Oregon was a side-wheel driven steamboat that operated on the Willamette River in the state of Oregon from 1852 to 1854. The steamer was not economically successful and became a total loss by sinking after a short career.
Construction
Oregon was built at Fairfield, Oregon in the summer of 1852.[1] Fairfield was located 16 miles (26 km) downstream from Salem, Oregon, and was once one of the most important wheat shipping points on the Willamette River.[2] Ben Simpson, the held of the original ownership syndicate, was also the builder.[1] Construction was supervised in the summer of 1852 by George A. Pease (1830-1918).[1]
Oregon was 120 feet long.[3] The beam (width) of the steamer was 22 feet (6.7 m), probably exclusive of the guards.[3] The depth of hold was 5 feet.[3]
Oregon was described as a small sidewheeler and a poor money earner.[4]
Operations
George A. Pease (1830-1919), first pilot of the Oregon.
Upon completion, Parker and J.D. Shields served as captains.[1] George A. Pease was the pilot of the Oregon until July 1853.[1] Another report states that Jacob Wortman, later president of the First National Bank of McMinnville, was the captain of Oregon, starting in 1853.[5] Fare from Oregon City to Corvallis, Oregon was then $30 for a trip.[5]
Starting on December 3, 1853, the "fast running steamer" Oregon was advertised as making regular runs from Oregon to Marysville, as Corvallis was then known, and way landings.[6]
On March 4, 1854, the steamer Oregon was reported to have been purchased by the Willamette Falls Mill and Transport Company, sometimes referred to as the Willamette Falls Company.[7]
On March 17, 1854, the Willamette Falls Company placed into service a new steamer, the side-wheeler Gazelle, giving the company, briefly, two steamers operating above Willamette Falls.[3][8]
Loss
Shortly after Gazelle was placed in operation, Oregon was sunk and became a total loss. Oregon hit a snag just down river from Salem, and began sinking.[9] Word was passed to Gazelle, which steamed upriver and stood by as Oregon was filling with water.[9]
Cargo from the Oregon was loaded onto Gazelle to lighten Oregon to better allow salvaging.[9] Suddenly Oregon broke free of the snag, drifted downstream, ran up on a sandbar and sank so deeply that only a part of the upper works were visible above the water.[9]Oregon was a total loss.[9]
Gazelle itself was destroyed by a boiler explosion only a short time later, on April 8, 1854, ending the brief steamboat operations of the Willamette Falls Company[8]
^Corning, Howard McKinley (1973). "Wheat Ports of the Middle River … Fairfield Landing". Willamette Landings -- Ghost Towns of the River (2nd ed.). Portland, OR: Oregon Historical Society. pp. 89–94. ISBN0875950426.
^ abcdAffleck, Edward L. (2000). "Part One: Chapter Two: Columbia River Waterways — List of Vessels". A Century of Paddlewheelers in the Pacific Northwest, the Yukon, and Alaska. Vancouver, BC: Alexander Nicholls Press. pp. 14 and 22. ISBN0-920034-08-X.
^ abCorning, Howard McKinley (1973). "Lost Towns of Willamette Falls … Canemah, "the Canoe Place"". Willamette Landings -- Ghost Towns of the River (2nd ed.). Portland, OR: Oregon Historical Society. p. 64. ISBN0875950426.
^ abcdeMills, Randall V. (1977). "Chapter 9: As the Sparks Fly Upwards". Sternwheelers up Columbia -- A Century of Steamboating in the Oregon Country. Lincoln NE: University of Nebraska (published 1947). p. 115. ISBN0-8032-5874-7. LCCN77007161.
References
Printed sources
Affleck, Edward L. (2000). A Century of Paddlewheelers in the Pacific Northwest, the Yukon, and Alaska. Vancouver, BC: Alexander Nicholls Press. ISBN0-920034-08-X.
Mills, Randall V. (1977). Sternwheelers up Columbia -- A Century of Steamboating in the Oregon Country. Lincoln NE: University of Nebraska (published 1947). ISBN0-8032-5874-7. LCCN77007161.
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