Heeding the Call

Leading Wyeth's missionary call was 30 year old Jason Lee and his nephew Daniel, both clergymen, along with three layman.  They were charged by the Methodist Board of Missions with locating the supposedly brutal Flatheads who were assumed to flatten their infants foreheads. The Board ordered Lee and company to "live with them, learn their language, preach Christ and introduce schools, agriculture, and the art of cultural life."

The problem was John McLoughlin of the Hudson Bay Company (remember him?) wanted no American missionaries in the interior because Indian resentment might disrupt the beaver trade.  He didn't think he could protect white settlers in remote mountain valleys either.  He sent Lee to the Willamette Valley instead where there were already whites - and maybe a few Indians needing salvation too?

Once settled in Willamette Valley, Lee established a mission school near Salem, Oregon today.  It was a perfect spot for an American colony in Lee's eyes.  He decided his vision was more earthly with the superb soil, moderate climate and trade routes easily accessible.  Hall Jackson Kelley's hopes were reborn in Jason Lee...

Next time...The Great Reinforcement
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Today in Pioneer History: "On January 2, 1890 President Harrison welcomes the first female staffer to the White House, Alice Sanger. Alice Sanger’s appointment may have been an olive branch to the growing women’s suffrage movement that had gathered momentum during Harrison’s presidency