Webley John Hauxhurst

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Webley John Hauxhurst, Jr. (1809-1874) was a pioneer in Oregon Country. He helped build the first grist mill in Oregon, participated in the Willamette Cattle Company, and was a participant at the Champoeg meeting where he voted for the creation of a provisional government.

Contents 1 Early life 2 Oregon 3 Later life 4 See also 5 Further reading 6 References

[edit] Early life

Hauxhurst was born in Brooklyn, New York in 1806.^[1] As a young man he became a sailor, and later deserted his ship while in California. He spent three years there in Monterey working as a carpenter before leaving.^[2]

[edit] Oregon

Webley John Hauxhurst traveled to Oregon in 1834. He came with Ewing Young and Hall J. Kelley from California, arriving at Fort Vancouver on the Columbia River on October 17.^[1] The next year, 1835, he helped to build the first grist mill in the Willamette Valley to mill grain.^[1] This mill he would later sell to Thomas McKay, the stepson of Doctor John McLoughlin, the Hudson's Bay Company Chief Factor at Fort Vancouver.^[1] Hauxhurst was also an investor in the Willamette Cattle Company in 1837 that brought over 600 head of cattle to Oregon from California.^[3] Originally, he was also going to accompany the group and help drive the cattle to Oregon, but changed his mind after the ship Loriot was delayed in sailing.^[4]

On Saturday, February 28, 1837, Webley Hauxhurst was married.^[5] The Reverend Jason Lee of the Methodist Mission then located at Mission Bottom married Miss Mary to Webley at the Mission house.^[5] Mary was a Native American from the Yamhill tribe.^[1] Hauxhurst would then became the mission's first white convert.^[1]

In 1843 in the aftermath of Young’s death in 1841, the settlers of the region began discussions about forming a government as a continuation of the Champoeg Meetings.^[6] Then in May of that year, there was large meeting at Champoeg on the 2nd where a vote was taken on whether or not to form a government.^[1] Hauxhurst participated in this meeting and voted for the creation of the Provisional Government of Oregon that would last until 1849.^[7]

[edit] Later life

After selling the grist mill, he moved to the Mill Creek area of what is now Salem, Oregon.^[1] In Salem he would serve on the board of trustees for Willamette University before moving to Tillamook County on the Oregon coast.^[8] Prior to this in 1844, Joel Turnham threatened to hurt Hauxhurst and his wife, but was shot and killed by Deputy P.E. Pickerell before any harm could be done to the Hauxhursts.^[9] Then in July of 1846 the couple was divorced.^[10] Webley John Hauxhurst then died in 1874.^[8]

[edit] See also

• Oregon Institute

[edit] Further reading

• Tillamook History : Sequel to Tillamook Memories. 1975. Tillamook Pioneer Association.

[edit] References

	Pioneer History of Oregon (1806–1890)
Topics	Oregon Country · Oregon Treaty · Oregon missionaries · Executive Committee · Oregon Trail · Oregon boundary dispute · Pacific Fur Company · Provisional Government of Oregon · Hudson's Bay Company
Events	Treaty of 1818 · Russo-American Treaty · Champoeg Meetings · Whitman massacre · Donation Land Claim Act
Places	Fort Astoria · Oregon Mission · Fort Vancouver · Champoeg, Oregon · Fort William · Barlow Road · Whitman Mission
People	George Abernethy · Sam Barlow · Tabitha Brown · Abigail Scott Duniway · Philip Foster · Peter French · Joseph Gale · William Gilpin · David Hill · Jason Lee · Asa Lovejoy · John McLoughlin · Joseph Meek · Ezra Meeker · John Minto · Joel Palmer · Sager orphans · Henry H. Spalding · Marcus Whitman · Narcissa Whitman · Ewing Young
Oregon History	Native Peoples History · History to 1806 · Pioneer History · Modern History