Wahclellahs."
April 8 - , 1806 April 8: John Colter recovered Clark's stolen tomahawk. April 9: The Corps camp out one mile west of Beacon Rock on the north side of the Columbia. April 10 -12: The Corps portage with great difficulty, losing a canoe while finishing the portage. April 14: The Corps travel upriver on the north side of the Columbia before camping near White Salmon. "Our men prefer fat dog meat to lean venison."
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David Thompson of Hudson's Bay Company led a party down the Columbia River and explored the area from 1807-1811. He sighted Mount Hood and camped near Cascade Locks to portage the south side of the Columbia. He called the Indians "Weeyarkeek." French fur trappers called Mount Hood "Le Montainge de Neige" (Snow Mountain) around this time.
Joseph Howse and 17 men traveled through the Rocky Mountains and into the gorge. They stayed, trapping fur, until 1811.
The Canadian Northwest Company financed Alexander Ross and the Thompson Party to probe through to the Columbia with the interest of fur trade. Ross refered to the Indians at Cascade Locks as the "Cathleyacheyachs," hostile and savage towards whites. At about the same time, it was recorded that David Thompson lead his party up the river and his men had a tense standoff with the Indians near Cascade Locks.
Donald McKenzie and Wilson Price Hunt led the Astoria overland expedition. John Day and Ramsay Cooks were part of this party, but they lagged behind in Hell's Canyon. Umatilla Indians saved Day and Cooks, who eventually escaped without supplies when ambushed by a different Indian tribe. Mackenzie left the first trail markers in the gorge and made some new trails which French Canadian fur trappers used later on. In 1910 two trail markers, perhaps made by Mackenzie, were found. One read: PLOTZ 1809 and the other HAVOCA 1808. Wikipedia states that Mackenzie reached Astoria in early 1812, so perhaps he did not reach the gorge until late 1811. The trail markings, however, could still be his and not be a reference to the dates they were built.
Robert Stuart and Jedediah Smith discovered the "South Pass Route," which would become the pass for all wagons on the Oregon Trail as they passed through the Rocky Mountains. Documentation for this route was not well disseminated. William Ashley (re-)discovered South Pass, as it was not common knowledge where the pass existed. In 1824 Jedediah Smith mapped the pass, which was added to the Gibbs map, which then was used for the Preuss/Fremont maps.
As whites moved onto Indian lands and declared it their own, poor relations between the Indians and whites continue in the gorge with many accounts of Indians stealing whites' property and retaliation with threats of physical harm. Some arrows fired from Indians towards whites and some shots fired in return.
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Agreement between the United States and Great Britain allowed for free access to the territory between the two nations. This joint occupation was to last ten years.
Hudson's Bay Company, a monopoly run by the British, is dominant in the gorge.
Spread by ships.
Sir George Simpson and Dr. John McLoughlin arranged for the post as a way to protect the interests of Hudson's Bay Company and their fur trading interests. Dr. McLoughlan served as Chief Factor of Hudson's Bay Company from 1825-1846.
Around this time, the York Factory Express, mostly a system of rivers between Fort Vancouver and Hudson Bay, was used.
David Douglas and John Scouler took hundreds of plant samples and classified them, including the Douglas Fir, or Pseudotsuga menziesii.
[Date approximate] David Douglas and "Chumtalia" climbed Table Mountain, taking plant samples for identification and classification. Soon after this, the two climbed on the Oregon side of the gorge, possibly to Benson Plateau or Yeon Mountain.
Jedediah Smith led a fur trading group through the Umpqua Valley. A conflict over a stolen ax ensued and the Umpquas killed 15 of the 19 men in Smith's group. The survivors fled to Fort Vancouver and had the protection of George Simpson
A scarlet fever outbreak killed many Native Americans.
David Douglas visited the gorge three more times between 1830 and 1833. He tried to climb Mount Hood in 1833 (unsuccessfully).
A horrible outbreak of smallpox wiped out half of the Native Americans living on the Columbia River.
Ships spread malaria throughout the Columbia River area.
Nathaniel Wyeth brought eleven emigrants overland to Fort Vancouver.
William D. Brackenridge, naturalist, studied plants in the gorge. (1833-1835)
The Columbia River froze over every winter from 1833 to 1840.
Reverend Jason Lee and several followers started a mission in the Willamette Valley. They had come with Wyeth's party.
Kilbourne and Young drove cattle from California to Oregon.
Scientists who arrived with Wyeth's party visited the gorge to study birds and plants.
Wyeth led 24 emigrants overland to represent The Columbia River Fishing and Trading Company. He also established Fort Hall along the way.
William Slocum (sent by President jackson) visited the Willamette Valley and reported back to the U.S. Senate, which helped create the start of "Oregon Fever."
Marcus and Narcissa Whitman and Henry and Eliza Spaulding traveled the Oregon Trail and settled near Walla Walla to start a mission.
Spread by ships.
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