Appendix H - Historical Archaeological and ... - CBP.gov

American exploration in the Northwest also expanded after the Lewis and Clark expedition had
crossed the continent in1805. John Jacob Astor’s Pacific Fur Company tried to compete in the
fur trade by establishing an overland system of posts combined with a maritime trading network.
The company sold out to the Northwest Company as a result of the War of 1812, but other
independent traders known as mountain men continued to maintain an American presence in the
region.
Rivalry between the two largest trading companies, the British Hudson’s Bay Company (HBC)
and Montreal-based Northwest Company, ended in a merger in 1821, and under the Hudson’s
Bay name. The new company not only controlled much of the Northwest fur trade but also
advanced British dominance in the region. HBC established forts at strategic locations and set
up far-reaching networks of exchange throughout the Northwest (see Figure H-9). Fort
Vancouver, built near the confluence of the Columbia River and the Willamette River in 1824,
became the centerpiece of company operations in the Northwest. Three years later HBC
constructed Fort Langley at the mouth of the Fraser River in Canada to anchor the coastal trade
on the north and eventually developed a coastal land route between the two outposts (Carpenter,
1986:25, 26, 30).
American exploration of the region also continued after Congress authorized the President to
send naval vessels to survey the Pacific. The United States Exploring Expedition, under the
command of Lieutenant Charles Wilkes, set out in 1838 on a four-year expedition, which further
established American interest in the settlement of the Northwest Coast. Wilkes and his men
made detailed surveys throughout Puget Sound and portions of the Columbia River, while other
members of the party also traveled inland across the Cascade Mountains (Viola and Margolis,
1985: 9-11; Haskett, 1974:1-3; Tyler, 1968:244-245).
Both Catholic and Protestant missionaries soon followed the commercial ventures, hoping to
minister to the Native peoples of the region, but often having more success with the expanding
non-Native populations. Some conducted religious services at the fur trade forts, while others
established their own missions along important travel routes or near major Indian villages.
The American government had long contested British claims in the Northwest, and both sides
signed a joint occupation agreement in 1818, which was renewed indefinitely in 1826. The
United States pushed for a boundary between British and American interests running from the
Rocky Mountains along the 49 th parallel to the Pacific. England stood firm against this proposal,
calling for the Columbia River as its suggested boundary. The British finally accepted the 49 th
parallel as the dividing line between the territories of the two countries in 1946. Each nation
selected its own boundary commission, and together they spent a total of six years from 1857 to
1862 surveying, clearing and then marking the final boundary. No agreement could be reached
on the location of the offshore line between the mainland and Vancouver Island, and eventually
this final portion of the boundary was settled by arbitration in 1872 (Galbraith, 1957:196-199;
Hayes, 2000:150, 171-174).
American settlement in the vast region north of the Columbia expanded quickly once the
boundary treaty was signed. Oregon Territory was established in 1848 and included all of the
land currently encompassed by Oregon, Washington, Idaho, northwestern Montana and western
portions of Wyoming. As the territorial population grew, more would-be settlers headed north to
Northern Border Activities H-118 July 2012