WPA Interviews

Thompson, Clara C. (Morgan)

INTERVIEW, with Clara C. (Morgan) Thompson, West 9th Street, Albany, Ore., April 17, 1940

My name is Clara Thompson. My maiden name was Clara Morgan and I am a daughter of Miller Morgan who settled in the Saddle Butte neighborhood at a very early date. I was born on the Miller Morgan Donation Land Claim on November 6, 1858. I am therefore just a little over 80 years of age and am the last surviving of my father's family.

My father was born (1824) and grew up in Ohio (Holmes County). He moved from Ohio to Iowa and in that state, near the city of Burlington, he married my mother, Elizabeth Helmick, in 18__ (1846). They had eight children of whom I am the last survivor. The names of my brothers and sisters are:

James Adolph Morgan. His home was at Lebanon, Oregon.

Thomas Franklin Morgan.

Orange Zachery Morgan.

Joseph William Morgan. Lived near Shedd, Oregon. He died about 1935 at the age of 84 years. His son, Elza Morgan still lives on the home place. His daughter, Miss Lotta Morgan is a teacher in the Albany Schools and lives near me here on 9th Street.

Clara C. Morgan. (Informant). Born on the Morgan claim east of Shedd. Married George B. McClellan Thompson ("Clell" Thompson).

Lawrence Oral Morgan.

Sarah Ida Morgan. Married Ezra Randolph. Their home was at Oregon City.

Lawrence O. Morgan. His home was at Shedd, Oregon.

All of the above were born in Oregon and all attended school at what is now called the "Morgan School" about six miles northwest of Brownsville. That school, in the early days, was known locally as "Perseverance School" I started to school there when I was about eight years old, that was in 1867 or thereabouts. My first teacher was named Asa Olin. He was a local citizen and owned a farm nearby. He died at Tangent.

When my father came to Oregon he had but one wagon but that was pulled by three yoke of oxen. After reaching the Willamette Valley he spent the first winter at Linnton with General McCarver. In the spring he moved south, up the valley to Polk County and spent some time there near the Helmick settlement. The Helmicks, there, were relatives of my mother and had come to Oregon in 1846. My people lived in Polk County for one year and in 1849 father joined the gold rush to California but there he was employed more as a freighter than as a miner. The next autumn he traded his oxen for horses and returned to the Willamette Valley, spending that winter on Oak Creek above Albany. A short time after, probably in 1850, he purchased the squatter rights to a claim near Peterson's Butte, west of Lebanon. The price he paid for the land was one mare. He liver there only one season and then sold his claim right back to the original owner, the price, this time, being two Indian ponies. After that father staked an original claim at Saddle Butte, east of present Shedd and that became his permanent home until the time of his death.

The first house on father's old claim was a log cabin, built in 1851. Later he erected a better house and that stood until only a few years ago when it was razed. The cabin was near a small creek and nearby was a favorite camping place of the local Indians. I do not remember much of the Indians but father has always said that they were a good and honest people-better to get along with than most white people. Father often had to go for supplies to Oregon City and leave his family alone. There were one or two Indian families who were especially friendly and honest. When father was about to leave home he would speak to these families and ask them to care for mother and the children. They would immediately move their camps across the creek and camp closely surrounding our cabin. In that way they kept at a distance any bothersome members of the village.

The white people brought civilized diseases with them which were very deadly to the Indians. The measles were especially deadly. When the measles broke out among the Indians near the Morgan claim they treated the disease in their traditional manner, by sweathouses and a plunge into the cold water of the creek. That, of course, was fatal. My people tried desperately to persuade them to do differently but it was no use. Their customs were too strong for a white man's argument to nullify. As a result a great percent of the village died.

There were many Indian mounds along the Calapooia river. One of them was close by the Morgan cabin. Many mortars, pestles and arrowheads are still plowed up there.

There were but few neighbors in the region when father first came. Among those who came at a very early date were:

Americus Savage. His home was on the top of the small hill just east of the Calapooia River and now called "Bunker Hill". There is a small cemetery now on that hill. Americus Savage, owner of the land, committed suicide on the hill and was the first person buried there. Savage had been East on a trip and had spent all his money. He was also a heavy drinker and had trouble of a domestic nature and he and his wife had parted. He therefore went out on the hill one Sunday morning and shot himself.

The name "Bunker Hill" was given because Savage and a neighbor named Elder had a fight here one day, a celebrated fight still known as "The Battle of Bunker Hill."

Americus Savage sold land to P. V. Crawford and R. C. Finley on which was built the "Boston Mills", still operating there though now known as Thompson's Mill.

With my parents when they came to Oregon were two of father's brothers. One of them, Uncle John Morgan, married Prudence Savage, a daughter of Americus Savage.

When Americus Savage sold land for the "Boston" mill a small village was started there. This was called "Boston" or "New Boston". It never became much of a town but at one time there was a store, a blacksmith shop, a post office and a carding mill.

Another uncle, my father's brother, was Thomas Morgan. He did not come to Oregon with father, but somewhat later and with the train that brought the Ward family. Uncle Tom was about 11 years old when he came and he always made his home with my father, never marrying. Uncle Tom and my brother Orange Morgan had a carding mill at Boston.

The Ward family which I just mentioned was that of Tom Ward. His wife's name was Hannah Ward and her maiden name was Morgan. She was a cousin of my father's. I think that they came the next year after father, or in 1848. "Ward's Butte" named after Tom Ward, was on their claim and was named in honor of this pioneer relative of mine.

My father's given name was Miller. This was a family surname and a cousin of my father's was a Dr. Miller, an early physician in Oregon. I do not know what his full name was but we always called him "Uncle Doc." A daughter of "Uncle Doc" is Mrs. L. E. Hamilton of Albany. The Millers were all members of the United Presbyterian Church; my father belonged to no church. (Note: It is presumed that this "Uncle Doc Miller was Dr. William B. Miller, but this is not certain.)

Now having told about all I can about the Morgan family, I will tell something concerning my mother's people, the Helmicks. My mother, Elizabeth Helmick was born in Germany. The Helmick family came from Germany to America in 1825 first settling in Pennsylvania and then removing to Indiana and finally to Iowa, near the city of Burlington. The head of the Helmick family which came from Germany was Stephen Helmick, born September 14, 1822. This Stephen Helmick was my grandfather.

My mother and father were married in the East, in Iowa, and came to Oregon in 1847, but the year previous, in 1846, my mother's brother, Henry Helmick came to Oregon and settled on the Luckimute in Polk County. At that place mother and father stopped for a time before finally settling in Linn County.

The wife of Henry Helmick was Sarah (Steeprow) Helmick. She was born in Indian July 4, 1824. (The name is in other literature at hand spelled Stepro. L.H.) Sarah Stepro Helmick lived to the ripe age of 102 years. At the time of her death she was living here in Albany. In her will she left to the State of Oregon a five acre tract on banks of Luckimute Creek on U. S. Highway 99W to be used as a public park. (Hemlick Park, Polk County).

I am very sorry I cannot give more exact dates for incidents in this story. My memory is now very poor and all my records are in the hands of my niece, Miss Lotta Morgan who teaches here in Albany.

My husband, George C. McC. Thompson was a member of the pioneer Thompson family who settled in central Linn County in 1846. There were two brother of the Thompson family who settled on the Calapooia near Shedd, Mercer and Joseph. My husband was a son of Joseph Thompson. My husband and I had four children. They are:

Zola Elva Thompson.

Claud Thompson.

Gladys Thompson. Her married name is Nelson. The Nelson family settled south of Saddle Butte while the Morgans settled north of that hill.

Pearl Thompson.

The Thompson family were all Methodists and there was a very popular Methodist campground on the banks of the Calapooia River at the Mercer Thompson Bridge.

I might say here that the Helmicks were all Methodists while our Miller relatives were all United Presbyterians. In the old Saddle Butte neighborhood where I was raised the Methodists held frequent meetings, mostly in my father's house. West of Shedd, and at Olaville, the U. P.'s held predominance.

At this place I might put in a bit about my brother, Joseph William Morgan. He lived near the old claim east of Shedd and his son still lives there so their history is of considerable local interest. He has been a farmer near Shedd the most of his life. He first ran a farm of his own but later took over a part of the Original Miller Morgan Claim. He married Ann Stimson in 1876. She was born in Iowa and was a daughter of Lewis Stimson who settled at Sand Ridge on the western slopes of Petersons Butte in 1852. He had two children; his son, Elza Morgan who lives on a part of the original farm. His wife is a daughter of Alex Brandon who was one of Finley and Crawford's millers at "Boston". His daughter, Lottie Morgan is a teacher here in the Albany schools.

My father, Miller Morgan, died at Albany on March 1901.

Now just a few scattered incidents which I have forgotten to put in their proper place. The postmistress at the town of Boston was Mrs. Billy Simmons. She was first married to a man named Warner and later to Simmons. Simmons owned or managed the mill at Boston for a time. One of Mrs. Simmons daughter by her first marriage was Mrs. S. P. Brock some of whose family still live near the Boston Mills.

One of our very early neighbors was that Mr. Elder which I have spoken of as helping to name "Bunker Hill". His wife died when he first came to Oregon and was buried close to the Calapooia on the Elder claim. I presume that grave has now been washed into the river.

The blacksmith shop at Boston may have been run by Captain Frank Shedd for whom the town of Shedd is named. He did not come to Oregon as early as some. Other neighbors, but not so early, were the Isom family near Ward's Butte.

(Note: Mrs. Thompson, the informant, is now over 80 years old. Though bright and intelligent in most ways her memory of dates is extremely poor. As she, herself, acknowledges, "The past year I cannot remember dates at all.")

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.