40 years of Oregon with Jane Kirkpatrick

My home state is Wisconsin and growing up, we often chortled about those tourists from Illinois, our neighbor, coming north to escape the cities and find peace on the shores of our state’s many lakes. I’ve heard similar stories from other neighboring states about those crossing state lines.  Now that I’ve written more than two dozen historical novels and lived in Oregon for more than 40 years, I’ve become especially attuned to comments about Californians, our neighbors south. Rather than see California’s visitors as unwelcome, my research has led me to discover how symbiotic our two states are.

          

In the early 1800s, Oregon Territory ran from the Rocky Mountains to the Pacific and from what is now the Canadian border south to Alta California which today is Northern California.  Fur trappers followed Lewis and Clark harvesting hides for the Asian market and they often worked their way down the Willamette Valley into Northern California. This area was named because the trappers of Oregon were mostly French Canadians who wintered in that milder climate. In my Tender Ties Series, Marie Dorion, an Iowa Indian woman who was the only woman in the Astor expedition, remained in what became Oregon.  Documents of the fur trappers include mention of her husband and her being in French Camp, California, too.  (A Name of Her Own). Those trappers found a warm welcome in California and the locals enjoyed trading for goods brought south.

           

A few years later, as families began exploring the west, the first group hoping to bring wagons through the Sierra Nevada in 1844 found themselves snowed in at what today is Donner Lake, named for a tragedy two years later.  The Stephens-Murphy-Townsend wagon train got stuck there first. They made different decisions and the party split up. Eight women, one man and 17 children were stalled in eight feet of snow at the head of the Yuba River in California and it was Oregon Mountain men who arrived at Sutter’s Fort in Sacramento and who had the gear, energy and heart to head into the Sierras to attempt the first rescue. My latest novel (One More River to Cross) is based on that incredible journey of Canadians and Missourians including two babies headed into the challenges of California.

           

California of course had a major population change with the discovery of gold near Sutter’s Fort in 1848. As news reached the east, mostly men headed west seeking their fortune in the rivers and creeks of California. So many arrived in that once Mexican province, that California became the only state to become a state without first becoming a territory. They reached the 10,000 people threshold in less than two years. But there weren’t enough farmers left to feed the miners and those from Oregon, too, seeking their fortune.  Enter Oregon! (Change and Cherish Series. beginning with A Clearing in the Wild)

Oregon farmers, lumbermen, orchardists and more found their fortune in shipping goods south to serve California. That still goes on though today the goods flow both ways. One of the main trails in Oregon is named for this trade route — The Oregon-California Trail —and an African-American former slave named Letitia Carson who homesteaded with her white common-law husband along that trail sold butter and cheese to travelers to support her family.  (A Light in the Wilderness). Grain from the Willamette Valley (Salem, Eugene) and lumber was shipped from the forests of Oregon to support the growing population in California.

As more settlers headed west on the Oregon Trail, friendships formed that often survived after the decision point as it was known, when wagons either headed north into Oregon or south into California. Relationships were sustained (and sometimes strained) despite the distance. (Kinship and Courage Series beginning with All Together in One Place). In the late 1800s, citizens of Oregon’s southern coast spent more time in  San Francisco and Burlington, CA than in Portland. Oregon women had their dresses made in California, got their hair styled and saw physicians near the Golden Gate (a land formation whose name preceded the bridge) because they could take ships. Until the railroad arrived, a visit to Portland took days through thick coastal shrubs on dangerous roads in uncomfortable stagecoaches.   When the 1906 earthquake devastated San Francisco, the first ships sending food and lumber came from Coos Bay, Oregon. (A Gathering of Finches)

           

Social movements also found bonds between the two states with interaction during suffrage efforts and beyond.

           

Like it or not, we Oregonians are bonded through history, family, public policy and trade. And if we Oregonians are honest, we love the attitude of Californians coming for respite to hike our trails, scale our mountains, and fish and float our rivers (and spend their money, too. And we Oregonians equally love that California sunshine that calls to us in the winter making many in our state snowbirds.  In fact, this year, my husband and I will head to the California desert to learn even more about our state-wide bonds. Who knows what books may come from that! Come travel Oregon and then head south to California as we are!

Jane Kirkpatrick is the author of 33 books mostly historical novels based on the lives of actual historical women or incidents. She’s a NY Times Bestselling author and winner of numerous awards and starred reviews from Publisher’s Weekly and BookList. Her latest novel, One More River To Cross will release September 3. Jane lives with her husband Jerry and one Cavalier King Charles Spaniel near Bend, OR.

Learn more about Jane Kirkpatrick here:  www.jkbooks.com

As a special treat, Jane Kirkpatrick is giving away a copy of One More River to Cross to the lucky person who leaves a comment!  Remember to also leave a form of contact or email Annette with your contact information using the Contact tab.

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