P age B7
T he P o ru a n i ) O bserver • F ebruary 22, 1995
BLACK HISTORY
-Jîarthmâ (© beer Her
Black Business Expo Set At PCC Cascade
The Cascade Campus o f Port
land C o m m u n ity C o lle g e w ill
host the annual B lack Business
Expo on Saturday and Sunday as
part o f B la ck H isto ry M onth
A va riety o f local business
c o m p a n ie s ,
a r tis ts
and
craftspersons w ill p articip a te in
the com m unity event, to be held
Portland Kids See Black Pioneer Exhibit
w ill
p.m
to 6
free
be open from 10 a m to 6
on Saturday and from noon
p.m. on Sunday. The expo is
and open to the p u b lic.
It is s till possible to rent a
stall at the expo, but o n ly a few
openings rem ain. Interested b usi
ness persons can ca ll Sonia Key-
Fender at 295-2944.
in the gym nasium at the campus,
located at 705 N. K illin g s w o rth
St.
A w ide selection o f c lo th in g ,
crafts, art and je w e lry w ill be
displayed and may be purchased.
V arious hot and cold foods w ill
be available.
The B la ck Business Expo
History Of Blacks In Oregon
1788
Marcus Lopez was the first black person to set foot on Oregon soil. He arrived on the ship Lady Washington,
originated in Boston Mass. The vessel stopped at the Cape Verde Islands, located o ff the west coast o f Africa, to
replenish supplies. Marcus Lopez was hired as a cabin boy. Two days later he was killed by Indians over grass stolen
by the natives from Lopez that he had cut for livestock.
1804
A black slave called York reached the mouth o f the Columbia River near modem Astoria as a member ot ihe
Lewis and Clark Expedition. He was owned by W illiam Clark but enjoyed a measure o f equality during the
expedition. He was permitted to vote with the rest o f the members o f the party on the site o f the winter camp, located
on the south side o f the Columbia River three miles up a small creek, where elk were plentiful.
1810-11
Principal Rosemary Daniels
took fifth graders at southeast Port
land's Brooklyn School to Salem
recently to celebrate Black History
Month and visit the Northwest Black
Pioneers Centennial Exhibit in Sa
lem.
Daniels said the students had
read about northw est black pioneers,
but after the tour they were overly
impressed with the many accom
plishments o f blacks in the north
west.
They recognized Dr. Matthew
Prophet, ex-superintendent o f Port
land public school.
Daniels also showed the stu
dents pictures o f her relatives from
Seattle, Dr. Charles M itchell, pres
ident o f Seattle Community C ol
lege; Paul M itchell, a buyer for The
Bon Marche, the exhibit’ s sponsor;
and Dr. Robert Gary, principal in
Seattle.
“ It was an enjoyable day,”
Daniels said.
The crew ofthe Tonquin included a black cook whose name has not survived, and two black men, Edward Rose
and Françoise Duchouquette. They were associated with an overland expedition. These expeditions were funded
by the Pacific Fur Co. to establish a trading post at the mouth o f the Columbia River near modem Astoria.
Rose met Wilson Price Hunt who hired him to guide the overland expedition to Oregon, but he was dismissed
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Portland students Sen Percival (from left), Shawn Brewster and
Chris Schroder with principal Rosemary Daniels.
This M onth In Black History
before reaching Oregon.
Françoise Duchouquette served as Hunt’s expedition as a blacksmith, and remained at Fort George (formerly
Fort Astoria) until 18 14. While in the Northwest he fathered a son, also named Françoise Duchouquette. His mother
was an Okanogan Indian. He learned to read and write and was a storekeeper for the Hudson’ s Bay Co. at Fort
February
Y.
•
Langston Hughes, renowned author, poet and playwright, bom, February 1,1902.
•
Free American Blacks settle Liberia, West Africa., F ebruary 4, 1822.
•
Henry “ Hank” Aaron, baseball great, bom, F ebruary 5, 1934.
•
Abraham Lincoln, F eb rua ry 12, 1809.
•
National Association for the Advancement o f Colored People (NAAC P) founded, F ebruary 12, 1909.
•
Baseball’ s Negro National League founded, F ebruary 13, 1920.
f
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Frederick Douglass, abolitionist, lecturer and editor, bom, February 14, 1817.
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W E B. DuBois. scholar, w riter and Pan-Africanist, bom, February 23, 1868.
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Hiram Revels becomes first African-American U.S. Senator, February 25, 1870.
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Okanogan from 1853 to I860.
1812-1830
A number o f black men were associated w ith the Rocky Mountain fur trade, many as servants or slaves, or in
menial positions as free laborers. It was not uncommon, however, to find blacks operating as independent trappers,
guides and interpreters. Many had spent their lives living with Indians, and gained invaluable knowledge that served
them well as negotiators with hostile tribes and enabled them to survive the rigors o f a wilderness life.
V
1830
James C. Douglas, chief accountant. Fort Vancouver was bom in the African colony o f British Guiana in 1803.
His father was John Douglas, a Scottish merchant, and his mother was a creole woman named “ Miss Ritchie There
is some evidence to suggest that Douglas may have inherited some from his mother. He was described as a West
Indian" by Governor George Simpson in 1832.
1834
A black man named George Winslow came to Oregon with the famous trapper, Ewing Young, and an Oregon
promoter, Hall Jackson Kelley. He settled on the Clackamas Prairie, married an Indian woman, and raised a family.
A knowledge o f medicine supplemented his income, until the arrival o f Dr. Forbes ofthe Hudson s Bay Company
reduced his business. He was best known to boast that he had come to Oregon not with Kelley, but with Astor's
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expedition on board the Tonquin in 18 11.
February is Black History Month.
1835
James C. Douglas was promoted to C hief Trader for the Hudson Bay Company.
1836
The Whitman and Spalding families arrived in Oregon, bringing with them a black man named John Hinds.
He had joined the party near Green River at the 1836 fur traders’ rendezvous in order to receive medical attention
from Dr. Whitman, as he was suffering from dropsy. His condition did not improve and he died at the Whitman
mission at Waiilatapu in November 1836.
1838
James C. Douglas was in charge o f Fort Vancouver during the absence o f Dr. John M cLouglin for a period o f
one year.
1839
f
A black man called Wallace came to Oregon on board the big Maryland, which had been sent from Boston on
a trading expedition. While the Maryland was anchored in the Columbia, Wallace deserted.
1840
James C. Douglas was promoted to C hief Factor, the highest rank with the Hudson Bay Co. Later, he became
Sir James Douglas, the first governor o f British Columbia
On May 21, the ship Lausanne anchored at the mouth o f the Columbia River near Baker’s Bay. On board were
Rev. John H. Frost and his family, Methodist missionaries sent to Oregon as part o f Jason Lee's “ Great
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Reinforcement”
The ship was piloted up the Columbia River to Fort Vancouver by several individuals, including a black man
called George Washington Little is known o f this man, other than a few details noted by John Frost. Washington
had been sent down river by John M cLoughlin. with fresh bread and butter for the weary missionaries.
In December, Wallace went to the missionary settlement with John Frost to help drag the supplies through waist-
deep mud. He was hired to help construct a building near the banks o f the Columbia.
Dr. George Washington Carver
Scientist
He had a thirst fo r knowledge and the determination to become a scientist.
1841
James D. Saules came to Oregon with the U.S. Sloop-of-War
Peacock. He served as a cook on the ship, and settle in Oregon C ity where he bought a farm from Winslow.
He ran into trouble with a white settle who accused him o f stirring up the Indians against white settlers. Three
witnesses testified against him, and he was found guilty. He was kept in custody for several weeks, but because there
was no jail he was released and told to leave the area. He went to the Clatsop Plains near Astoria and worked at the
It may be recognized in one month, but the
contributions of African-Americans will last a lifetime.
Methodist Mission until 1846 when the mission was closed.
1843
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A black man named Jacob Dodson, 18, came to Oregon with Capt. John Fremont. Dodson was a free servant
in the family o f Thomas Hart Benton. Fremont’s father-in-law, and volunteered to accompany the expedition to
Oregon. Jacob Dodson later became an attendant in the U.S. Senate and at the outbreak ofthe C iv il War raised 300
black men to fight for the Union, but President Lincoln refused their services.
LOCALZòz/c/i
1844
Moses Harris, black mountain man and.wagon train guide acted as guide for one o f the largest immigrant trains
to come to Oregon The party, divided into three large sections, included a wealthy black man. George Bush, and
Michael T. Simmons. John Minto. Nataniel Ford and his family and their black servants Robin. Polly and Mary
Holmes. They arrived in the Willamette Valley in October 1844.
Moses Harris remained in Oregon for about three years. His name was listed on the tax rolls o f Y anthill County,
and he signed a petition from the citizens o f Yam hill County addressed to the Provisional Assembly, urging them
to finance the construction ofa public road in Oregon City. He left the Willamette Valley in spring o f 1847, returning
to St Joseph. Mo. were he hoped to guide other settlers to Oregon. He died o f cholera in 1849.
George Bush, a black man o f wealth, aided other needy families on the trip west. His father, was bom in India
and was brought to the United States as a servant. His mother was Irish and worked as a maid. Bush married a white
women in 1832 and raised a family o f five boys. He first arrived in The Dalles in the fall o f 1844
\bur Official Neighborhood Guide To
Community, Friends and Businesses
a U S WEST* Directory
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