Chapter TWELVE

Settlement

The first to live in this area were nomadic hunter-gatherers. They were the Chinook, Tillamooks, Quileute, and Quinault. 
The first people to explore the Pacific Northwest were the Spaniards. Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo sailed through the state's Rogue River in 1543. 
The Lewis and Clark expedition (1804-1806)was only travelled by land and did not lead to settlements being established. 

Lewis and Clark Trail Route

Methodist missionaries were the first to establish the first American settlement in 1834. They settled in the Willamette Valley.

Fur trade is what attracted the people to the area. People from Russia, Great Britain, and Americans began to slowly settle the land. The Treaty of Ghent ended the War of 1812 between the United States and the United Kingdom and gave control of the area to the British Hudson Bay Company. Residents of the Willamette Valley in the Oregon Territory voted to stop trappers and mountain men from running the area and gave the United States full power over the area. 

The main passage for newcomers was the Oregon Trail, settlers came from places such as Missouri. 

The largest group of settlers came into the Oregon Territory between 1843 and 1860. During that time, more than 53,000 people made the journey. By the late 1860s most of the Northwest had been settled. During settlement, the native Indians were sent to reservations to clear the land for more settlers. 

The addition of railroads would later help increase the population. In 1883 Oregon was connected to eastern states by railroad, allowing for more people to settle the land. 

Pioneers made their living through agriculture, with wheat being the main crop grown. They saw an increase in demand for wheat during the Gold Rush and sent wheat south to California.



Source:

"Oregon History-Oregon Trail and History in Oregon." Oregon History-Oregon Trail and History in Oregon. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Nov. 2012. <http://www.oregoncitylink.com/history.htm>.

Images:
Lewis and Clark Route-
PBS. PBS, n.d. Web. 21 Nov. 2012. <http://www.pbs.org/lewisandclark/inside/index.html>.

Oregon Trail-
"Oregon Trail Lesson, by Mrs. Nasto Computer Chitchat." Oregon Trail Lesson, by Mrs. Nasto Computer Chitchat. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Nov. 2012. <http://www.bcsberlin.org/lessons/OT4les.htm>.