No wagon or cart had ever come this far west before, but here Whitman and Spalding were finally forced to abandon their cart. After a few days’ rest, the party moved on. Following the Powder River and crossing the beautiful Grande Ronde Valley, the missionaries reached the rugged, twisted Blue Mountains. Riding ahead to the crest, the Whitmans had their first view of the Columbia valley with majestic Mount Hood on the far horizon.
On the morning of September 1, the Whitmans excitedly galloped up to the gate of Fort Walla Walla, the Hudson’s Bay Company post on the Columbia. They were met by Pierre Pambrun, the chief trader, who was to be their near and good neighbor for the next few years. Two days later the Spaldings arrived with the livestock.
Needing household goods and wanting to meet the Chief Factor, Dr. John McLoughlin, the party decided to go to the Hudson’s Bay Company western headquarters at Fort Vancouver, more than 200 miles down the Columbia. Reaching the fort by boat on September 12, the missionaries completed their long journey 207 days after their departure from Angelica, N. Y. On the move for more than 6 months, and traveling more than 3,000 miles, Narcissa Whitman and Eliza Spalding had crossed the North American Continent—the first white women to do so.
A Welcome At Fort Vancouver
The stern but kindly Dr. McLoughlin gave the missionaries a warm welcome. He appreciated the significance of the ladies’ successful journey across the continent. While complimenting them on this, he must have thought to himself that they were but the vanguard of many American families to follow.
Dr. John McLoughlin, Chief Factor of the Hudson’s Bay Company in Oregon, exercised vast sway over an area extending from British Columbia to western Montana. Physically a giant and of an imperious nature, he was to the Indians “The White Eagle.” On their arrival at Fort Vancouver Narcissa wrote: “I feel I have come to a father’s house indeed, even in a strange land has the Lord raised up friends.” OREGON HISTORICAL SOCIETY
Fort Vancouver, sketched by Henry J. Warre in 1845. WASHINGTON STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY
To the surprise of the party, McLoughlin’s stores contained most of the articles needed to establish the missions: household furniture, clothing, building supplies, books and provisions; all were for sale. Narcissa wrote home that it was not necessary to bring anything from the East, for everything could be found at Fort Vancouver, “the New York of the Pacific Ocean.”