Outpost : John McLoughlin and the Far Northwest

by Morrison, Dorothy Nafus

• ISBN13: 9780875952932
• ISBN10: 0875952933
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2005-01-31
• Publisher: Univ of Washington Pr

Summary

Dr. John McLoughlin, chief factor at Fort Vancouver (1824-45) and the strongest arm of the Hudson's Bay Company in a colonial Pacific Northwest, was a man easily mythologized yet poorly known. The man now called "The Father of Oregon" was cast out first by his company and later deserted by the pioneers he had unstintingly aided.Born near Quebec in 1784, John McLoughlin found himself between two worlds throughout his life. After training as a doctor, McLoughlin struck out for the fur country as a company doctor and clerk. He came to the Pacific Northwest in 1824 with his family, where he established the Hudson's Bay Company headquarters at Fort Vancouver.Known for his compassion and blistering temper, he kept peace, made money for the company, and defended British interests in the region. He assisted starving, exhausted Oregon Trail settlers, maintaining relations with them while America and Great Britain decided the prickly question of national boundaries. In 1845, during a year of great personal tragedies, he was maneuvered out of his position by forces within the company.Dorothy Morrison's comprehensive biography takes a fresh view of this complex and passionate man whose personal story illuminates the history of the settlement of the Pacific Northwest. Over 100 illustrations and six maps enhance this epic story.

Table of Contents

PROLOGUE THE HOUSE	ix
CANADA
CHAPTER 1 Quebec
1. The Litigious Frasers, 1746-1778	3	(5)
2. Across the St. Lawrence, 1778-1798	8	(6)
3. A Very Young Doctor, 1798-1803	14	(6)
4. To the Fur Country, 1803	20	(11)
CHAPTER 2 Lords of the Lakes and Forests
1. The Fur Companies, 1600-1803	31	(7)
2. Fort Kaministiquia, 1803	38	(5)
3. An Apprentice Again, 1803-1808	43	(8)
4. Brother David, 1808-1811	51	(6)
5. Physician-Clerk, 1808-1814	57	(8)
CHAPTER 3 The Great Fur War
1. The Honourable Company, 1670-1812	65	(6)
2. Lord Selkirk's Colony, 1803-1815	71	(10)
3. The Battle of Seven Oaks, 1815-1816	81	(6)
4. The Storming of Fort William, 1815-1818	87	(8)
5. The End of an Era, 1819-1821	95	(8)
6. Coalition, 1821-1824	103	(12)
THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST
CHAPTER 4 To the Columbia
1. John Jacob Astor's Company, 1810-1824	115	(6)
2. Over the Stony Mountains, 1824	121	(11)
3. Winter at Fort George, 1824-1825	132	(11)
CHAPTER 5 The Early Years
1. Up the River, 1825	143	(3)
2. The First Fort Vancouver, 1825-1828	146	(10)
3. The Snake Brigade, 1825-1829	156	(10)
4. Ships Or their Captains, 1825-1828	166	(8)
5. Establishing Peace, 1828-1829	174	(15)
CHAPTER 6 The Second Fort Vancouver
1. The Grand Emporium, 1828-1829	189	(10)
2. An Immensity of Trouble, 1829-1830	199	(7)
3. The Intermittent Fever, 1830-1832	206	(6)
4. Moving North, 1829-1834	212	(9)
5. My Son John, 1825-1834	221	(10)
CHAPTER 7 The End of Isolation
1. The Boston Ice Man, 1832-1836	231	(11)
2. The Macedonian Cry, 1834-1840	242	(11)
3. The Reverend Beaver, 1836-1838	253	(7)
4. Bonneville, Kelley, & Young, 1834-1836	260	(6)
5. The Willamette Cattle Company, 1836-1838	266	(5)
6. Sails and Steam, 1834-1838	271	(6)
7. Daughters & Sons, 1832-1838	277	(12)
OREGON
CHAPTER 8 The Winds of Change
1. McLoughlin in England, 1838-1839	289	(9)
2. Reaching Out, 1839-1840	298	(6)
3. "The Germe of a Great State," 1838-1840	304	(5)
4. The Stirring of Government, 1841	309	(4)
5. An American Lieutenant, 1841	313	(6)
6. Golden California, 1839-1841	319	(10)
CHAPTER 9 Stikine
1. Upheaval, 1841-1842	329	(5)
2. Oahu, 1842	334	(5)
3. A Rack to One's Feeling, 1842-1843	339	(14)
CHAPTER 10 The American Dream
1. Willamette Valley, 1842	353	(7)
2. The Wolf Meetings, 1842-1843	360	(5)
3. Champoeg, 1843	365	(8)
4. The Provisional Government, 1843	373	(4)
5. The First Great Immigration, 1843	377	(10)
6. The Oregon City Land Claim, 1829-1844	387	(12)
CHAPTER 11 The Fall
1. On His Own, 1844-1845	399	(7)
2. Yerba Buena, 1841-1845	406	(7)
3. Joining Hands, 1845	413	(6)
4. The Trap, 1845	419	(10)
CHAPTER 12 The City Beside the Falls
1. Starting Over, 1846-1847	429	(7)
2. The Boundary Treaty, 1846-1847	436	(7)
3. An American Citizen, 1847-1849	443	(12)
4. "The Companionship of Adders," 1849-1851	455	(9)
5. "A Dieu," 1850-1857	464	(8)
6. Last Things	472	(10)
NOTES	482	(66)
SOURCES	548	(14)
INDEX	562