Everything about Fort Astoria totally explained
Fort Astoria (also named
Fort George) was the
Pacific Fur Company's primary
fur trading post in the Northwest, and was the first
U.S. settlement on the
Pacific coast. It was an important post for American exploration of the region and was influential in helping establish American claims to
Oregon Country. The site was added to the list of
National Historic Landmarks on
November 5 1961.
Founding
The fort was founded in March
1811 when the company arrived on board Captain
Jonathan Thorn's ship,
Tonquin. By the end of May the fort was complete, built with bark-covered logs enclosing a stockade that had guns mounted for defense. By the time an overland party joined them in February,
1812, they'd constructed a trading store, a blacksmith's shop, a dwelling house, and a storage shed for pelts acquired from trapping or trading with the local
native Americans.
Cannons were arranged around the perimeter for defense. The outpost was to serve as an administrative center for various satellite forts such as
Fort Okanogan.
Two of the notable founders were
Alexander MacKay and
Alexander Ross. Mackay died in the battle which destroyed the
Tonquin while Ross joined the
North West Company in 1813 after they acquired the fort.
Operations
The inhabitants of the fort differed greatly in background and position, and were structured into a corporate hierarchy. The partners of the company were at the top, with clerks, craftsmen, hunters, and laborers in descending order. Nationalities included Scots, French Canadian, American, Hawaiian, and Native American. They found life quite monotonous, with the fish and vegetable diet boring. Venerial diseases were problematic.
Types of fur taken at the fort included
beaver,
sea otter,
squirrel, and
red fox.
Thorn and the
Tonquin left for
Russian America in June 1812, but the ship and crew was destroyed at
Clayoquot Sound,
Vancouver Island after troubles with the
Tla-o-qui-aht people there.
Astor sent the
Beaver to resupply the fort and to carry fur to Russian America, and thence to
Canton in exchange for highly valuable Chinese goods.
Ownership change
The
War of 1812 between the British and Americans brought tension to this fort. In 1813, the Pacific Fur Company officials, desiring to abandon the fort, sold it to the British North West Company, who had been running low on food supplies. Despite this sale to a British company, the fort was seized by the British ship
HMS Racoon and was renamed
Fort George. This transfer of the fort cemented the transition of the area from American to British control.
In 1821 the North West Company was merged into the
Hudson's Bay Company, which took ownership of the fort. Fort George was used as the company's main depot in the region until
Fort Vancouver was completed in 1825. Fort George was abandoned from 1825-1829. The Hudson's Bay Company reoccupied it on a small scale from 1830 to 1848. The post finally became United States territory after the
Oregon Treaty.
Further Information
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