John Jacob Astor and The Thorn in His Side

The New York merchant, John Jacob Astor, emigrated to England at 17 and then to America.  His American Fur Company was dominant in the Great Lakes before moving on west.  He planned to build a large trading post, Fort Astoria, near the mouth of the Columbia River in Oregon territory.

In September 1810, Astor sent the ship Tonquin under crusty captain Jonathon Thorn, around the Cape Horn.  Hardly out of port, trouble started.  Thorn was a strict disciplinarian and one of the partners began muttering about Thorn's life.  In March of 1811, it seems Thorn had had enough and sent the troublemaker on a longboat to look for a channel.  The boat sank and all aboard perished.

The Tonquin did reach shore two days later with difficulty.  The crew completed Fort Astoria in the Pacific Northwest.  The Indians of the Northwest traded with Astor's men until one day short-tempered Thorn slapped an Indian chief across the face.  Revenge was quick.  The Indians attacked the ship with clubs and knives.  Only five whites survived by hiding in a cabin, but four of them were later captured and tortured to death when they tried to escape. The next day when Thorn came back to the ship, he decided to set the ship's power supply - blasting him and the Indians to bits.  Thus ended the Tonquin and Captain Thorn.

Next time...The Missouri Fur Company and Manuel Lisa
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On this Day in Pioneer History: On March 21, 1871,  journalist Henry Morton Stanley begins his famous search through Africa for the missing British explorer Dr. David Livingstone.