Katybugg -- I'm not sure why you brought up Steeves piece on Henry Smith, but so long as you did, I would like to mention that while Steeves is usually a quite reliable source, her information often comes from descendants who are giving her stories that have gotten distorted down through the telling -- as is the case with the Henry Smith bio. Henry Smith did come the Southern Route in 1846 with his brother James Smith (who is my gt-gt-grandfather), but Steeves has James Smith dropping dead in the Cow Creek Canyon trajedy, while extolling his party to not give up and keep moving. If fact, it was William Smith, the captain of the large Smith/Long party, but otherwise no relation to Henry & James. Henry Smith did take over for William, and also took responsibility for William Smith's widow Ellen and her eight children, and helped them get settled in Marion county near west Stayton, and also helped raise the children. All of this is documented in a piece by William Smith's daughter Angeline Smith Crews (see OHS), who was only nine years old at the time, and referred to Henry Smith who was 27-years old on the trail as "old Uncle Henry." We should be so old, yes? ras [email protected] wrote: > Excerpts from: > “BOOK OF REMEMBRANCE OF MARION COUNTY OREGON PIONEERS” > 1840-1860 > by Sarah Hunt Steeves > Published in 1927 by the Berncliff Press, Portland, Oregon > > Page 89: > “After their arrival in October of 1846, Henry Smith bought the right to > a donation > land claim of 640 aces from one William Brown, a relative of Gabriel Brown, > Pioneer of 1844. William had built a log cabin and fenced about ten acres, > planting it with potatoes. He sold the fine claim to Mr. Smith for the > fabulous sum of one old horse and a gun, the only possessions Henry Smith had > left, except his family, when he arrived in Marion county. > > Pages 12 & 13 > Allan Davie - 1842 > (source: Louisa Miller Small, Newspaper clippings and from old acquaintances) > > “No man among the early Oregon Pioneers coming in the forties was better > known than Allan J. Davie. He was a member of a train piloted across the > wilderness of that early date by F. X. Mattieu and the only one coming to > Oregon that year. Dr. White was the captain. This company found the first > white settlement west of the Cascade mountains at Willamette Falls. > The immigration of 1842 consisted of 109 people. Fifty-five of them were > over > eighteen years of age. There were 16 wagons and much cattle in the caravan. > They left Independence, Missouri on May 16, 1842, arrived the same fall at > Willamette Falls, October 5, 1842. > Stephen H. Meek, an experienced mountaineer, and employed by the Hudson > Bay Company, acted as their guide over the mountains, as they neared Oregon > country. In the pioneer train, besides small children, were: F. X. Matthieu, > Meldron > Crawford [ed note: should be “Medorem Crawford”], C. T. Arrendall, James > Brown, > William Brown, Gabriel Brown, Barnum, Hugh Burns, Geo. W. Bellamy, Mr. Bennett > and his son Bailey (killed in route), Nat Crocker, Nathan Coombs, Pat Clark, > Alex > Copeland, A.W. Coats, Allan Davie, John Deacum, J. Dobbinhess, Samuel Davis, > Henry Foster, John Force, James Force, Levi Gertman, a man by the name of > Gibbs, L. W. Hastings, Hardin Jones, J. M. Hudspeath, John Hoffstetter, A. L. > Lovejoy, Reuben Lewis, S. Pomeroy, J. W. Perry, “Dutch Paul”, J. R. Robb, > Owen Summer, T. J. Shadden, Andrew Smith, A. D. Smith, Darling Smith, Adam > Stino, Aaron Taioner, Joel Turnham, Elijah White, David Weston, and three > Frenchmen, names not known. > Henry Foster, Levi Gertman and Allan Davie each married a daughter of > Gabriel > Brown. Allan Davie had been west before, with the Hudson Bay Company, this > being his second overland trip. > Mr. Davie was one of the signers of the famous Champoeg document. By > some, it has been said that the timely arrival of Mr. Davie and his friend > Rueben Lewis, Oregon was saved to the United States, as it was their votes > that saved the day, as they were late in arriving. > Allan Jones Davie was born February 25, 1816, in Madison county, Alabama. > He > became acquainted with Cynthia Brown, daughter of Gabriel Brown, on the long > journey across the plains, and on March 19, 1844, they were married at > Champoeg by the Rev. David Leslie, a Methodist preacher. Cynthia, at the > time of her marriage, was known as the “Belle of Oregon”, because she was > the only marriageable young woman in the country and not because of her great > beauty of face. On the contrary it was said she was very plain. Hers was a > beauty of character that improves with the years. Cynthia was the second > white woman married in the new country, her sister, who married Henry Foster, > being the first. [ed note: Henry Foster married Mary “Polly” Brown] > They took up a donation land claim near Sublimity in September, 1849, > where they continued to make their home. Mr. Davie was raised in the > Presbyterian church and the Bible he carried through his pioneering showed > much use. He died on his farm, October 11, 1875. Mrs. Davie [Mary Brown > Davie] in after years, became a member of the Christian Church at Aumsville, > where she moved a few months prior to her demise, on March 28, 1903. > The children born to Allan Davie and his wife Cynthia, were: Sally; who > married > Louis Miller; James Polk who married Sarah Lutz; Elizabeth, who married Wm. P. > Gilbert; William R; Henry C. who married M. O. Hart; Octavia who married Frank > Grounds; Martha E. who married William Hogan; and Thomas W.