01Summary
The Hudson's Bay Company's headquarters on the north bank of the Columbia River. Before 1846 many emigrants arrived here by boat and got food, seed and credit from Dr. John McLoughlin before settling in the Willamette Valley.
02History
The Hudson's Bay Company began building Fort Vancouver in late 1824 on the north bank of the Columbia River, a few miles upstream from the mouth of the Willamette, and moved it to its present site in 1829. It was the company's supply depot and headquarters west of the Rocky Mountains. A wooden stockade enclosed more than a dozen buildings, a village outside was home to hundreds of workers and their families, and farms and pastures around it helped feed the post.
Chief factor John McLoughlin ran the fort from 1825 to 1845. The company did not want American settlers in Oregon, but McLoughlin sold food, seed and tools on credit to emigrants who arrived worn out and hungry. Company governor George Simpson was troubled by that credit and by falling profits, and in 1846 McLoughlin left the company and moved to Oregon City.
The Oregon Treaty of 1846 put the fort in United States territory. The company moved its western headquarters north to Fort Victoria on Vancouver Island in 1849 and left Fort Vancouver in 1860. The U.S. Army set up a post beside it in 1849, later called Vancouver Barracks, and kept soldiers there for more than 150 years.
03Today
Fort Vancouver National Historic Site has rebuilt the stockade and several buildings on their original spots, including the chief factor's house. The site also includes the old Army barracks and McLoughlin's house in Oregon City.
04People connected here
05Stops nearby
The Oregon Trail ran about 2,170 miles from Independence, Missouri, to Oregon City. The stops just before and after this one are below. You can also follow the whole route on the interactive map.