Transcript Oregon Country - CLS

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.
Rocky Mountains
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