Oregon Country
Background Info Polk used the idea of annexing the Oregon country as part of his campaign in 1844. Oregon country was made up of present day Oregon, Washington, Idaho, parts of Wyoming and Montana as well as about half the Canadian province of British Columbia.
Background Info America, England, Spain and Russia all claimed the territory. By 1824 only England and America remained. They agree to joint occupation. President Adams suggested the border be set at the 49th parallel. England disagreed.
Mountain Men Oregon was first settled by fur traders known as mountain men. Mountain men were tough independent men who made a living by trapping beaver and other “critters”. Many adopted the ways of the Native Americans. For most of the year mountain men led a very solitary life.
Mountain Men Once a year mountain men would gather at a rendezvous. Here they would trade the pelts for supplies, find contracts for the coming year, exchanged news and information with others. Because they spent their days placing traps, they became experts on the mountain trails. When the beaver ran out, many moved to Oregon and the pristine fertile lands there.
Settling Oregon The joint occupancy by England and the US created a tangible peace. Soon thousands of Americans would stream into the territory and the desire for settlement would be key.
The Whitman Mission Dr. Marcus Whitman and his wife Narcissa and Henry and Eliza Spalding came to Oregon country in 1836 as missionaries who wanted to bring Christianity to the Native Americans. Not only did they spread Christianity to the area, but also set up churches, schools, mills and even showed the Cayuse and Nez Perce how to irrigate their land. They built a mission near the Cayuse people.
The Whitman Mission Without knowing it, they brought with them the measles. The epidemic killed many Cayuse. In November of 1847 the Cayuse attacked the mission thinking that they had poisoned the water/their children and killed 12. Despite the attack, settlers continue to flood the area and in 1848 the US government declared Oregon as territory.