Transportation
7
After the destruction of the Whitman Mission in 1847, wagon trains altered their route and began following the Umatilla River west, fording the stream from 20 to 500 feet south of this point as its course shifted. The lower crossing became an important campsite where fertile bottom lands along the Umatilla supported immense rye grass, wild hay grass, and tules, providing abundant feed for livestock as well as wood and water. On the west bank, the white-frame Indian Agency sold scarce provisions and offered a welcome sight and stopping place, where emigrants repaired equipment, prepared for the road ahead, rested, and decided whether to turn north toward the Columbia and its rapids or continue west across the Columbia Plateau toward Well Spring. Travelers in 1849, 1852, and 1853 recorded the crossing, the fatigue of cattle after the Blue Mountains, the beauty and farming promise of the valley, the gravelly riverbed, and the agency house on the west bank.
Hear stories like this as you drive
ExploreHere reads historical markers out loud as you pass them: over 325,000 stories across the US. No account needed.
4.7 · 800+ ratings · Free
FIND IT
Echo, Oregon · United States
