Major Walter Montgomery Walker (July 23, 1814 - May 4, 1896) was an American pioneer of the U.S. state of Oregon. He had risen to the rank of major during the Indian Wars, and crossed the plains in 1848 with a train of 55 wagons. He settled in the area now known as Polk County, Oregon, on the west bank of the Willamette River, not far from the current location of Walker Middle School in what is now West Salem. [1] He had brought a large supply of nursery stock with him, and quickly set about planting orchards. He found that the soil of the area was well adapted to fruit, and consequently, fruit orchards remain an important industry in the area. [1] [2]
The main products of his orchards were prunes and cherries (Salem is still known as the "cherry city") but he also grew apples, strawberries, gooseberries, grapes, pears, holly and hops.
Walker was the first Polk County Commissioner (1848) and was later elected to the Oregon Territorial Legislature in 1856.
Walker Middle School in the Salem-Keizer School District was named for him.
Salem is the capital city of the U.S. state of Oregon, and the county seat of Marion County. It is located in the center of the Willamette Valley alongside the Willamette River, which runs north through the city. The river forms the boundary between Marion and Polk counties, and the city neighborhood of West Salem is in Polk County. Salem was founded in 1842, became the capital of the Oregon Territory in 1851, and was incorporated in 1857.
Polk County is one of the 36 counties in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2020 census, the population was 87,433. The county seat is Dallas. The county is named for James Knox Polk, the 11th president of the United States.
Fruitvale is a neighborhood in Oakland, California, United States. It is located approximately 4 miles (6.44 km) southeast of Downtown, and is home to the city's largest Hispanic population, with Hispanics constituting 53.8% of Fruitvale's population. Fruitvale's ZIP code is 94601. It lies at an elevation of 49 feet.
West Salem is a neighborhood in Salem, Oregon, United States, located in the far northwest part of the city. West Salem is the only part of the city that is located in Polk County. The neighborhood is separated from the rest of Salem by the Willamette River, which serves as West Salem's southeast border. The business districts of West Salem are located on Edgewater Street and Wallace Road. As of 2012, the portion of Salem within Polk County had a population of 24,183.
Reuben Patrick Boise was an American attorney, judge and politician in the Oregon Territory and the early years of the state of Oregon. A native of Massachusetts, he immigrated to Oregon in 1850, where he would twice serve on the Oregon Supreme Court for a total of 16 years, with three stints as chief justice. Early in his legal career, he worked as a district attorney.
John Minto IV was an American pioneer born in Wylam, England. He was a prominent sheep farmer in the U.S. state of Oregon and a four-time Republican representative in the state legislature. Minto also volunteered for the militia during the Cayuse War and years later helped locate Minto and Santiam passes through the Cascade Mountains east of Salem, Oregon.
Historic ferries in Oregon are water transport ferries that operated in Oregon Country, Oregon Territory, and the state of Oregon, United States. These ferries allowed people to cross bodies of water, mainly rivers such as the Willamette in the Willamette Valley, and the Columbia, in order to transport goods, move people, and further communications until permanent bridges were built to allow faster crossing of the water. The early ferries were used by wagons and pedestrians, while later ones transported trains and then automobiles. Oregon has a few automobile ferries still in operation.
Cornelius Gilliam was a pioneer of the U.S. state of Oregon who was best known as the commander of the volunteer forces against the Cayuse in the Cayuse War. A native of North Carolina, he served in the Black Hawk War and Seminole Wars before settling in Missouri. There he served in the militia against the Mormons, was a county sheriff, and a member of the Missouri State Senate before immigrating to the Oregon Country.
Salem-Keizer School District (24J) is a school district in the U.S. state of Oregon that serves the cities of Salem and Keizer. It is the second-largest school district in the state with approximately 40,000 students and nearly 4,000 full-time equivalent (FTE) employees. It serves more than 172 square miles (450 km2) of Marion and Polk counties.
John Phillips House is a historic 1853 vernacular Greek Revival house in the Spring Valley area of Polk County, Oregon, United States. It was built for pioneer John Phillips, who came to Oregon via the Oregon Trail in 1845. He finished his journey to Oregon on the Meek Cutoff as part of Stephen Meek's "lost wagon train".
Bethel is an unincorporated community in Polk County, Oregon, United States. It sits at the base of the Eola Hills in Plum Valley. Bethel is considered a ghost town as the only remaining structure is a school, now serving as a church. The locale was named by the Rev. Glen O. Burnett for a Church of Christ in Missouri where he had served as pastor. Bethel is a common name for churches as it is a Hebrew word that means "house of god". After traveling with his family on the Oregon Trail, Burnett settled on a Donation Land Claim in 1846. Burnett later rode circuit to the surrounding area, preaching in nearby communities, including Rickreall.
Benjamin F. Hayden was an American attorney and politician in the state of Oregon. A native of Kentucky, he moved to the West Coast with the California Gold Rush in 1849 and to Oregon in 1852. A Democrat, he served in the Oregon House of Representatives, including the 1870 session as speaker of the body.
Ralph Carey Geer was an American farmer and politician in what became the state of Oregon. A native of Connecticut, he lived in Ohio and Illinois before taking the Oregon Trail west to Oregon where he started a nursery and later raised livestock and grew flax. At times a Republican and later a Democrat, he served in the Oregon House of Representatives and as the clerk for the county. He was related to both Homer Davenport and T. T. Geer.
John Daniel Boon was an American merchant and politician in what became the state of Oregon. A native of Ohio, he immigrated to the Oregon Country where he farmed and later operated a general store. A Democrat, he served as the Treasurer of the Oregon Territory and was the first Oregon State Treasurer. His former home and store are both listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Joseph Hamilton Lambert, was an American pioneer of Oregon and an orchardist who developed the Lambert cherry. A native of Indiana, he also served as a county commissioner in Multnomah and Clackamas counties in Oregon.
Robert Crouch Kinney was an American businessman and politician in what became the state of Oregon. A native of Illinois, he helped found Muscatine, Iowa, before crossing the Oregon Trail and settling in what became Oregon. In Oregon he was a prominent businessman in the milling business and served in the Oregon Territorial Legislature before being a member of the Oregon Constitutional Convention.
Frederick Waymire was an American farmer and politician in what became the state of Oregon. A native of Ohio, he served in the Oregon Territorial Legislature and was a member of the Oregon Constitutional Convention. He also helped start the La Creole Academy in Polk County and represented that county in the Oregon House of Representatives after Oregon became a state.
Dolph is an unincorporated community in Tillamook County, Oregon, United States, near the Yamhill County line. It lies at the junction of Oregon Route 22 and Oregon Route 130 between Grande Ronde and Hebo, on the Little Nestucca River. It is within the Siuslaw National Forest in the Northern Oregon Coast Range.
Henderson William Luelling was an American horticulturist, Quaker, abolitionist and early Oakland, California settler. He introduced varietal fruits to the Pacific coast, first to Oregon and later to California, and gave the Fruitvale district its name. In his later years, he led a Utopian community from California to Honduras, only to encounter overwhelming adversity, which sent him back to California.
Ira Francis Marion Butler was an American politician who served in the Oregon Territorial House of Representatives and the Oregon House of Representatives as a member of the Democratic Party. He served as Speaker of the Oregon House of Representatives from 1857 to 1858, which was the last session before Oregon's statehood. Before immigrating to Oregon, Butler served as sheriff of Warren County, Illinois, and was circuit court clerk for Stephen A. Douglas when he was an Illinois judge. After moving to Oregon in 1853, he operated a farm in Polk County and was later the county's judge.