Willamette Cattle Company
Encyclopedia
The Willamette Cattle Company was formed in 1837 by pioneers in the Willamette Valley
of present day Oregon
, United States
. The company was formed with the express purpose of purchasing cattle in California
to bring to Oregon Country
. In that Mexican possession, the group led by Ewing Young
procured nearly 750 head of cattle and 40 horses and drove these animals overland north to Oregon Country.
(HBC).
In order to perpetuate that lucrative monopoly the HBC only leased cattle
, never selling the animals and all calves born would be owned by the HBC.
In order to circumvent that monopoly residents of the valley, including some former employees of the HBC, were drawn together by Lieutenant William A. Slacum
. Slacum had been sent west by President Andrew Jackson
to inquire about the strategic and economic conditions in Oregon. The lieutenant had arrived via the brig Loriot
and became aware of the cattle situation amongst the pioneers.
on behalf of the Methodist Mission
, former HBC employees, HBC employees, and American
pioneers created a joint-stock company to travel via the Loriot to California and purchase as many heads of cattle as they could. The articles of incorporation were signed on January 13, 1837 at Campment du Sable.
They would then drive the cattle overland north to the Willamette Valley and distribute the cattle proportional to the amount invested into the company by each investor. The company would pay for all expenses of those journeying to Mexican
held California and pay them $20 per month in wages. American Ewing Young
was selected as the leader of the company and in charge of going to California
with Philip Leget Edwards
as treasurer.
on the Willamette River
. Eleven men and three Native American boys made up the group. The group arrived first in San Francisco
in March, but were told permission for the purchase of any cattle would need to be from the civil governor located in Santa Barbara
. Young then went overland and received permission to buy cattle, but only from the government. He then returned north and met the group in Monterrey on May 12, 1837. They then purchased 746 head of cattle at $3 per head that were to be picked up at two locations. The group also purchased 40 horses at $12 each. In June the enterprise had procured the cattle and started driving them north to Oregon Country
. On July 27 the group began traveling through the Sacramento Valley
after a delay due to wet gunpowder that required a small group to return to San Francisco to buy more. They passed through the valley during the hot summer season and then crossed over the Siskiyou Mountains
of northern California and southern Oregon. On September 14 they crossed the Shasta River
and soon after William Bailey and George Gay shot a “friendly” native boy in what was considered revenge for attacks on previous trips through the area. This event angered Young and raised tensions in an area that still had sizable populations of Native Americans.
Finally, in October the group returned to the European settlements of the Willamette Valley. They had arrived with approximately 630 head of cattle and 15 horses left from what was purchased in California. Some of these animals were lost by natural causes, some were killed by natives, at least one was killed by the group for feed, and others simply wandered off. The remaining animals were then divided amongst the investors with a value of $8.50 per head, with Young receiving the largest allotment of 135. Those who participated in the cattle drive were paid at the rate of $1 per day in the form of cattle. Expenses of the group that traveled to California totaled $42.75, with 200 cattle lost on the trip.
after his death in 1841 to deal with his heirless estate. However, even with over 600 cattle among the approximately 500 Europeans in the valley, there was still more demand for cattle, and the settlers would come up with a novel enterprise with the Star of Oregon
episode in 1840-1843 to get more cattle.
Willamette Valley
The Willamette Valley is the most populated region in the state of Oregon of the United States. Located in the state's northwest, the region is surrounded by tall mountain ranges to the east, west and south and the valley's floor is broad, flat and fertile because of Ice Age conditions...
of present day Oregon
Oregon
Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The company was formed with the express purpose of purchasing cattle in California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
to bring to Oregon Country
Oregon Country
The Oregon Country was a predominantly American term referring to a disputed ownership region of the Pacific Northwest of North America. The region was occupied by British and French Canadian fur traders from before 1810, and American settlers from the mid-1830s, with its coastal areas north from...
. In that Mexican possession, the group led by Ewing Young
Ewing Young
Ewing Young was an American fur trapper and trader from Tennessee who traveled Mexican southwestern North America and California before settling in the Oregon Country. As a prominent and wealthy citizen there, his death was the impetus for the early formation of government in what became the state...
procured nearly 750 head of cattle and 40 horses and drove these animals overland north to Oregon Country.
Background
Prior to the activities of the Willamette Cattle Company, virtually all cattle in the region were owned by the Hudson's Bay CompanyHudson's Bay Company
The Hudson's Bay Company , abbreviated HBC, or "The Bay" is the oldest commercial corporation in North America and one of the oldest in the world. A fur trading business for much of its existence, today Hudson's Bay Company owns and operates retail stores throughout Canada...
(HBC).
In order to perpetuate that lucrative monopoly the HBC only leased cattle
Cattle
Cattle are the most common type of large domesticated ungulates. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae, are the most widespread species of the genus Bos, and are most commonly classified collectively as Bos primigenius...
, never selling the animals and all calves born would be owned by the HBC.
In order to circumvent that monopoly residents of the valley, including some former employees of the HBC, were drawn together by Lieutenant William A. Slacum
William A. Slacum
William A. Slacum was an American sailor and diplomat. He served as a purser in the United States Navy and received a Presidential commission to gather information on the Oregon Country. At that time the region was under the jurisdiction of both the United States and Great Britain...
. Slacum had been sent west by President Andrew Jackson
Andrew Jackson
Andrew Jackson was the seventh President of the United States . Based in frontier Tennessee, Jackson was a politician and army general who defeated the Creek Indians at the Battle of Horseshoe Bend , and the British at the Battle of New Orleans...
to inquire about the strategic and economic conditions in Oregon. The lieutenant had arrived via the brig Loriot
Loriot (ship)
Loriot was an American sailing ship involved in exploration of the Pacific Northwest coast of North America. This brig took a member of a United States presidential expedition to survey land and the inhabitants of the area in the 1830s...
and became aware of the cattle situation amongst the pioneers.
Agreement
A variety of settlers including missionaries such as Jason LeeJason Lee (missionary)
Jason Lee , an American missionary and pioneer, was born on a farm near Stanstead, Quebec. He was the first of the Oregon missionaries and helped establish the early foundation of a provisional government in the Oregon Country....
on behalf of the Methodist Mission
Methodist Mission
The Methodist Mission was founded in Oregon Country in 1834 by the Reverend Jason Lee. The mission was started to educate the Native Americans in the Willamette Valley and grew into an important center for politics and economics in the early settlement period of Oregon.-Foundation:In 1831, several...
, former HBC employees, HBC employees, and American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
pioneers created a joint-stock company to travel via the Loriot to California and purchase as many heads of cattle as they could. The articles of incorporation were signed on January 13, 1837 at Campment du Sable.
They would then drive the cattle overland north to the Willamette Valley and distribute the cattle proportional to the amount invested into the company by each investor. The company would pay for all expenses of those journeying to Mexican
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
held California and pay them $20 per month in wages. American Ewing Young
Ewing Young
Ewing Young was an American fur trapper and trader from Tennessee who traveled Mexican southwestern North America and California before settling in the Oregon Country. As a prominent and wealthy citizen there, his death was the impetus for the early formation of government in what became the state...
was selected as the leader of the company and in charge of going to California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
with Philip Leget Edwards
Philip Leget Edwards
Philip Leget Edwards was an American educator from the state of Kentucky and first teacher in what became the state of Oregon. After teaching in Missouri, he traveled to the Oregon Country with Jason Lee and helped establish the Methodist Mission...
as treasurer.
Expedition
On January 22, 1837, the Willamette Cattle Company employees set sail aboard the Loriot from Wappatoo IslandSauvie Island
Sauvie Island, in the U.S. state of Oregon, originally Wapato Island or Wappatoo Island, is the largest island along the Columbia River, at 26,000 acres , and the largest river island in the United States...
on the Willamette River
Willamette River
The Willamette River is a major tributary of the Columbia River, accounting for 12 to 15 percent of the Columbia's flow. The Willamette's main stem is long, lying entirely in northwestern Oregon in the United States...
. Eleven men and three Native American boys made up the group. The group arrived first in San Francisco
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
in March, but were told permission for the purchase of any cattle would need to be from the civil governor located in Santa Barbara
Santa Barbara, California
Santa Barbara is the county seat of Santa Barbara County, California, United States. Situated on an east-west trending section of coastline, the longest such section on the West Coast of the United States, the city lies between the steeply-rising Santa Ynez Mountains and the Pacific Ocean...
. Young then went overland and received permission to buy cattle, but only from the government. He then returned north and met the group in Monterrey on May 12, 1837. They then purchased 746 head of cattle at $3 per head that were to be picked up at two locations. The group also purchased 40 horses at $12 each. In June the enterprise had procured the cattle and started driving them north to Oregon Country
Oregon Country
The Oregon Country was a predominantly American term referring to a disputed ownership region of the Pacific Northwest of North America. The region was occupied by British and French Canadian fur traders from before 1810, and American settlers from the mid-1830s, with its coastal areas north from...
. On July 27 the group began traveling through the Sacramento Valley
Sacramento Valley
The Sacramento Valley is the portion of the California Central Valley that lies to the north of the San Joaquin-Sacramento Delta in the U.S. state of California. It encompasses all or parts of ten counties.-Geography:...
after a delay due to wet gunpowder that required a small group to return to San Francisco to buy more. They passed through the valley during the hot summer season and then crossed over the Siskiyou Mountains
Siskiyou Mountains
The Siskiyou Mountains are a coastal mountain range in the northern Klamath Mountains in northwestern California and southwestern Oregon in the United States. They extend in an arc for approximately from east of Crescent City, California northeast along the north side of the Klamath River into...
of northern California and southern Oregon. On September 14 they crossed the Shasta River
Shasta River
The Shasta River is a tributary of the Klamath River, approximately long, in northern California in the United States. It drains the Shasta Valley on the west and north sides of Mount Shasta in the Cascade Range....
and soon after William Bailey and George Gay shot a “friendly” native boy in what was considered revenge for attacks on previous trips through the area. This event angered Young and raised tensions in an area that still had sizable populations of Native Americans.
Finally, in October the group returned to the European settlements of the Willamette Valley. They had arrived with approximately 630 head of cattle and 15 horses left from what was purchased in California. Some of these animals were lost by natural causes, some were killed by natives, at least one was killed by the group for feed, and others simply wandered off. The remaining animals were then divided amongst the investors with a value of $8.50 per head, with Young receiving the largest allotment of 135. Those who participated in the cattle drive were paid at the rate of $1 per day in the form of cattle. Expenses of the group that traveled to California totaled $42.75, with 200 cattle lost on the trip.
Legacy
The procurement of cattle began to help break the dependence of the settlers on the cattle of the Hudson’s Bay Company. Young’s role made him the wealthiest of the settlers, which would lend a part in the attempt to form a governmentChampoeg Meetings
The Champoeg Meetings in Oregon Country were the first attempts at governing in the Pacific Northwest by United States European-American pioneers. Prior to this, the closest entity to a government was the Hudson's Bay Company, mainly through Dr...
after his death in 1841 to deal with his heirless estate. However, even with over 600 cattle among the approximately 500 Europeans in the valley, there was still more demand for cattle, and the settlers would come up with a novel enterprise with the Star of Oregon
Star of Oregon (event)
The Star of Oregon episode of American history began in 1840 and ended in 1843. This enterprise by pioneers in the Willamette Valley of present-day Oregon consisted of building a ship they named Star of Oregon and then sailing it to California in order to bring back cattle to Oregon Country...
episode in 1840-1843 to get more cattle.
Company
Those investing in the Willamette Cattle Company:- Complete list: Ewing Young, Jason Lee, John McLoughlinJohn McLoughlinDr. John McLoughlin, baptized Jean-Baptiste McLoughlin, was the Chief Factor of the Columbia Fur District of the Hudson's Bay Company at Fort Vancouver. He was later known as the "Father of Oregon" for his role in assisting the American cause in the Oregon Country in the Pacific Northwest...
, William Slacum, Calvin Tibbets, James A. O'NeilJames A. O'NeilJames A. O’Neil was an American businessman and politician in the Oregon Country and later Oregon Territory. A New York native, he took part in the Champoeg Meetings and helped form the Provisional Government of Oregon...
, John Turner, Webley John HauxhurstWebley John HauxhurstWebley John Hauxhurst, Jr. was a pioneer in Oregon Country. He helped build the first grist mill in Oregon, participated in the Willamette Cattle Company, and was a participant at the Champoeg meeting where he voted for the creation of a provisional government.-Early life:Hauxhurst was born in...
, William J. Bailey, George Gay, Lawrence Carmichael, Pierre De Puis, Emert Ergnette
Cattle drive
Those participating in the cattle drive from California:- Incomplete list: Young, Edwards, Carmichael, Bailey, Ergnette, Turner, Gay, B. Williams, Tibbets, and De Puis.