The centennial history of Oregon, 1811-1912, Part 159

Author: Gaston, Joseph, 1833-
Publication date: 1912
Publisher: Chicago, The S.J. Clarke publishing company
Number of Pages: 1072

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"The scouts approached Mussel creek, fifteen miles south of Port Orford, about eleven o'clock, where they knew that several Indian families lived close to the trail. In fact all Indian huts were located on the side of the trails in early days. Several fires were burning in the village and Indians

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were seen moving about, all of which in- dicated to the scouts that something unusual was doing, as it was well known that all Indians usually retired early in the evening. On nearing the village the scouts paused to determine what was best to do to pass the camp in safety. A rocky beach to the right and an impenetrable jungle to their left, above the village, made it almost impossible to pass the village without riding through it. Wasson suggested that Winsor hold his horse while he advanced on foot to reconnoiter, but the latter objected to such a move, saying: 'George, there is no use of monkeying round that camp, for we must either ride through or go back; and as we have no time to loose, let's get a move on. What do you say?' The only reply Wasson made was, 'Go ahead.' Wasson was one of those fearless, cautious mountaineers of the early days who never hesitated to do things when brought face to face with danger. In fact, he was chosen by Winsor as one, upon whom he could rely on the perilous journey. The scouts dis- mounted, tightened their saddles, mounted again and, with drawn revolvers, moved for- ward, forged the creek and, putting spurs to their horses, quickly passed through the vil- lage, uttering war whoops, and reached the timber on the hillside before the astonished Indians knew what had happened. As the scouts passed through the village they did not see many Indians, and those whom they saw had no arms and wore no war paint.

"When clear of the village the scouts in- creased their pace, satisfied that they had left no hostile Indians behind them-a fact which might prove of inestimable value should they suddenly encounter a war party and be compelled to retreat. The next In- dian village was located at Euchre creek, about five miles below the village they had just passed, and as the tide was nearly high they must cross that creek at the village. The scouts feared that some of the hostiles from Rogue River might be encountered, but they were determined to get through if pos- sible. The village was built on sand, which enabled the scouts to approach it without making the usual noise on horseback. When within a short distance of the huts the scouts paused to 'size up the outfit,' as Was- son put it. There was little life or bustle in the village save the beating of a drum in a hut near the trail. and as few Indians were astir, the scouts breathed easier. But the scouts did not hesitate long and, putting spurs to their horses and bending low in their saddles, quickly passed through the village, forded the creek just beyond and dis- appeared in the darkness down the beach. If they were seen by the Indians the latter made no outcry or gave them a parting shot. Afterward the scouts learned that there was a band of about one hundred warriors from the camp at Rogue River asleep as they passed through the village. Below the village the trail led along the beach and, though the tide was in and the beach heavy, the scouts made good time till they left the beach. They were now approaching the danger zone and must advance with greater caution than they

had thought necessary during their ride. They turned into the timber and brush to the left and climbed the mountain, searching for a place where they could get a view of the country beyond, to pass the coming day in security. Fortunately they found some . grassy glades near the open ground and here they unsaddled, picketed their horses and prepared to pass the day. The long, weary ride had sharpened the appetite of the scouts and they did ample justice to their lunch, after which they enjoyed their first smoke since leaving Port Orford. A faint glimmer in the east proclaimed the approach of an- other day and, to the delight of the weary men, not a cloud was visible, though it was yet the rainy season. When it was light enough to see, the scouts sought an open space at the edge of the timber and fortun- ately were enabled to get a good view of the country to the south. And when it grew lighter the keen eyes of scouts saw the out- lines of the little fort on the bluff near the ocean, about five miles distant. The old flag was floating over the fort, which was proof positive to the scouts that the miners were there in force, defiant and full of fight. The mountain on which the scouts were standing sloped gently to the south to a small valley, through which coursed a creek which emptied into Rogue river, about five miles beyond. Beyond the valley, about three miles distant, a bald, flat mountain rose about six hundred feet. To the right the mountain sloped off to the westward, forming a high bluff on the shore of the ocean. The trail to Rogue river was plainly visible where it crossed the hill on the west.

"Soon after sunrise several straggling bands of Indians, warriors no doubt, came in view from the east, presumably the river, going towards the fort, some riding, but mostly men on foot, and disappeared over the moun- tain in the direction of the fort. The scouts estimated the war party, for such it evi- dently was, to be fully three hundred. No doubt there was a force equally as large oc- cupying the country between the fort and the river, but that part of the field was shut out of view by intervening mountains. The distance was too great to hear the report of firearms or see the smoke of battle, if one was in progress. Several small bands of In- dians, mostly squaws, passed up and down the little valley during the day but at night- fall returned towards the river, which in- dicated that the main camp of the hostiles was on the river to their left. The day passed slowly to the scouts, who were anxious to get to the fort and learn the ex- tent of the massacre of the whites. About sundown the warriors, who went over in the morning, or about the same number, returned and disappeared over the mountain, whence they came in the morning. During the day the scouts took careful note of the country beyond and picked out their route to the fort. They believed that the fort was not closely picketed by the Indians during the night and that the quickest and perhaps the safest move on their part was to ride di-

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rectly to the fort, keeping a close lookout, of course, for Indians.

"As the shades of evening fell over hill and valley the scouts saddled their horses and rode down to the little valley below, then to the trail, along which they advanced with more caution till the little fort was visible on the bluff near the ocean beach. As they were apt to encounter the Indian pickets, if any were on duty on the hillside, the scouts dis- mounted and, leading their horses, moved forward with caution. They frequently paused and anxiously peered into the dark- ness to catch the least sound of an enemy, if present, but no sound except the occasional bark of a dog in the fort broke the awful stillness. After a long halt the scouts be- lieved that no pickets were on guard on that part of the field at least, so they tied their horses in a thicket near by, crawled to a friendly knoll about three hundred yards from the little fort and, in a low tone at first, hailed the people in the fort. Receiv- ing no answer, they hailed again in a louder voice, which was soon after answered by some one in the fort. After hurriedly telling the people in the fort who they were, the scouts were directed to come forward slowly. The scouts were now in extreme peril, for should there be lurking pickets in that vicinity to fire upon them, the people in the fort might think it a night attack and fire a volley in the face of the scouts. The scouts, sensible of their peril, lost no time in reaching the fort, where they were met with many guns pointed at them as they crossed the plank laid across the ditch to admit them. The scouts were greeted with many handshakes and were glad that their perilous journey was at an end. Accompanied by men from the fort, they returned and led their horses into the fort.

"The scouts found about eighty people, mustering about seventy guns. They had plenty of ammunition and provisions, were full of fight and did not appear to be greatly disturbed by their surroundings. The hostile Indians appeared upon the hillside above the fort the next day but kept at a safe dis- tance. In about a week after the scouts reached the little fort, the siege was raised by the arrival of several companies of reg- ular soldiers from the south. The Indians then withdrew up the river and the war was practically ended.

"James Brooking and James McVay, of Smith River, California, E. H. Meservy of Agness, and W. S. Winsor of Gold Beach, Oregon, are the only occupants of that little fort known to be alive. And men of their mettle made the Oregon country."

JEREMIAH HUNTLEY is recognized as the foremost lawyer of Curry county who makes his home at Gold Beach, and in other ways has been connected with the profes- sional, business and political interests of his part of the state. He was born June 11, 1845, in Meigs county, Ohio, a son of John and Louisa (Conner) Huntley, natives of New York and Ohio respectively. The mother died when her son was but three years of

age but the father long survived. The pa- ternal grandfather, Joseph Huntley, brought a brig around Cape Horn for the Astor Com- pany and, stopping two days south of the Columbia river for water, discovered gold in the black sand of the beach, probably at the present site of Port Orford. John Huntley came to Oregon by way of the Isthmus of Panama and engaged in mining in southern Oregon for two years. He then returned to Illinois in 1857. Several of his brothers also made their way to the northwest, settling on Santiam river in 1847. On the discovery of gold in California they went south to that state, where they engaged in mining and later became residents of Douglas county, Oregon, settling near Roseburg. The uncles of Mr. Huntley are now deceased but their descendants are scattered over the state, liv- ing in various sections. John Huntley be- came a resident of Myrtle Point, Oregon, after having lived for some time in Cali- fornia, and passed away at that place in 1908, aged ninety-four years. In the family were seven children, of whom three are now living: Mary, the wife of John Treat, of Iowa; William who is a resident of Hop- land, California; and Jeremiah, the subject of this sketch.

Jeremiah Huntley acquired his early edu- cation in the schools of Illinois and at the Umpqua Academy of Wilbur, Oregon, and spent much of his youth in the gold mines of his father. At the time of the Civil war he went to California and joined the volunteer army in 1863, serving for two years in the war of which he is now a pensioner. After being mustered out he went to Illinois and was there married to Miss Mattie Gaffin, a native of that state and a daughter of Horace and Elizabeth (Thompson) Gaffin, in whose family were but two children, the elder being Mary, now deceased. It was on the 22d of November, 1868, that Mr. and Mrs. Huntley were married and to them have been born nine children, as follows: John and Charles, who are deceased; two, who died in infancy; Jennie, the wife of Story Pierce, who repre- sents Curry county in the state legislature; Edna, the wife of Willis Tompkins, of North Bend, Oregon, by whom she has five children; Alma, who married William Goff, of Waverly, Washington, and who has four children; Harry G. residing in North Bend, Oregon; and Floyd, an engineer now employed in Alaska and also a noted football player.

Mr. and Mrs. Huntley began their domestic life in Illinois, but in 1870 he returned with his wife to Oregon and settled at Gold Beach. He engaged in mining in the black sand on the beach, yet did not confine his attention exclusively to private interests, for his fellow townsmen, appreciating his worth and abil- ity, elected him clerk of Curry county. in which position he served for a full termn. He was next appointed school superintendent to fill out an unexpired term. at the end of which time he turned his attention to the practice of law and has since continued in the profession. He studied alone and was ad- mitted to the bar in California in 1876. Five years later he was admitted to the Oregon

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bar and he now has the leading practice in Curry county, maintaining an office at Gold Beach. His political support is given to the republican party and his fraternal relations are with the Masons. He is a past master of the local lodge and is one of the exem- plary representatives of the craft, always loyal to its teachings concerning mutual helpfulness and brotherly kindliness. Much of his life has been spent on the Pacific coast and he is thoroughly imbued with the spirit of enterprise and progress which has been the dominant factor in the rapid upbuilding and substantial growth of the northwest.

CHARLES E. DREW. The growth of Oregon can be marked almost by the settle- ment of its different valleys. Its earliest in- habitants clustered around the mouth of the Columbia, later the rich lands of the Willam- ette valley were discovered and utilized and the work of progress has been carried for- ward as pioneer settlers have ventured into one valley after another, reclaiming the pro- ductive land by the side of the waterways. Charles E. Drew was born in Langells valley and is now a resident of the Yonna valley. He is widely known as a buyer and seller of cattle, handling about eight hundred head per annum, and his realty holdings embrace about four hundred acres. He is yet a young man to whom the future holds out attractive promise of success. He was born January 30, 1880, his parents being Nyran and Mary (Faith) Drew. The father was born in Maine in 1850 and the mother's birth oc- curred in Iowa in 1856. They arrived in Jackson county, Oregon, about 1878, were married there and the following year removed to . Langells valley. The father died in the Yonna valley in 1905 and the mother still resides there. He followed ranching and stock-raising throughout his entire life, hav- ing about one thousand acres of land and planting about two hundred acres to grain while the remainder was used for pasturage. His political views accorded with the prin- ciples and teachings of the republican party. In his family were five children: Charles E .; Eva D., the wife of W. R. Camp- bell, of Langells valley; Nettie R., a teacher of Klamath Falls; Jesse N., of the Yonna valley; and. Waive, at home.

The usual experiences of the boy reared on a ranch came to Charles E. Drew in his youth, but he has engaged in ranching on his own account for the past eleven years, previous to which time he had remained on the old homestead. He had attended the San Jose Normal School and had pursued a com- mercial course in Ashland, so that his educa- tional privileges well qualified him to enter upon a business career and work his way steadily upward. He is now making con- tinuous progress and is the owner of four hundred acres of land in the Yonna valley at Hildebrand. His pasture is on the Indian reservation mostly. He buys and sells cattle, handling about eight hundred head each year, and his excellent judgment in re- gard to stock enables him to make judicious investments. He is associated with George

Ritter in the development of the first irriga- tion project in the Yonna valley. The system was completed in 1910 and Mr. Drew is two- thirds owner of it. The reservoir covers sixty-two acres and is more than twelve feet deep. He expects to irrigate four hundred acres and thus make an otherwise somewhat sterile tract richly productive.

In 1903 Mr. Drew was united in marriage to Miss Iva McKee, who was born in Kansas, in 1878, and came to Oregon about 1888 with her parents, William and Elizabeth McKee, who are now residents of Siskiyou county, California. Mr. and Mrs. Drew have two children, Fae and Dale. Politically Mr. Drew is a republican; fraternally is connected with the Ancient Order of United Workmen; and religiously with the Presbyterian church. This is indicative of his interests aside from business, and the principles which govern his actions. His life has been well spent and those who know him esteem him highly for the sterling worth of his character.

WILLIAM MASON COLVIG was born on the 2d of September, 1845, in Ray county, Missouri. He came to Oregon with his par- ents in the year 1851, where they remained at the city of Portland until the summer of 1852, when they removed to southern Ore- gon. Mr. Colvig was raised on a farm in that part of the state, where he remained until the 5th of April, 1863, when he enlisted as a soldier in Company C, First Oregon Cavalry. For the succeeding three years his life was in this service, on the plains of eastern Oregon, and in Idaho, Nevada and Utah. Upon, his discharge in April, 1866, he went from Portland to Nicaragua, and after remaining there a few weeks, he went to the city of New York. Spending a year in Virginia and a portion of a year in Ohio, engaged in oil mining, he went to western Missouri, where for two years he was engaged as foreman of a large hemp planta- tion, owned by General Joseph Shelby, of Confederate fame. In 1870 he entered a small college situated in Tremont, Tazewell county, Illinois; after spending eighteen months in this school-and all his money-he then taught school eighteen months in the same town. He then was engaged as a proof- reader in the Lakeside Publishing Company of Chicago, Illinois, and during this employ- - ment was placed in charge of the preparation of a history of the state of Minnesota and lived for nearly a year in the city of St. Paul. While attending school and teaching in Illi- nois he had pursued the study of law, spend- ing some months in the office of Judge A. W. Rodecker, of Pekin, Illinois. Returning to southern Oregon in the fall of 1875 he lived at the home of his parents near Rock Point in Jackson county for about one year. He ran for the legislature on the democratic ticket in the year 1878 and was defeated . by a majority of nine.

In 1879 he was married to Addie Birdseye, a native daughter of Jackson county. There were seven children born of this marriage, four girls and three boys, of whom three girls and two boys are still living. His

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wife died in February, 1912. For many years Mr. Colvig practiced law in Jackson- ville, Oregon, and later in the city of Med- ford. He was elected school superintendent of Jackson county, Oregon, for two terms, holding that office from 1882 until 1886, at which time lie was elected district attor- ney for the first judicial district of the state of Oregon, which during his term of of- fice embraced Jackson, Josephine, Klamath and Lake counties. He held this office for three successive terms. He now lives in the city of Medford, having been for five years past president of the Medford Commercial Club and one of the directors of the Med- ford National Bank.

Mr. Colvig cast his first vote for president in 1868 in the state of Missouri. He voted the democratic ticket on national issues until the election of President Mckinley, having ran for elector on the Cleveland ticket. He has remained a consistent republican ever since the Mckinley campaign.

JOHN FITZPATRICK, deceased, was one of the popular and successful men of Oregon, who for many years was identified with busi- ness and financial interests of this state and was recognized as a leader, worthy of the highest confidence and respect. He was a native of Ireland, born at Kilkenny in 1824. At the age of sixteen years he secured em- ployment as a dry-goods clerk at Waterford, where he continued for two years, at the end of which time he came to America and for about four years was engaged in fishing in Nova Scotia. In 1846 he enlisted in the United States navy and served on board the frigate Ohio during the Mexican war. He greatly admired the institutions of the Ameri- can republic and often said "America is good enough for me and is good enough for any- body," this sentiment being his motto for many years. After receiving his honorable discharge from the navy he joined the great army of gold seekers on the Pacific coast and witnessed many fluctuations in his quest of the yellow metal. He was personally acquainted with Mackay, Flood, O'Brien and many of the great mining leaders of those days, and as he was a man of ready wit. and pronounced social instincts he was a prime favorite wherever he appeared. He made his home in San Francisco for several years and there served as justice of the peace, proving thoroughly efficient and fearless at a time when the office called for a man of unusual nerve and a practical knowledge of human nature. In 1861 he came to Oregon and a year later was placed in charge of a flatboat belonging to the Oregon Steam Navigation Company, his duties being to receive cattle and other live stock at Sandy and deliver them to the upper country. It was while engaged in this business that he was given the title of Captain, by which he was known during the remainder of his life. In 1863 lie went to Klickitat and engaged in hauling wood to Portland but the year following was again seized by the gold fever and went over- land from The Dalles to Boise basin. After prospecting and mining for a year he returned

to Rainier, Oregon, where he engaged in fish- ing. When the river rose in June, he went down to Hunt's Mill and packed salmon for the remainder of the season. In 1867 he built a packing house in the slough just above his seining ground, about twenty-five miles up the river from Astoria, and devoted his attention systematically to catching and delivering salmon to the market. He asso- ciated with Messrs. Bradley and Davis in .1875 in the organization of the firm of Fitz- patrick, Davis & Company and built a large cannery, which they operated with marked success for three years, when it was disposed of to Mr. Laidlaw. He then returned to his original seining ground which was one of the best on the river. In 1891 he came to New- port and bought the property, where his widow now makes her home, embracing one hundred and fifty-three acres. Soon after coming here, he erected the Monterey Hotel, a handsome and spacious two-story building, for which the lumber was brought from Cor- vallis. As the years passed he acquired a fortune and invested extensively in real es- tate at Skamokawa, Portland, Albina and Yaquina Bay and became known as one of the wealthy men of the state.

In 1867 Captain Fitzpatrick was married to Miss Mary Du Cheney, of Oysterville, Washington, who was born at Chinook, Wash- ington, October 12, 1852, a daughter of Louis Rocque and Marie (Rondeau) Du Che- ney, in whose family were six children. The maiden name of the mother was Marie Ron- deau. She was born at Salt Lake City, Utah. and came to Fort Vancouver at the age of six years and was made a member of the household of Sir James Douglas. There she met her future husband who was clerk in a store of the Hudson's Bay Company, and they were married in 1844. She was a grand- daughter of Chief Concomley, who was head of all the tribes on the Columbia river and a brother of Chief Skamokawa. Chief Concom- ley was one of the most noted Indians of the northwest and is mentioned in highly favor- able terms in the writings of Washington Irv- ing. Mrs. Marie (Rondeau) Du Cheney passed away on June 16, 1911, at the age of eighty- three years in Portland. Nine children were born to Captain and Mrs. Fitzpatrick, name- ly: Nora, who married George Wood. of Astoria; Walter Raleigh and John Rocque. both of whom are residents of Altoona; Jef- ferson, who died at the age of twenty-one years; Mary Ellen, who makes her home in British Columbia; Katherine. who resides with her mother at Newport, Oregon; Agnes Alice, now Mrs. Charles Eastland, of Gari- baldi; Sarah Sophie, also of Newport; and Rebecca Regina.

Captain Fitzpatrick died May 9, 1894, at Portland, as the result of a relapse follow- ing a surgical operation. In religious belief le adhered to the Roman Catholic church and politically he was identified with the republi- can party and served as justice of the peace at Skamokawa. He was a man of remark- ably pleasing 'personality-genial. kind- hearted and generons, even to a fault. He possessed sound business judgment and dur-

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ing the course of an active and eventful career made several fortunes. In all relations of life, public and private, he showed the highest integrity and trustworthiness and few men in Oregon could claim a greater number of personal friends. He was a de- scendant of a noble Irish family, which was represented by the Earl of Ossory, a member of the Irish parliament in 1790, who gained great credit for his support of the rights of the people.

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The centennial history of Oregon, 1811-1912, Part 159

Author: Gaston, Joseph, 1833- Publication date: 1912 Publisher: Chicago, The S.J. Clarke publishing company Number of Pages: 1072

Author: Gaston, Joseph, 1833-
Publication date: 1912
Publisher: Chicago, The S.J. Clarke publishing company
Number of Pages: 1072