WPA Interviews

Dunlap, Hugh

Leslie Haskin,14 Aug 1940

Interview Anson Haskin, Yamhill Co.

INTERVIEW with Mr. Hugh Dunlap of the pioneer Dunlap family who settled on Courtney Creek, near Brownsville, Linn County, in 1847. The Dunlap family have all long since left the Brownsville region but Hugh Dunlap was present at the Brownsville Pioneer Picnic in June, 1940. This was the first time he had visited this section since 1899, or over 41 years ago.

My name is Hugh Dunlap. I was born in the Brownsville neighborhood, on the Dunlap Donation Land Claim a few miles southeast of Brownsville, on 11 May 1858.

My father's name was John Alexander Dunlap. He was born in 1812. My mother's name was Jane Findley and she and my father were married before they came to Oregon. My parents came to Oregon in 1847 and with them came quite a number of relatives although father was the only one of his own immediate family to come. Among the relatives who came at that time were the Findleys, the McCaws and others. These all settled in the Calapooia Valley above Brownsville and in the neighborhoods about Brownsville and present Crawfordsville. There were also other relatives in this region who had come two years before, that is, in 1845. Among them were Josiah Osborn and his family. Osborn's wife, Martha, was my mother's niece. There was also John Courtney who came in 1845. His wife, Agnes Findley Courtney, was my mother's sister. John Courtney was her second husband. Another of my mother's sisters was the wife of Elisha Griffeth. The Griffeths settled south of Brownsville. My aunt, Griffeth's wife, was commonly called "Aunt Betsey". A third of my mother's sisters was Aunt Becky, wife of Daniel Putman. Putman's claim was south towards the Diamond Hill country. Still another of mother's sisters was Aunt Nancy, the wife of Anson Haskin. The Haskins lived in Yamhill county.

(Note: There is some conflict here with data obtained from other informants. This writer cannot judge between conflicting informants but it seems possible that Mr. Dunlap has here confused some of his Mother's sisters with her sister-in-laws.)

My father and mother were the parents of nine children. There were six boys and three girls. I can give their names and the order of their births but not the dates of birth for I have not the figures here and we have been scattered and away from home for so many years that I would not attempt to give exact dates.

William Dunlap. The oldest of the family.

David Dunlap. (A son of this brother accompanied Hugh Dunlap to the Pioneer reunion at Brownsville. His name was Alvin Dunlap and his home was at Waitsburg, Washington. Hugh Dunlap, the informant, makes his home with this nephew.)

Daniel Dunlap.

John Knox Dunlap.

Robert Dunlap.

Hugh Dunlap, the informant.

Elizabeth Dunlap. Married P.V. Crawford, a son of P.V. Crawford, Sr., for whom the town of Crawfordsville was named.

Girl, infant, died young.

Girl, died young.

When the Dunlap's first came to Oregon in 1847 they spent their first winter at Ft. Vancouver. In the spring of 1848 they came on to Linn County and settled on their permanent claim. My father was born in South Carolina but from his youth he was greatly opposed to slavery and finally left the south and settled in Illinois. Mother was born in Indiana.

When my people reached the Whitman Mission in 1847 they found mother's niece and her husband, (Josiah and Martha Osborn) staying at the Whitman Mission. Josiah Osborn was working for Whitman, building a mill. Osborn was an expert Carpenter and millwright and also a wagon maker. My people left the Osborns there and came on to the Willamette Valley, taking up a claim within a mile or so of the Osborn claim which had been taken up in 1846. When the Whitman massacre occurred the Osborns were still at the mission. Almost all of the family were sick. Mrs. Osborn was not fully recovered from the premature birth of a child. Besides that, she and all the Osborn children were sick with the measles. Josiah Osborn had seen the Indian trouble coming on and had warned Whitman of it. When the killing actually started, suddenly and without warning, Osborn was working at the mill. He ran to the cabin where his family was staying and taking up some puncheons from the floor, had his wife and children hide beneath. He had just time to seize a crust of bread and some cold mush from the uncleared breakfast table and follow his family under the floor when the Indians came looking for them. They stayed under the floor until night and when the killing had mostly ceased and the Indians were eating supper he managed to slip away and hide his family in the brush. They traveled by night, wading deep flooded streams, a terrible thing for people suffering with measles.

Finally Mrs. Osborn could go no further. Josiah Osborn left her beside a stream with a tin cup tied on a stick so that she could dip up water to drink. Then he went on to Walula to find help and a horse to carry his wife. The family was left in a thicket of willows without shelter of any kind. While Osborn was away and Indian came along and found Mrs. Osborn. He said, "Me your friend. I come to look after you." There was little that he could do save to stay near. He did not even dare remain with them for fear other less friendly Indians should find them. When Osborn returned with a horse Mrs. Osborn would not even sit erect. They had to tie her on back of the saddle, like a sack of grain. Even after they reached the station they were not received at first but finally were hidden in an inner room. Mrs. Osborn never fully recovered from the terrible experience. For years she was troubled with boils and at length one arm became quite useless. The youngest child died soon after they reached Oregon City. After that experience the Osborn family returned to their claim near Brownsville. There is still one of the family living. She is Mrs. Lela (Osborn) Hasting of Waitsburg, Washington.

My people helped to build the pioneer Union Point Presbyterian Church in this locality. It was on a rocky hill about three miles south of Brownsville. All of the early settlers chose hill country for their claims as that was where wood, water and dry home sites could be secured. The whole valley then looked like a marsh.

My father was elected in 1849 to be one of the first three Linn County Commissioners. (They called them Probate Judges in those days.) The other two were Alexander Kirk of Brownsville and M.W. McCoy of Oakville. Father was also elected in the same year to be a member of the first Oregon Territorial Legislature. The other Representative from Linn County was J. Conser from the Syracuse region. The first Territorial Senator from Linn County, elected the same year, was Dr. W.B. Mealey of Oakville. The Legislature met at Oregon City and father walked to attend session so that his team could remain at home and work on the claim. He had more nerve than I have ever had. Compared to his hardships, I have had "a snap" all my life.

My father did not go to the Indian wars. He was County Commissioner at the time and the people would not let him go, feeling that he was more needed here. Father and Captain Jonathan Keeney were great friends. Keeney was made Captain of the Indian Volunteers from this region but he was an independent man and very rough spoken when he felt like it. He said whatever he felt like saying, freely spoke his mind to the Colonel and called him down. For that he was dismissed from the Company and Captain James Blakely took his place.

When I was a boy I went to school on the James McHargue claim. There is a cemetery just above where the schoolhouse used to stand. Mr. first teacher was David Cooper. (A life sketch of David Cooper has been sent in. L.H.) He taught two terms in the McHargue school. Minerva McMicken was another of my early teachers. She was an old friend of our family and usually boarded at our home. A third teacher was a man named Miller but I was so small that I cannot recollect his first name.

While my father was a County Commissioner for Linn County, after the county was fully organized, there was an attempt to re-divide the county, making the south line run along the foothills bounding the south side of the Calapooia valley. R.C. Finley heard of this plan while he was at Albany on business. Immediately after he had eaten his supper in Albany, Finley hurried over to my father's home and told him what he had heard. Father, through his influence as commissioner, managed to have the plan defeated.

My family being closely related to the Courtneys, I have naturally heard the Courtney side of certain incidents which took place such as neighborhood feuds. One of these was the matter of ownership of a certain claim near Crawfordsville. This claim was first taken up by a relative of the Courtneys. (Name not remembered.) After he had staked his claim this man went away to work and earn money, leaving his claim unimproved. Richard C. Finley, looking for a site to build a mill decided that his claim was the only available site. There was a small waterfall there, and the possibilities for power were good. He therefore settled on the claim. I believe that there was an agreement between Finley and other early settlers, the Kirks, Browns and Blakelys to back him in the possession. It is a fact that the first claimant had not fulfilled the letter of the law, perhaps in a strictly legal sense he had forfeited his claim, but in those days the letter of the law was not too strictly enforced and a man who had to earn money before building on his claim was usually allowed to do so and hold his land uncontested. However, Finley jumped the claim and prepared to hold it. The first claimant returned and protested but Finley held him off with an ax. The Browns, Blakelys, and others, came to back Finley and the first owner withdrew. Finley built his mill which was probably the first flour mill south of Oregon City. John Courtney was very angry about the whole affair and was going to kill Finley but my father persuaded him to drop the matter. Father said "Finley is all right and he will build a mill here long before you could ever do it." Father felt, as did the Browns and Blakelys, that a mill was badly needed in the settlement and that the man who would do it first had some rights to the power site. That old mill is now owned by John McKercher. The present building is not so old as it is sometimes said to be. Probably it was built about 1856.

John Courtney, Sr. was killed while working at Oregon City sometime in the 1850's. His sons were:

John Courtney, J.

Isaac Courtney

Daniel Courtney

Lydia Courtney, (she married a man named Morgan), was John Courtney's daughter.

Our home place was finally sold to Jim and Thomas Swank. When the place was sold I left here. That was in 1877. I went to Walla Walla, Washington. I stayed there for about five years. I was married in 1893 and was a stockman in Washington but finally went broke. I rode the range for many years. My wife died in 1922.

When I was a boy the chief trading place for the country was the Brown and Blakely store in south Brownsville. The original store stood on the corner lot just where the Captain James Blakely monument now stands. (Corner of Blakely Avenue and South Main Street. L.H.). One of the early industries here that I remember well was a tannery. It was run by Asbury Ellis but was later taken over by a man named McLeod(?) or McCloed(?). The Brownsville woolen mill was started here in the 1860's. It ran quite prosperously for many years and helped to build up a good town. I went through the woolen mills 50 years ago and then never was inside them again until this morning. Some of the old buildings still look very much as they did.

I mentioned that Captain Jonathan Keeney was a free man to speak his opinion. He was also very rough in other ways and liked his liquor but never the less he was a man of honest integrity. Many old settlers, he helped on their way when otherwise they would have been stranded and destitute.

There are not many men living here now whom I knew when I was a boy. Andrew Kirk, son of R.W. Kirk is still living here, also Henry Blakely and his nephew, W.C. Cooley who now runs the old Brown and Blakely store although not on the same site as it formerly occupied. Among the girls, there is Eliza Finley Brandon who is a daughter of the old miller, R.C. Finley. George Finley, her brother, still lives at Roseburg where he is U.S. Government Land Agent.

Brownsville started on the south side of the river. Now its principal business section is on the north side. There was no North Brownsville until the woolen mill was started.

Copyright © 2000 Patricia Dunn. All rights reserved. This transcription may not be reproduced in any media without the express written permission by the author. Permission has been given by the Transcriber to publish on the LGS web site.