Alphonso Boone
Encyclopedia
Alphonso Boone was an American pioneer
in what became the state of Oregon
. A native of Kentucky
, he was the grandson of Daniel Boone
, and lived much of his life in Missouri
. After immigrating to the Oregon Country
, he established Boones Ferry
across the Willamette River
south of Portland
near the present city of Wilsonville
.
, to Jesse Bryan Boone and Chloe Van Bibber. The grandson of frontiersman Daniel Boone, he moved to Missouri
where he lived in the mid-1820s in Montgomery County
. Boone later moved to Jefferson City
in Cole County where he ran a trading post in the 1830s to early 1840s. There he supplied emigrants preparing to cross the Great Plains
on the Oregon Trail
. He married Nancy Linville, a second cousin, on February 21, 1822, and they had 10 children before her death in the early 1839. Boone then moved to Independence
in 1841 where he continued outfitting wagon trains.
to the Willamette Valley
. He started the journey with his brother-in-law Lilburn Boggs
, former Missouri governor, but parted ways when Boggs headed for California. After reaching the valley, he took up a land claim along the Willamette River
on the south bank between Oregon City
and Champoeg
. In 1847, along with son Jesse, he established Boones Ferry
across the river. The community of Boones Landing began around the north ferry landing, which later became the city of Wilsonville
. The road leading to the ferry landing from the north was cleared by the family and became known as Boones Ferry Road, which still exists today. The route and ferry became an important transit point between Salem
and Portland
.
Alphonso and some of his boys left in 1849 for the California Gold Rush
. Alphonso Boone died in California
on February 27, 1850, along the Feather River
near Oroville
in Butte County
. His daughter Chloe married Oregon Territorial Governor and neighbor George Law Curry
in March 1848. Son Jesse continued to operate the ferry until his murder in 1872, and the ferry continued in operation until 1954.
American pioneer
American pioneers are any of the people in American history who migrated west to join in settling and developing new areas. The term especially refers to those who were going to settle any territory which had previously not been settled or developed by European or American society, although the...
in what became the state of Oregon
Oregon
Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...
. A native of Kentucky
Kentucky
The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...
, he was the grandson of Daniel Boone
Daniel Boone
Daniel Boone was an American pioneer, explorer, and frontiersman whose frontier exploits mad']'e him one of the first folk heroes of the United States. Boone is most famous for his exploration and settlement of what is now the Commonwealth of Kentucky, which was then beyond the western borders of...
, and lived much of his life in Missouri
Missouri
Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...
. After immigrating to the Oregon Country
Oregon Country
The Oregon Country was a predominantly American term referring to a disputed ownership region of the Pacific Northwest of North America. The region was occupied by British and French Canadian fur traders from before 1810, and American settlers from the mid-1830s, with its coastal areas north from...
, he established Boones Ferry
Boones Ferry
Boones Ferry was a cable ferry which crossed the Willamette River near present day Wilsonville, Oregon, USA, from 1847 to 1954. It was part of a major land-based thoroughfare in pioneer times linking fledging Portland with the pre-territorial government at Champoeg, and later Salem...
across the Willamette River
Willamette River
The Willamette River is a major tributary of the Columbia River, accounting for 12 to 15 percent of the Columbia's flow. The Willamette's main stem is long, lying entirely in northwestern Oregon in the United States...
south of Portland
Portland, Oregon
Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...
near the present city of Wilsonville
Wilsonville, Oregon
Wilsonville is a city primarily in Clackamas County, Oregon, United States. A portion of the northern section of the city is in Washington County. Originally founded as Boones Landing due to the Boones Ferry which crossed the Willamette River at the location, the community became Wilsonville in...
.
Early life
Alphonso Boone was born on November 7, 1796, in Mason County, KentuckyMason County, Kentucky
Mason County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kentucky. As of 2000, the population was 16,800. Its county seat is Maysville. The county is named for George Mason, a Virginia delegate to the U.S. Constitutional Convention, known as the "Father of the Bill of Rights"...
, to Jesse Bryan Boone and Chloe Van Bibber. The grandson of frontiersman Daniel Boone, he moved to Missouri
Missouri
Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...
where he lived in the mid-1820s in Montgomery County
Montgomery County, Missouri
Montgomery County is a county located in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies in East Central Missouri, approximately halfway between Columbia and St. Louis. As of 2000, the population was 12,136. It was named in honor of Richard Montgomery, an American Revolutionary War general killed in 1775...
. Boone later moved to Jefferson City
Jefferson City, Missouri
Jefferson City is the capital of the U.S. state of Missouri and the county seat of Cole County. Located in Callaway and Cole counties, it is the principal city of the Jefferson City metropolitan area, which encompasses the entirety of both counties. As of the 2010 census, the population was 43,079...
in Cole County where he ran a trading post in the 1830s to early 1840s. There he supplied emigrants preparing to cross the Great Plains
Great Plains
The Great Plains are a broad expanse of flat land, much of it covered in prairie, steppe and grassland, which lies west of the Mississippi River and east of the Rocky Mountains in the United States and Canada. This area covers parts of the U.S...
on the Oregon Trail
Oregon Trail
The Oregon Trail is a historic east-west wagon route that connected the Missouri River to valleys in Oregon and locations in between.After 1840 steam-powered riverboats and steamboats traversing up and down the Ohio, Mississippi and Missouri rivers sped settlement and development in the flat...
. He married Nancy Linville, a second cousin, on February 21, 1822, and they had 10 children before her death in the early 1839. Boone then moved to Independence
Independence, Missouri
Independence is the fourth largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri, and is contained within the counties of Jackson and Clay. It is part of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area...
in 1841 where he continued outfitting wagon trains.
Oregon
In 1846, Boone packed up his family and started west along the Oregon Trail himself, eventually taking the Southern RouteApplegate Trail
The Applegate Trail was a wilderness trail through today's U.S. states of Idaho, Nevada, California, and Oregon, and was originally intended as a less dangerous route to the Oregon Territory.-Background:...
to the Willamette Valley
Willamette Valley
The Willamette Valley is the most populated region in the state of Oregon of the United States. Located in the state's northwest, the region is surrounded by tall mountain ranges to the east, west and south and the valley's floor is broad, flat and fertile because of Ice Age conditions...
. He started the journey with his brother-in-law Lilburn Boggs
Lilburn Boggs
Lilburn Williams Boggs was the sixth Governor of Missouri from 1836 to 1840. He is now most widely remembered for his interactions with Joseph Smith and Porter Rockwell, and Missouri Executive Order 44, known by Mormons as the "Extermination Order", issued in response to the ongoing conflict...
, former Missouri governor, but parted ways when Boggs headed for California. After reaching the valley, he took up a land claim along the Willamette River
Willamette River
The Willamette River is a major tributary of the Columbia River, accounting for 12 to 15 percent of the Columbia's flow. The Willamette's main stem is long, lying entirely in northwestern Oregon in the United States...
on the south bank between Oregon City
Oregon City, Oregon
Oregon City was the first city in the United States west of the Rocky Mountains to be incorporated. It is the county seat of Clackamas County, Oregon...
and Champoeg
Champoeg, Oregon
Champoeg is a former town in the U.S. state of Oregon. Now a ghost town, it was an important settlement in the Willamette Valley in the early 1840s. It is positioned halfway between Oregon City and Salem and the site of the first provisional government of the Oregon Country...
. In 1847, along with son Jesse, he established Boones Ferry
Boones Ferry
Boones Ferry was a cable ferry which crossed the Willamette River near present day Wilsonville, Oregon, USA, from 1847 to 1954. It was part of a major land-based thoroughfare in pioneer times linking fledging Portland with the pre-territorial government at Champoeg, and later Salem...
across the river. The community of Boones Landing began around the north ferry landing, which later became the city of Wilsonville
Wilsonville, Oregon
Wilsonville is a city primarily in Clackamas County, Oregon, United States. A portion of the northern section of the city is in Washington County. Originally founded as Boones Landing due to the Boones Ferry which crossed the Willamette River at the location, the community became Wilsonville in...
. The road leading to the ferry landing from the north was cleared by the family and became known as Boones Ferry Road, which still exists today. The route and ferry became an important transit point between Salem
Salem, Oregon
Salem is the capital 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...
and Portland
Portland, Oregon
Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...
.
Alphonso and some of his boys left in 1849 for the California Gold Rush
California Gold Rush
The California Gold Rush began on January 24, 1848, when gold was found by James W. Marshall at Sutter's Mill in Coloma, California. The first to hear confirmed information of the gold rush were the people in Oregon, the Sandwich Islands , and Latin America, who were the first to start flocking to...
. Alphonso Boone died in California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
on February 27, 1850, along the Feather River
Feather River
The Feather River is the principal tributary of the Sacramento River, in the Sacramento Valley of Northern California. The river's main stem is about long. Its length to its most distant headwater tributary is about . Its drainage basin is about...
near Oroville
Oroville, California
Oroville is the county seat of Butte County, California. The population was 15,506 at the 2010 census, up from 13,004 at the 2000 census...
in Butte County
Butte County, California
Butte County is a county located in the Central Valley of the US state of California, north of the state capital of Sacramento. As of the 2010 census, it had a population of 220,000. The county seat is Oroville. Butte County is the "Land of Natural Wealth and Beauty."Butte County is watered by the...
. His daughter Chloe married Oregon Territorial Governor and neighbor George Law Curry
George Law Curry
George Law Curry was a United States political figure and newspaper publisher predominately in what became the state of Oregon. A native of Pennsylvania, he published a newspaper in St. Louis, Missouri, before traveling the Oregon Trail to the unorganized Oregon Country...
in March 1848. Son Jesse continued to operate the ferry until his murder in 1872, and the ferry continued in operation until 1954.
External links
- Biography of son Alphonso D. Boone
- Journal of the overland journey - Jesse Quinn ThorntonJesse Quinn ThorntonJessy Quinn Thornton was an American settler of Oregon, active in political, legal, and educational circles. He served as the 5th Supreme Judge of the Provisional Government of Oregon, presented Oregon's petition for official territorial status to Congress, served in the Oregon Legislature, and...