Champoeg Meetings
Date | 1841–1843 |
---|---|
Location | Champoeg, Oregon Country, North America |
Also known as | Wolf Meetings |
Participants | European-American settlers of the Oregon Country |
Outcome | Provisional Government of Oregon established |
The Champoeg Meetings were the first attempts at formal governance by
Since the first decade of the 19th century, a small but growing number of pioneers had settled in the Oregon Country, mostly to pursue business interests in the North American fur trade. Despite its economic value, the region was so vast and remote that it was left unorganized for several decades, with no European-American government in place to set laws and resolve disputes. Prior to the Champoeg Meetings, the closest thing to a government in the Oregon Country was the privately owned Hudson's Bay Company, which effected a loose authority mainly through the efforts of Dr. John McLoughlin at Fort Vancouver in present-day Vancouver, Washington.
Uncertainty about settling the estate of prominent settler
Background
The Oregon Country was an enormous area of indeterminate boundaries on the Pacific Northwest coast. By 1805, it was claimed simultaneously by the United States as well as by three colonial European powers: Russia, Great Britain and Spain. Interest by these nations was mostly stimulated by the prospect of obtaining enormous wealth from the area's rich natural resources, especially in the burgeoning fur trade. Several voyages were proposed to map the coast, with Alessandro Malaspina, Robert Gray, and George Vancouver arriving in the early 1790s. The overland treks of Alexander Mackenzie and Lewis and Clark which reached the Pacific coast in 1793 and 1805, respectively, continued to ferment interest by Europe and the United States. In 1818, the United States and Britain signed a treaty that called for the two countries to peaceably co-exist in the region, but not to exclude other claims. Through a series of other treaties the number of countries claiming the Oregon Country was eventually reduced to just two, the United States and Great Britain.
As such expeditions expanded Euro-American knowledge of the
Britain and the U.S. continued a tense "joint occupation" as economic activity in the region continued to expand. In the 1830s, missionaries, including Protestants such as Jason Lee, Henry H. Spalding, and Marcus Whitman and Catholics such as François Norbert Blanchet, Modeste Demers and Pierre-Jean De Smet, would also travel overland to the Oregon Country and establish missions among the Native Americans there. As time passed many of the trappers and missionaries settled the land and developed farms and timber and grist mills. Beginning in the 1840s, more and more settlers arrived via the Oregon Trail that the early missionaries and trappers had helped to blaze.[3] Finally, enough Americans, Canadians and Europeans (mainly English and French) were living in the ungoverned land that a critical mass was reached and the settlers began to develop plans for a government.[4]
Meetings
Location
The plans called for meetings to be held at the
The name Champoeg has an unknown origin. Some theories are that it was a Native American name for its location along the Willamette River, originally Champooik. Other theories are that it is of French origin, or a French variation on the Native American term. The name was later used for one of the early districts of the Provisional Government of Oregon, part of which later became Marion County, Oregon.
1841
In 1841, the early settlers found themselves in need of a government after the death of pioneer Ewing Young. Young had accumulated much wealth as a successful rancher following the Willamette Cattle Company events of 1837 when he and a group of other settlers herded over 600 head of cattle from California to Oregon.[6] This made him very wealthy and intertwined him economically with many of the other pioneers in the valley. Young had died without a will or an heir, thus necessitating the judgment of a probate court, because otherwise people were sure that Young's estate would be disposed for the Hudson's Bay Company, the Catholic Jesuit priests from Canada, or the Protestant Methodist Mission from the United States, which had happened in the past.[7][4] The settlers decided to assemble at Champoeg, where they hoped to receive input from other prominent settlers and outline a plan of government for the region.
Several meetings occurred over the subsequent months, which were attended by François Norbert Blanchet, William J. Bailey, Mr. Charlevon, David Donpierre, Gustavus Hines, William Johnson, Jason Lee, Étienne Lucier, Robert Moore, Josiah Lamberson Parrish, Sidney Smith, and David Leslie.[8] The first meeting was held on February 17, 1841, and chaired by Jason Lee, who suggested a set of measures that would establish a civil government. Amongst the measures was one which would have organized a single criminal justice system applicable to all Oregon pioneers not employed by the Hudson's Bay Company. The proposed positions included a governor, an attorney general, justices of the peace, road commissioners, and even two people to serve as overseers of the indigent.[8][9] This initial proposal was rebuked by François Blanchet, who counter-proposed a looser system with the post of a judge, rather than a governor, as the highest position.[10]
The second meeting, held the following day, was chaired by David Leslie. To mollify French-Canadian discontent over a potential governorship, Dr.
During the next meeting, commenced on June 1, 1841, Blanchet reported the constitutional committee had not met and requested a reprieve from his duties.[8] William J. Bailey was appointed as the new chairman, and the committee was advised to consult with Commodore Charles Wilkes of the U.S. government and Dr. John McLoughlin of the Hudson's Bay Company concerning forming a government.[8] The group decided on subsequent meetings to be held on August 1 and on October 5. Meeting with five men, Wilkes judged their motivation based on getting "settlers to flock in, there by raising the value of their farms and stock"; consequently he advised the group to wait for the United States to project rule over them.[14] McLoughlin was equally unsupportive of the considered organization. These reactions discouraged the constitutional committee from ever meeting, nor were the planned general meetings convened.[7] Despite falling short of the original goals set by Lee, these early meetings still helped to create "an organized community" in the Willamette Valley.[15]
1842
In
1843
On February 1, 1843, residents of the Willamette Valley met at the
Voting record
There were two votes on May 2, neither of which was recorded at the actual event. The report presented by the committee is known to have included the position of Governor,[21] which was rejected immediately by French Canadians after being read.[8] The meeting was then divided over adopting "the report of the committee and an organization". According to the only surviving contemporary record, taken by George LeBreton, a "great majority of those present" voted to form a government.[22]
The first count of the division appeared by Gray in an article of the Astoria Marine Gazette in 1866 as 52 "Americans" for and 50 "French-Canadian and Hudson's Bay men" against considering a government, and was later published in his 1870 book A History of Oregon.
The list below was created several decades after the vote, and after many of the participants were deceased. No roll of participants is known to exist from the time of the actual meeting, and the only primary source from the time of the meeting states that "a great majority" passed the motion by acclamation.[22]
Those alleged to have voted for the creation of the provisional government:[24]
- Pleasant M. Armstrong
- Ira Babcock (president)[25]
- Dr. William J. Bailey
- Alanson Beers
- Pierre Belleque
- J.C. Bridges
- Hugh Burns
- Charles Campo
- William Cannon
- Harvey L. Clark
- Medorem Crawford
- Amos Cook
- Allen J. Davie
- David Donpierre[23]
- William M. Doughty
- George W. Ebbert
- Francis Fletcher
- George Gay
- Joseph Gale
- Joseph Gervais[23]
- William H. Gray
- John Smith Griffin
- Webley John Hauxhurst
- David Hill
- Joseph Holman
- John Howard
- Gustavus Hines
- Thomas J. Hubbard
- William Johnson
- Lewis H. Judson
- George W. Le Breton
- David Leslie
- Reuben Lewis
- Étienne Lucier
- François X. Matthieu
- Joseph Meek
- William McCarty
- Charles McKay
- Robert Moore
- John L. Morrison
- Robert Newell
- James A. O'Neil
- Xavier Laderout[23]
- Josiah Lamberson Parrish
- John Edmunds Pickernell
- James R. Robb
- Osborne Russell
- Robert Shortess
- Alvin T. Smith
- Sidney Smith
- Solomon H. Smith
- Calvin Tibbetts
- David Weston
- Caleb Wilkins
- Albert E. Wilson
- William H. Willson
Those slandered as voting against the creation of the provisional government despite a lack of contemporary records[5] (Hussey's list was originally compiled by François X. Matthieu from his store ledger[26] and provided to George Himes, who first publicized the two lists[27]):
- Alexis Aubichon
- Jean B. Aubichon[3][28]
- Louis Ausant
- Cyfois Bargeau
- Pascal Biscornais
- Louis Boivers
- Antoine Bonenfant
- Alexis Briscbois
- Oliver Briscbois
- Joseph Brunelle
- Andre Chalifoux
- Adolph Chamberlain
- Joseph Cornoyer
- Joseph Delard
- Pierre Depot
- Joseph Despart
- Andre Dubois
- Jean B. Ducharme
- Antoine Felice
- Louis Forcier
- Luc Gagnon
- Pierre Gauthier
- Jean Gingras
- Étienne Gregoire
- Andre La Chapelle
- Louis La Bonte
- Michel Laframboise
- Jean B. Lalcoure
- Augustin Lambert
- Alexis La Prate
- Andre Longtain
- Moyse Lore
- Joseph Matte
- Fabien Maloin
- David Mongrain
- Pierre Papin
- Pierre Pariseau
- Augustin Remon
- Thomas Roi
- Charles Rondeau
- Andre Sanders
- Gideon Senecalle
- Jacques Servant
- Louis B. Van Dalle
After this vote, the people elected members for a legislative committee to draft a working government. The members selected were
Organic Laws
A gathering was held on July 5 to vote on the work of the legislative committee. The original
Subsequent history
The
See also
References
- ^ a b c Carey, Charles History of Oregon. Chicago: The Pioneer Historical Publishing Co. 1922
- ^ Malone, Michael P. Montana: A History of Two Centuries, Seattle: University of Washington Press, 1991, p.44
- ^ a b c d Clarke, S.A. Pioneer Days of Oregon History. Cleveland: J.K. Gill Company. 1905
- ^ a b c d e A History of Oregon, 1792-1849, Chapter XXVII
- ^ a b c Hussey, John A. (1967). Champoeg: Place of Transition, A Disputed History. Oregon Historical Society.
- ^ a b Bancroft, Hubert Howe and Frances Fuller Victor. History of Oregon. San Francisco: History Co. 1890
- ^ a b Brown, James H. Brown’s Political History of Oregon: Provisional Government. Portland: Wiley B. Allen. 1892
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Grover, La Fayette. The Oregon Archives. Salem: A. Bush. 1853
- ^ Terry, John (October 15, 2006). "Oregon's Trails - Pariah eases into spirited endeavor". The Oregonian. pp. Regional News, Pg. B11.
- ^ a b c Loewenberg, Robert J. "Creating a Provisional Government in Oregon: A Revision." The Pacific Northwest Quarterly 68, No. 1 (1977). pp. 19-21
- ^ Benson, Arthur F. History of the Judges of the Oregon Supreme Court, 1841-1946. (accessed July 24, 2014).
- ^ Drury, Clifford. Henry Harmon Spalding, Caldwell: Caxton Printers, 1936
- ^ Hines, Gustavus. A Voyage around the world: With a history of the Oregon Mission. Buffalo, NY: George H. Derby and Co. 1850, p. 138
- ^ Wilkes, Charles, Narrative of the United States Exploring Expedition, New York City: G. P. Putnam and Co., 1856, p. 352
- ^ Hussey, p. 138
- ^ a b c Hines, Joseph Wilkinson. "CHAPTER VIII. The Provisional Government". Touching incidents in the life and labors of a pioneer on the Pacific coast since 1853. Library of Congress. Retrieved February 11, 2007.
- ^ Excerpts from the New Orleans "Picayune." The Quarterly of the Oregon Historical Society Vol. 2, No. 2 (1901), p. 202
- ^ a b c d Hussey, pp. 142-144
- ^ Loewenberg, Robert J. Equality on the Oregon frontier: Jason Lee and the Methodist Mission. 1834-43. Seattle: University of Washington Press, 1976.
- ^ a b c d Gray, William H. A History of Oregon 1792-1849, drawn from personal observation and authentic information. Portland: Harris & Holman. 1870.
- ^ Hussey, pp. 156-157
- ^ a b George W. LeBreton; "Public Meeting at Champoeg, 1843" Oregon Historical Society catalog number PTD R76I12186; May 2, 1843
- ^ a b c d Robert Newell, (Oregon Register, 1866) quoted in Russel B. Thomas "Truth and Fiction about Champoeg." Oregon Historical Quarterly 30, No. 3 (1929), p. 224
- ^ Oregon Blue Book: 1917-1918. Oregon Secretary of State. 1917.
- ^ "Dr. Ira L. Babcock" (PDF). State of Oregon. April 8, 2010. Archived from the original (PDF) on August 8, 2017. Retrieved February 19, 2024.
- ^ Lyman, H.S. "Reminiscences of F. X. Matthieu". The Quarterly of the Oregon Historical Society, Vol. 1, No. 1 (Mar 1900), pp. 90–91 at https://www.jstor.org/stable/20609448?seq=18#page_scan_tab_contents. Retrieved January 28, 2015.
- ^ S. A. Clarke, Pioneer Days of Oregon History, J.K. Gill Co., Portland, OR, 1905, p. 65, at https://archive.org/stream/pioneerdaysofore02clar#page/664/mode/2up retrieved January 28, 2015
- ^ Flora, Stephenie. "The Provisional Government". The Oregon Territory and Its Pioneers. Retrieved August 9, 2010.
- ^ Friedman, Lawrence M. A History of American Law. 1973 ed. New York City: Simon & Schuster. 1985, p. 116.
- ISBN 978-0-7890-2056-7. online at Google Books
External links
- Oregon Bluebook: Notable Oregonians
- Oregon Bluebook: History of Oregon
- Oregon Historical Society: Biographies of Oregonians
- Oregon Historical Society: A Pacific Republic, an article from Boston arguing that Oregon and California were destined to be an independent republic.
- Oregon Historical Society: Minutes from the Public Meeting at Champoeg, 1843