Athena, in Umatilla County, is a small agricultural town situated on historical transportation routes: the route of the Oregon Trail, which went to the …

Oregon Encyclopedia

An army officer, educator, writer, and naturalist, Benjamin Alvord was commander of the U.S. Army’s District of Oregon during the Civil War. His name is …

Oregon Encyclopedia

During the 1850s, Benjamin Franklin Shaw served as an interpreter for Washington Territorial Governor Isaac Stevens at treaty councils with Native tribes in the Pacific …

Oregon Encyclopedia

The first major and ongoing conflict between Native groups and white resettlers in Oregon was a direct consequence of the murders by Cayuse tribesmen of …

Oregon Encyclopedia

Cornelius "Neal" Gilliam was a prominent settler in Oregon in the 1840s and the namesake of Gilliam County. He was born on April 13, 1798, …

Oregon Encyclopedia

Among early migrants to the Oregon Country from the United States, Elijah White was remarkable for his role in shaping Oregon’s political culture. As a …

Oregon Encyclopedia

Heppner, the self-styled "Gateway to the Blues," is located on Oregon Highway 74 on Willow Creek between the Blue Mountains and the Columbia River Gorge. …

Oregon Encyclopedia

Marcus Whitman left his mark on Oregon Country as an early missionary to Cayuse people on the Columbia Plateau and as an advocate for American …

Oregon Encyclopedia

A woman of Sioux and, more particularly, Iowa descent, Marie Dorion, by birth Marie L’Ayvoise, was a member of the Wilson Price Hunt expedition, which …

Oregon Encyclopedia

Missionary Narcissa Prentiss Whitman is probably Old Oregon’s most famous and tragic woman. Her reputation ranges from heroic to intolerant. In 1836, she moved west …

Oregon Encyclopedia