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The Last Steps in the Formation of First Oregon Government
A Narrative of the Pre-Territorial Day by Robert Carlton Clark; Published in the Oregon Historical Quarterly.
Iiy Itobert Carlton Clark.
In a letter dated August 30, 1846,'
written by Dr. John McLoughlln,
chief fuctoi- of Hudson'B Hay Company
at Vancouver, he aa'n: "We have
yielded to the wishes and requeues of
the respectable part of the people In
this country of British and American
origin by uniting with them In the
formation of a provisional and tem-
porary government having for Its ob
ject the protection of life and prop
erty." The act here described constitutes
the last step In the formation of a pro-
vlHlonal government for Oregon. It
will be the purpose of this paper to
give an account of the motives leading
to thin step.
In a former paper by this writer
appearing the Quarterly the move
ment leading to the formation of a
government for Oregon wan describ
ed so far an it had taken place down
to the election' of officers in May,
1844. It was there known that the
first of the steps In this movement
had been taken in 1S3S when the Am
erican element elected magistrates for
themselves; the second In 1841 by
the election of a lurger body of offi
cers; the third in 1843 with the plac
ing of the government on a more de
f.nite constitutional basis. It was not
however, until 1844 that the Hrltish
and Canadian citizens, r'-sident In the
Willamette Valley were brought into
the union, fly this fourth step a gov
ernment embracing all the Inhabi
tants and comprising all the territory
south of the Columbia River was es
tablished. It was not. however, until
the next year and by means of a spe
cial agreement with the Hudson's
Pay Company officials and by form
ing a new constitution that the region
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north of the Columbia and Its resi
dents were brought into the bounds
of the infant state. The story of this
lust movement will be related here.
At the time of the organization in
1S43 of the Provisional Government
for Oregon Territory by the settlers
o,' the Willamette Valley, most of
whom were of Amerlcun extraction
no attempt was made to give a defi
nite northern boundary to the terri
tory over which its Jurisdiction wan
to extend. Oregon territory was to
Include all the region south of the
northern boundary of the I'nittd
Ktalih. The obvious Intention was to J
avoid giving offense to the Hudson a
Pay Comnany which had .extensive
land-holdings, around Vancouver and
elsewhere along the north bank of the
Columbia River. The following year
184 4, after an understanding had been
reached with the French-Canadian
and other British subjects by means
of which they were brought into the
Provisional Government, a new legis
lative committee meeting In June
passed a law definitely ' fixing the
Columbia River as the northermost
limit of the territory. Though a sec
ond session of the same body meet
ing In December of the same year,
after new men had arrived from
across the Rocktes with a report of
the political campaign In the United
States and the democratic party's
championship of the claim to Ore
gon with Ita slogan "Fifty-four, forty
or fight,", parsed another act making
the northern boundary line the paral
lei of fifty-four degreei and forty
minutes north latitude, no attempt
was then made to organlie the region
north of the Columbia or In any way
to extend a definite Jurisdiction. The
bolder aplrlta among the- Americana
might be Inclined to lay claim to con
trol over the whole of the Oregon re
gion, yet until the Hudson'a Bay
Company through Its officials recog
nized the authority of the Provisional
Government over themselves and the
territory under their control such as
sertions were without practical effect.
Indeed, until the British citizens
within the Willamette Valley had
given allegiance to the new govern
ment It was without authority over
them. There were men among the
Americans, cooler headed and more
moderate, who realized the desira
bility of securing the consent! of those
whom they would govern.. The gov
ernment of 1843 had proven Ineffec
tive so long as the French-Canadians,
I constituting as they did. a compact
body of aettlement on the lower Wil
lamette prairie, and other Britishers
held aloof. In. 1844 these had. by
peaceful means, persuaded that their
own best Interests would be served,
been brought Into the union. Now to
complete this union territorially the
region north of the Columbia needed
to be included, and to secure what
was more Important a political union
of the people settled north and south
of that river. The settlers north of
the Columbia- constituted, for the
most part, those directly connected
with the Hudson's Bay Company and
In its employ about two hundred In
number and those who had been
brought into the country under the
direction of the Company and who
recognized a certain measure of au
thority and control by Its officials.
The Provisional Government could
scarcely hope to compel from these
people obedience to its laws. It was
the better part of valor and wisdom
to secure from them also by peaceful
persuasion a recognition of Its au
thority, to form with them a definite
union. This last act In the making
of the Provisional Government of
Oregon was accomplished In August.
1845, by a formal agreement entered
Into between the legislative body act
ing on behalf of the people of the
Willamette Valley and the officials of
the Hudson's Bay Company speaking
for the people to the north of the Co
lumbia. On the side of the Inhabitant of
the Willamette Valley, beyond which
the authority of the existing govern
ment could not be thought really to
extend, there was a strong desire for
an understanding with the Hudson's
Kay Company that would secure ita
support. Those that thought of them
selves aa subject of Great Britain
were for the most part retired serv
ants of the company and accustomed
to look to it for direction. . Thia is
shown by the fact that they had
Joined the new organisation at th be
hest of Dr. John McLoughlln. ita chief
official at Vancouver. This element
could not Immediately divorce itself
from a long habit of obedience and
subservience. To secure Itself from
possible attack or submergence and
from encroachment on its land by
the ever-swelling tide of restless Am
ericans It had been persuaded to Join
with them In aupportlng a govern
ment, but by this act they were not
won away from allegiance to the com
pany and would consider a union that
Included that powerful organization a
better guarantee of their own security.
The second factor that made for
union from the side of the Provision
al government Itself was the econo
mic union that really existed between
the Hudson's Bay Company and the
Willamette Valley. The settlers of
this region were very largely depend
ent upon the company for the mer
chandise thev needed and as pur
chasers of such surplus agricultural
products as they had for sale. Dur
ing this year 1845 the Willamette
Valley was expected to have 50,000
bushels of wheat to market.
Many of the Americans had re
ceived assistance from the company,
which had furnished means of trans
portation from the Columbia to their
new homes, or had been given credit
for food to tide them over the win
ter months and for seed to plant the
first crops. M:iny of these perhaps
owed their very lives to the generosity
of Dr. Mclaughlin. Not all of them
were grateful for such help, and therr
was complaint against the company
that It was a monopoly and waa not
always fair in its dealings. Tet fac
ing a real situation they were com
pelled to recognize themselves eco
nomically dependent upon It and were
not Inclined to refuse the facilities It
offered. Indeed the presence of the
Hudson'B Hay Company with its thor
ough organization for keeping In com
munication with the outside world
was a great blessing to the early colo
nist, however grudgingly they may
have recognized Its value. By means
of It they sent and received letters
from their friends In the east. It
served as a clearing house for com
mercial paper, its stores of manufac
tured goods were always complete,
and It was ready to accept their aur
plus grain. Its mills ground the flour
needed by the various , settlements.
There was a manifest advantage to
these settlers to hnve the company In.
corporated with them in a common
government. It would not seem such
an alien and hostile body attempting
to crush out their very existence.
A third object of union would be
found in the Influence and control
maintained by the Hudson's Buy Com
pany over the hostue Indians thnt
were to some extent a menace to th
Willamette settlement. The rompanv
traded widely with the Indians and
had secured a certain measure of In
fluence over them It had fhown no
disposition to turn these Indians
against the Americans, hut It waa
manifestly to their Interest to have
a positive Influence exerted upon these
Indians to keep the peace. This de
sirable object waa more certain to be
secured If the company became a de
finite part of the organization respon
sible for maintaining order in the Ore
gon territory.
A fourth and perhaps the strongest
of all the motives leading the Provis
ional Government to seek a union with
the Hudson's Bay Company waa that
(Continued on Page !
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