WPA Interviews

Zimmerman, Susan

INTERVIEW, with Mrs. Susan Zimmerman, Halsey, Oregon, July 3, 1940. This interview has to do with the Allphin and McClain families who were pioneers in the Syracuse neighborhood, Linn County.

My name is Susan (Allphin) Zimmerman. I was born in 1863 and was raised in the Millersburg neighborhood a few miles north of Albany. I went to school on the Allphin claim in that region, William Allphin, the original owner of the claim being my grandfather. The schoolhouse then was a cabin and although the school was large we had nothing but a spelling book to study from. One of my first teachers was John Fenn who had a claim just adjoining that of my grandfather.

Perhaps I had better being by telling of the older members of my family and of their arrival in Oregon. My father's father was William Allphin. He was born in the year 1798. (OC# 220) He died in 1876. He came to Oregon with his family, consisting of his wife Zilah (Maiden name not learned) and a considerable family of children, in the year 1847. Grandfather Allphin I might here say was a member of the Oregon Territorial Legislature in 1851.

After the Allphins settled in Oregon the mother soon died. Her death occurred February 8, 1848, only a few months after her arrival in Oregon.

The younger members of the Allphin family all came to Oregon except two. Their names were as follows:

Green Allphin. Never came to Oregon.

Prior Allphin. Never came to Oregon.

Jack Allphin.

Marion Allphin. He married Ella Ann McClain in 1858. (She was just fifteen years old at the time). They moved to the Umatilla crossing in eastern Oregon where they fed travelers. In 1852 Marion Allphin was frozen to death while going with a party for supplies to The Dalles. His widow, (Now Mrs. Burbank) still lives at Albany at the age of almost 97 years.

America Allphin. Her married name was Mrs. Preston H. Bowman (OC #4467).

Margaret Allphin. Her married name was Creel.

Thomas Allphin (Father of the informant) Born Feb. 10, 1827. (OC #3468)

My father and mother came to Oregon in the same train but they were not married until after they arrived in Oregon. Father was not quite 21 years old at the time and mother was about 18. Mother's name was Louisa McClain. She was born on October 15, 1829.

Before leaving the Allphin family I should say that my grandfather married again. His second wife was "Pheby" (so spelled on the grave). She was the widow of David Farrier who came to Oregon in 1845. Grandmother Pheby was already the mother of seven children, they were:

Ambrose Farrier.

George Farrier. (Father of Edd Farrier now of Brownsville.)

Marion Farrier.

David Farrier Jr.

William Farrier. Born Sept. 7, 1831. Drowned in the Willamette River at Harrisburg on May 13, 1872. He was an early furniture dealer at Harrisburg. His daughter, Mrs. J. H. Bowman still resided at Brownsville.

My mother's name was Louisa McClain. She was born in the east, but just where I cannot say, on October 15, 1829. She came to Oregon with her parents in 1847 in the same train with my father's people.

My grandfather, my mother's father, was William McClain. My grandmother McClain died just as the family were about to start for Oregon and grandfather came on with his nine children, (A tenth had died in infancy).

My mother was the oldest of the family and became the mother to her younger brothers and sisters. The names of the entire family were:

Louisa McClain (Mother of the informant) She married Thomas Allphin. Mother lived and died in the Allphin neighborhood near Millersburg.

Amanda McClain. She married Joseph Kelley in Platte County Missouri, probably in 1838. Came to Oregon.

Caroline McClain. She married Cyrus Pitney in Platte Co., Missouri in 1839. (19 Feb 1843?) Came to Oregon in 1847. d. 11 Oct 1852 Marion County.

Edmond Carey McClain. He married Elizabeth Rupes who was born in Clay County, Missouri. She died in Polk County, Oregon, 1852. A daughter was born to this pair while they were crossing the plains in 1847. She was name Malinda Jane McClain. A granddaughter of this child lives a few miles north of Albany. Her name is Elizabeth Truax. Edmund Terry McClain was born in Boone County, Missouri, Nov. 2, 1825. He was an Indian war veteran. His wife died June 4, 1852, her death being a result of pioneer hardships. (See Elizabeth Cardwell Truax interview already sent in. L.H.)

Rachel Marie McClain. She married Thomas Howell, on Howell's prairie. They returned to the Howell home in the east and then started for Oregon again but were undoubtedly killed by the Indians as they were never again heard from. Last word from them was at Santa Fee, N. M.

Thomas McClain. He was working on grandfather McClain's claim after his father died and driven off by claim-jumpers. He was only a young lad at that time. He married Olive Ogle in Linn County.

Henry McClain. Died in infancy.

Elvira McClain. Born in Platte County, Missouri. Married Titus Smith.

Elizabeth Ann McClain. Born in Kentucky. She never came to Oregon but married George Young in Missouri in 1847. She was the only mature member of the family who did not come to Oregon.

Ellen Ann McClain. Born in Missouri in 1843, (Sept. 15.) came to Oregon with her parents when four years of age. Is still living at Albany, Oregon, one of the oldest pioneers remaining in the county and perhaps the only one remaining who came to Oregon in 1847. She married Marion Allphin, a brother of the informant's father, when but fifteen years old. Together they established an inn, or eating place at the crossing of the Umatilla River where they fed passing emigrants. In the year 1862 her husband started for The Dalles with a party of other men to secure supplies. All were caught in a terrible storm and became separated. Marion Allphin was lost and froze to death. His body was not found until later the next spring after the snow had melted. During the long storm Aunt Ellen was alone with her small children except for a thirteen-year-old nephew, Allen McClain. They survived by carrying in fence rails and cutting them up for fuel, using a hand saw. Their only food was beef. Later Aunt Ellen married George Farrier and is the father of Edd Farrier of Brownsville. (Her present name is Burbank.)

My grandfather, William McClain, took up a land claim in Linn County near the Willamette River a few miles north of Albany. He died there in 1850 before he could get title to the land. (Before he died he had married again). Grandfather's claim was situated on a very beautiful lake, which is now called Wilson Lake.

After grandfather's death his wife did not remain on the claim but a few of the younger children still made it their home. At the time when the incident which I am now to tell took place there were three of his children there. They were Thomas McClain, aged about sixteen years, Elvira McClain, aged about fourteen, and Ellen Ann McClain then about eight year of age. In the night two men came and built a cabin on the claim and took possession. In the morning they came with guns and ordered the children to load up and leave the place. The men, being armed, there was nothing to do but obey. Later some of the neighbors offered to go back with them and regain the land but it was never done. The men who jumped grandfather's claim were named Byland and McPherson. McPherson later became Oregon State Printer.

The reason that none of grandfather's sons could hold the claim was that those old enough had already taken up land for themselves and the minor sons had no legal right to claim land. However, as heirs of the original claimant they might have gained title in time but there was no law in Oregon then to which to appeal.

To my father and mother, Thomas Allphin and Louisa McClain Allphin were born the following children:

George Allphin. Born May 15, 1852. Died May 18, 1932. His home was at Jefferson, Marion County.

Margaret Allphin. Born Sept. 5, 1854. Her married name was Layton. Her home was in Idaho.

Jackson Allphin. Born Dec. 5, 1858. Dead.

Olive Allphin. Born 1861. She married Edd Meeker and now lives on the Pacific Highway about two miles south of Jefferson.

Susan Allphin, married name Zimmerman. (The informant) born 1862. Her home is at Halsey, Linn County, Ore.

Florence Allphin. Born Dec. 12, 1865.

John Allphin. Born Dec. 11, 1867.

Phoebe Allphin. Married Edd Zimmerman, a brother of the informant's husband. Lives at Shedd, Oregon. She is the youngest of the family.

My mother rode a horse all the way across the plains in 1847. I think that she said that she only rode in a wagon for three days the whole way. These three days were while she was caring for her sister-in-law, Elizabeth, the wife of Carey (Edmund Carey) while a child was being born. The child born at that time was named Malinda, and as already stated, became the wife of C. W. Cardwell of this county.

Among those who came to Oregon with the Allphins and the McClains were Jacob Spores who brought his very large family to Oregon and settled on the McKenzie River where he operated a ferry for many years. The Spores family raised an Indian girl named Eliza who was later very well known at Brownsville as "Indian Lize" the last of the Calapooias. Another family on the train was named Bowman. I cannot tell the first name of this man but he was the Captain of the train. His brother, Nat. Bowman married my aunt America Allphin. Their home was in Polk County. There were also a Holman who settled at Dallas.

The McClain family left Pike County, Missouri, on April 16, 1847. They reached the Missouri River about May 2d, and the Willamette Valley on September 24, 1847. Their last camp was on Howell's Prairie where they lived throughout the winter of 1847-48 in a cabin belonging to Mr. Howell. They came on to the northern part of Linn County in 1848. When they reached the Santiam River at the town of Syracuse they were ferried across by Milton Hale who had settled there in 1846. Milton Hale was one of their neighbors throughout the pioneer years.

My father was a farmer the most of his life but at one time he ran a ferry at Spring Hill, north of Albany. I know that father was running his ferry there during the years 1861 and 1862 because he was there during the "great flood" of those years. He may have run it for several years before that.

Our home at that time was on the Benton county shore of the river. I was seven years old when we left there, which would make it the year 1869. After we left the ferry we again lived in the Allphin neighborhood. After my marriage I moved here to the Halsey neighborhood on a farm and for the last twenty-one years I have lived here in the town of Halsey.

My father was a Cayuse Indian War Veteran. He was one of those who went from the Willamette Valley to rescue the victims of the Whitman Massacre.

There were a number of white girls who had been taken captive by the Indians and they returned them to Oregon City. Some of the Indians were also brought to Oregon City for trial and execution. The Government promised to pay the volunteers for their services but father never got a cent from that service.

My grandfather Allphin lived to be quite old. He and his two wives are buried in a small private cemetery on the original Allphin Claim. Grandfather McClain was buried on his claim but since the family was driven away from that land his grave is, I believe, now lost. It was on what was long known as the "Farlow" place but I believe it is now owned by Groshongs. There used to be a picket fence about the grave but that is long since gone. It is a beautiful place there on the claim beside the lake where my people first settled.

The first religious services in the Allphin neighborhood were held in private homes, but later in the "Allphin" schoolhouse. The predominant faith of the settlers there was Primitive Baptist. There was a little church organized there in 1848. The church was organized at the home of Exum Powell. Among the charter members were my grandfather, William Allphin, and my mother, Louisa McClain. Elder Joseph Turnidge was the first pastor. That church had a rather remarkable history. Its official name was Little Bethel, but it is commonly called "The Church that Traveled" because it later moved from place to place as some of its members took part in the Southern Oregon gold rush.

Our neighbors in the very early days in the Allphin district were John Fenn, Jack Davis, Samuel Jones and Isaac Becker. Isaac Meeker was a cousin of Ezra Meeker and my sister Olive married a son, Edd Meeker. She still lives on the Meeker claim near Jefferson.

When the settlers first came they had no fruit except wild berries. Soon they got young trees from the earliest nurserymen, such as the Luellings. Fruit became common and was dried in large amounts to ship to the mines. When I was young we had no canned fruit whatever. Later my mother obtained some stone jars from the Smith Pottery at Buena Vista in Polk County. This jar, indicating (a two-quart glazed stone jar) was the first fruit jar that my mother ever had. It was made at Buena Vista Sometime during the 1860's. She would fill the jar with hot fruit, then put a piece of writing paper dipped in the white of an egg over the fruit and then seal it with a strip of cloth dipped in hot wax and tied on with string. After the first stone jars, my mother used tin cans sealed with wax.

My uncle Jack used to carry the mail from Oregon City to Linn County. Usually he made the trip on foot. There were no newspapers or parcel post to carry then, and letters were few so that his load was not great. When my father first reached this valley there was only one cabin at Portland.

One thing I omitted to tell in speaking of the Little Bethel Church. An early preacher there was Rev. R. C. Hill. He visited at our home often, both as our pastor and as our family physician. He was a very good friend of the family.

I told you that my mother rode a horse across the plains. I should have said that there were about twenty-five young women in the train who rode with her. It is a wonder that some of these young girls were not carried off by the Indians for there were plenty of chances. On their good riding horses they went together where and when they pleased. They would ride far ahead of the train until they found a pleasant place with grass and water and then they would dismount and idle and rest until the train passed them and traveled on for many miles. Then they would mount and ride to overtake it. They could always know where to look for the train by the great clouds of dust which it raised. All of the girls wore gloves, bonnets and heavy veils. This was to protect their complexions. When my mother reached Oregon and took off her gloves and veil her face and hands were as white and smooth as when she started.

You have perhaps seen the country at Howell's Prairie and know what a fine region that is. My people came through that section and left it behind to settle in Linn County where the soil and fertility are much poorer. They passed through that fine land and came to Linn County because they wanted water and wood. Springs, streams, timber and fuel were their chief desire. Quality of soil was secondary.

June 18, 2001

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.