Oregon Country

Oregon Country In the early 1800’s American’s first heard about the Oregon Country which was the huge area that today includes Oregon, Washington, Idaho, and parts of Wyoming, Montana and Canada.

Mountain men The adventurous men who hiked through Oregon’s vast forests, trapping animals and living off the land, lived dangerous lives.

Rendezvous A French word meaning get-together was an annual meeting of mountain men and fur traders.

Manuel Lisa The Spanish American fur trader who led a trip up the Missouri River in 1807 helped to open the West for settlement.

James Beckwourth The African American mountain man who left Virginia to escape slavery discovered a path through the Sierra Nevadas.

The Rocky Mountains formed the eastern boundary of Oregon Country.

Competing Claims In 1818, the United States and Britain (not Russia) reached an agreement that they would occupy Oregon jointly. Citizens of each nation would have equal rights in Oregon.

Exploring New Lands In their search for fur, mountain men explored much new territory in the West. They followed Indian Trails across the Rockies and through mountain passes. Later, they showed these trails to settlers moving west.

Missionaries The first white Americans to build permanent homes in Oregon Country were missionaries. Among them were Marcus and Narcissa Whitman. They planned to convert local Native Americans to Christianity.

Oregon at last Despite many hardships, more that 50,000 people reached Oregon between 1840 and 1860. By the 1840s, many Americans began to feel the Oregon should belong to the United States alone.

Credits Cory Willweber Jamie Shively Alex Allsing Mahlia Blakeboro Joseph Harris