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McQuinn Strip Land Dispute

McQuinn Strip Land Dispute

In 1855 the “Indian tribes of Middle Oregon” ceded ten million acres of their ancestral lands to the United States, reserving approximately 600,000 acres for their …

Oregon History Project
Medal Given to Billy Chinook

Medal Given to Billy Chinook

John C. Frémont gave this medal to Billy Chinook in recognition of his service to Frémont’s surveying expeditions. Chinook, a Wasco Indian, joined Frémont’s second …

Oregon History Project
Report by William H. Rector, 1862

Report by William H. Rector, 1862

This report describes a conflict between Umatilla Indians and white settlers over northeastern Oregon’s Grande Ronde Valley in the summer of 1862. It was written …

Oregon History Project
Robbins & Purington Store, Drewsey

Robbins & Purington Store, Drewsey

The photograph above pictures the general merchandise store of Robbins & Purington in the ranching town of Drewsey, Harney County, as it looked about 1890. …

Oregon History Project
Schedule of Vouchers issued on account of the Indian War in the Territories of Oregon and Washington in the years 1855 and 1856

Schedule of Vouchers issued on account of the Indian War in the Territories of Oregon and Washington in the years 1855 and 1856

This document was created for the U.S. Treasury in 1861 as a record of reimbursement claims by people and businesses in Oregon and Washington who …

Oregon History Project
Territory of Oregon West of the Rocky Mountains

Territory of Oregon West of the Rocky Mountains

Britain and America jointly occupied the Pacific Northwest from 1812 until 1846, during which time companies from each nation attempted to establish footholds in the …

Oregon History Project
Warm Springs Agency Boarding School, 1890

Warm Springs Agency Boarding School, 1890

This  photograph of the students and staff of the Warm Springs Agency Boarding School was taken in February 1890 The 1855 Treaty with the Tribes …

Oregon History Project
Warm Springs Reservation Mill

Warm Springs Reservation Mill

In 1938, four years after the congressional passage of the Indian Reorganization Act, the Warm Springs tribes became officially incorporated as the Confederated Tribes of …

Oregon History Project
Whale Butchering at Coos Bay

Whale Butchering at Coos Bay

The sketch shown here was published in the June 1856 issue of Harper’s Monthly. It depicts a group of Coos Indians butchering a whale …

Oregon History Project

Interpretive Essays

Interpretive essays use primary documents from the Oregon Historical Society archives to help readers imagine the events, people, and issues that shaped Oregon history.