First Coastal Expeditions
Posted by: 
Volcanoguy
N 44° 31.266 W 124° 04.249
10T E 414903 N 4930310
This history sign is located at the parking lot for Ona Beach State Park.
Waymark Code: WMD0Y1
Location: Oregon, United States
Date Posted: 11/03/2011
Views: 2
Marker Name: First Coastal Expeditions
Marker Text: Alexander R. McLeod led the first overland expeditions to Oregon’s central and southern coast between 1826-27. McLeod, a Chief Trader for the Hudson’s Bay Company at FOrt Vancouver, sought furs and trading opportunities with tribes such as the Tillamook, Umpqua, Coos, and Coquille. Local tribes also provided information, canoes, and other assistance.
The McLeod expeditions included French Canadians, such as Michel Laframboise who served as an interpreter, as well as Hawaiians, and Iroquois Indians. These explorations opened this portion of Oregon’s coast to commercial trapping and further exploration.
McLeod’s first expedition camped on the banks of nearby Beaver Creek from June 29 to July 10, 1826. Calling this stream the “Nackito River,” McLeod noted, “a good many Beaver have been caught . . . .” This camp served as a temporary base from which the party trapped on local streams, traded for furs, and hunted for food.
McLeod’s first expedition (May-August 1826) left Fort Vancouver and traveled up the Willamette River in two separate groups; on by boat, the other on horseback. The expedition then traveled west across the Yamhill Valley and over the mountains to the coast. They continued south along the coast to the Siuslaw River, and retraced their route back to Fort Vancouver.
The second expedition (September 1826-March 1827) also left Fort Vancouver in two groups; but this time while one party traveled by boat up the Willamette River, those on horseback crossed the Tualatin Plains. Once rejoined in the Willamette Valley, they traveled south and followed the Umpqua River to the coast and then continued south to the Rogue River. After traveling up the Coquille River watershed, the party looped back to the coast and inland for further trading and trapping before returning to Fort Vancouver.
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