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The Monticello Convention refers to a set of two separate meetings held in 1851 and 1852 to petition Congress to split the Oregon Territory into two separate territories; one north of the Columbia River and one south.
The influx of people settling on the north side of the Columbia River in the 1840s, then under the jurisdiction of the Oregon Territory, caused political conflicts over the lack of basic needs addressed by the territorial government. Several major issues and events were the main causes to this dissatisfaction including that basic needs, such as mail, roads, military protection and law enforcement were increasingly required. The Oregon Territory government would not increase spending to satisfy these needs. Another was complaints against the Hudson's Bay Company who still held the most valuable agricultural land and their livestock would trespass on settlers lands. [1] Settlements north of the Columbia River were increasingly being cut off as the government services, Oregon City, Oregon and Salem, Oregon, required traveling for several days. [2] [3]
On July 4, 1851, complaints were brought by citizens to Olympia which were holding Independence Day celebrations. One settler, Hugh Goldsborough read the Declaration of Independence and a fiery lawyer, John Chapman, gave an inspiration address referred to as the future state of Columbia. Chapman's speech instigated an election of delegates to attend a convention at Cowlitz Landing, near present-day Toledo, Lewis County to be held the following month. [1]
The first meeting of settlers began on August 29, 1851 at Cowlitz Landing. They met to draft a petition to Congress to create a new territory north of the Columbia River. Seth Catlin, a former Illinois legislator was elected president of the convention. Taking two days, documents were prepared explaining their demands from Congress and why they needed Congress' support. The document was a 1,500-word "Memorial to Congress" listing the problems and issues facing those living north of the Columbia River. Territory and county borders were also approved as well as other elements of local governing. These documents were published in The Oregonian and the Oregon Spectator , which eventually made their way to Joseph Lane, Governor of the Oregon Territory. [1] [2] [3] The delegates were far ahead of their time in what they proposed. They recommended universal manhood suffrage beginning at the age of 18, which came about 120 year later. [1]
The second meeting, for which the convention and petition takes its name, took place in the town of Monticello, later destroyed by flooding in 1867 and currently within present-day Longview, Cowlitz County. [4] Still feeling ignored by the Oregon Territory government, 44 delegates met on November 25, 1852 to develop, complete and sign another petition to have Columbia Territory established. Although this Memorial was a shorter than the earlier Cowlitz Memorial, it was better written and quickly adopted. [5] After signing the petition, it was again forwarded on to Joseph Lane, who supported the petition and had it sent on to Congress. [2] [6]
Notable Signees: [7]
Bill H.R. 348, "to establish the territorial government of Columbia," was introduced in the House of Representatives from the Committee on Territories. It was introduced by Charles E. Stuart on January 25, 1853. Debates arose, not about whether the bill would pass, but on the name of the new territory. Richard H. Stanton, a representative from Kentucky, proposed the name Washington after George Washington to avoid confusion with the District of Columbia. The title of the bill was changed to "an act to establish the Territorial government of Washington" in the House and passed on February 10, 1853. It then passed the Senate on March 2, 1853 without any need for discussion. [5] [8] [9] After 21 months of campaigning, the bill was signed by President Millard Fillmore on March 2, 1853. [2] [1] The bill became known as the Organic Act and also served as the basis for law in Washington until it gained statehood in 1889. [6]
Cowlitz County is a county located in the U.S. state of Washington. As of the 2020 census, its population was 110,730. The county seat is Kelso, and its largest city is Longview. The county was formed in April 1854. Its name derives from the anglicized version of the Cowlitz Indian term Cow-e-liske, meaning either 'river of shifting sands' or 'capturing the medicine spirit.' Cowlitz comprises the Longview, WA Metropolitan statistical area, which is also included in the Portland-Vancouver-Salem, OR-WA Combined statistical area.
Oregon Country was a large region of the Pacific Northwest of North America that was subject to a long dispute between the United Kingdom and the United States in the early 19th century. The boundaries of the area, which had been created by the Treaty of 1818 without recognizing indigenous claims to the area, consisted of the land north of 42° N latitude, south of 54°40′ N latitude, and west of the Rocky Mountains down to the Pacific Ocean and east to the Continental Divide. Article III of the 1818 treaty gave joint control to both nations for ten years, allowed land to be claimed, and guaranteed free navigation to all mercantile trade. However, both countries disputed the terms of the international treaty. Oregon Country was the American name while the British used Columbia District for the region. Meanwhile, Indigenous nations had lived in the area since time immemorial, though with little legal recognition in the American and British legal systems. Evidence along the Salmon River shows people lived there at least 16,000 years ago, and may have populated the continent after migrating along the Pacific Coast, then following up the Columbia River into the interior.
David Swinson "Doc" Maynard was an American pioneer, doctor, and businessman. He was one of Seattle's primary founders. He was an effective civic booster and, compared to other white settlers, a relative advocate of Native American rights. His friendship with Chief Seattle was important in the formation of the city of Seattle, and it was he who proposed the city be named for this important chief. Maynard was Seattle's first doctor, merchant prince, second lawyer, Sub-Indian Agent, Justice of the Peace, and architect of the Point Elliott Treaty of 1855.
The Territory of Oregon was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from August 14, 1848, until February 14, 1859, when the southwestern portion of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Oregon. Originally claimed by several countries, the region was divided between the British Empire and the US in 1846. When established, the territory encompassed an area that included the current states of Oregon, Washington, and Idaho, as well as parts of Wyoming and Montana. The capital of the territory was first Oregon City, then Salem, followed briefly by Corvallis, then back to Salem, which became the state capital upon Oregon's admission to the Union.
The Territory of Washington was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 2, 1853, until November 11, 1889, when the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Washington. It was created from the portion of the Oregon Territory north of the lower Columbia River and north of the 46th parallel east of the Columbia. At its largest extent, it also included the entirety of modern Idaho and parts of Montana and Wyoming, before attaining its final boundaries in 1863.
The Territory of Idaho was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 3, 1863, until July 3, 1890, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as Idaho.
The Territory of Arizona was a territory of the United States that existed from February 24, 1863, until February 14, 1912, when the remaining extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the state of Arizona. It was created from the western half of the New Mexico Territory during the American Civil War.
William Nathaniel Bell, originally from Edwardsville, Illinois and later a resident of Portland, Oregon, was a member of the Denny Party, the first group of white settlers in what is now Seattle, Washington. He lived in Seattle from 1851 to 1856 and then again from 1870 till his death.
The history of Washington includes thousands of years of Native American history before Europeans arrived and began to establish territorial claims. The region was part of Oregon Territory from 1848 to 1853, after which it was separated from Oregon and established as Washington Territory following the efforts at the Monticello Convention. On November 11, 1889, Washington became the 42nd state of the United States.
Arthur Armstrong Denny was one of the founders of Seattle, Washington, the leader of the pioneer Denny Party, and later the city's wealthiest citizen and a 9-term member of the territorial legislature. Seattle's former Denny Hill was named after him; it was flattened in a series of regrading projects and its former site is now known as the Denny Regrade. The city's Denny Way, however, is named not after Arthur Denny, but after his younger brother David Denny.
Oregon pioneer history (1806–1890) is the period in the history of Oregon Country and Oregon Territory, in the present day state of Oregon and Northwestern United States.
George Gibbs (1815–1873) was an American ethnologist, naturalist and geologist who contributed to the study of the languages of indigenous peoples in Washington Territory. Known for his expertise in Native American customs and languages, Gibbs participated in numerous treaty negotiations between the U.S. government and the native tribes.
The history of Olympia, Washington, includes long-term habitation by Native Americans, charting by a famous English explorer, settlement of the town in the 1840s, the controversial siting of a state college in the 1960s and the ongoing development of arts and culture from a variety of influences.
Selucius Garfielde was an American lawyer and politician who was a Delegate to the United States House of Representatives from the Territory of Washington for two terms, serving from 1869 to 1873.
Oregon's Territorial Legislature was a bicameral legislative body created by the United States Congress in 1848 as the legislative branch of the government of the Oregon Territory. The upper chamber Council and lower chamber House of Representatives first met in July 1849; they served as the region's legislative body until Oregon became a state in February 1859, when they were replaced by the bicameral Oregon State Legislature.
James Urquhart served three terms in the Washington Territory legislature. He was also elected to three terms as a county commissioner in Lewis County, Washington. He was a delegate to the Washington State Constitutional Convention. In 1873, he laid out the town of Napavine where he was Postmaster and ran the general store. He chose the town's name from the Indian word "napavoon" meaning small prairie.
Cowlitz Prairie is in Lewis County, Washington, United States. The natural prairie roughly lies along the west side of the Cowlitz River, north of Toledo, east of Interstate 5 in Washington, and South of U.S. Route 12. The Lower Cowlitz tribal group's traditional territory includes Cowlitz Prairie. Early 19th century visitors noticed an area mainly cleared of trees and assessed its dimensions from 4 to 6 miles long, 1 to 2 miles wide, adding up to nearly 6000 acres.
Peter Crawford was a Scottish-born land surveyor who was a prominent pioneer in the Pacific Northwest. He founded Kelso, Washington and platted numerous towns in the Oregon Territory which later became the states of Oregon and Washington. He was a member of the Monticello Convention which petitioned and successfully convinced Congress to create Washington Territory out of the Oregon Territory.
William Myron King, also known as Colonel King for most of his life, was an American pioneer merchant and Oregon state legislator. He served four terms in Oregon's territorial legislature. This included one term as Speaker of the Oregon House of Representatives during the 1851 legislative session. Before immigrating to Oregon, King lived and worked in New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Missouri. After moving to Oregon in 1848, he became a merchant in Portland, and was later the county judge for Multnomah County and a member of Portland's city council.