Page:Oregon Historical Quarterly volume 14.djvu/398

From Wikisource
Jump to navigation Jump to search
This page has been proofread, but needs to be validated.
358
George H. Himes

the two empty houses. The frame house was occupied by a Baptist Missionary.[1] We sailors were soon detailed down the river about one mile to a place called George's Point, where we cut and hauled the logs by hand about a half mile and built a double log house.

I would like to know if any of the remains of that house are extant today. We built a small frame house near the log house. Us sailors named the place "Sharksville." Wonder if any one in Astoria of today ever heard it called "Sharksville?"

Thanking you for any favors you may show in the above matter, I beg to remain, Yours very truly,

BURR OSBORN,

The postmaster of Astoria sent the foregoing letter to Judge J. Q. A. Bowlby, a pioneer of 1852, long a resident of Astoria, who responded to Mr. Osborn's request by sending a number of publications relating to Astoria and vicinity, to which the following reply was received:

Union City, Michigan, March 24th, 1913.

J. Q. A. Bowlby, Esq., Astoria, Oregon,

Dear Sir: On thoroughly examining the chart you recently sent me, I am convinced that we struck the breakers south of the channel, the wind at the time being westerly and on the flood tide. We landed on Clatsop beach several miles down the river from Astoria, between nine and ten o'clock in the evening, the tenth of September, 1846, and our first landing of half of the crew was about daylight. The first fire that was built was made out of the wreck of the sloop of war Peacock, U. S. N. The boats returned for the balance of the crew and landed about four o'clock A. M. Our boats consisted of the Captain's gig, a whale boat, first cutter and launch. The gig was the first boat loaded with the ship papers and the sick with the surgeon. The roll of the vessel brought the flukes of the anchor in contact with the boat and stove her all to pieces, but through the precaution of the captain in ordering all the ends

of the running rigging to be thrown overboard, the boat's crew


  1. Rev. Ezra Fisher, who came to Oregon in 1845.