John C. Ainsworth
Encyclopedia
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
pioneer businessman and steamboat owner in 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 Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
, he moved west to mine gold 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...
before immigrating to Oregon where he piloted steamships and became a founder of the Oregon Steam Navigation Company
Oregon Steam Navigation Company
The Oregon Steam Navigation Company was an American company incorporated in 1860 in Washington with partners J. S. Ruckle, Henry Olmstead, and J. O. Van Bergen...
and several banks.
Early life
Ainsworth was born in Springboro, OhioSpringboro, Ohio
Springboro is an affluent suburb of Cincinnati and Dayton located in Warren and Montgomery counties in the U.S. state of Ohio. It is in Warren County's Clearcreek and Franklin Townships and Montgomery County's Miami Township...
, on June 6, 1822. His parents died while he was 13 years old, so he went to work for his uncle in Farmington, Iowa
Farmington, Iowa
Farmington is a city in Van Buren County, Iowa, United States. The population was 756 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Farmington is located at , on the east bank of Des Moines River....
. They became partners in a business selling goods from boats along the Ohio River
Ohio River
The Ohio River is the largest tributary, by volume, of the Mississippi River. At the confluence, the Ohio is even bigger than the Mississippi and, thus, is hydrologically the main stream of the whole river system, including the Allegheny River further upstream...
, but soon he split from his uncle and bought a store with a partner, which was sold at a good profit after only one year. He married a young woman, Josephine Augusta Kendall, who died fifteen months later. All of this took place before Ainsworth turned twenty.
American West
Ainsworth was not done partnering with his uncle. In 1844 they bought a steamboat and started a successful packet delivery service along the upper Mississippi RiverMississippi River
The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...
. Then the 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...
hit in 1849, and he sold his share of the business to go to 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...
. The Gold Rush did not live up to his expectations, so he found a job piloting a steamer on 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...
in Oregon.
In 1851, he married the daughter of Judge S.S. White, and built a house in 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...
. In late 1860, Ainsworth and several investors started the Oregon Steam Navigation Company
Oregon Steam Navigation Company
The Oregon Steam Navigation Company was an American company incorporated in 1860 in Washington with partners J. S. Ruckle, Henry Olmstead, and J. O. Van Bergen...
(OSNC). The OSNC controlled the shipping routes of steamers, railroads, and freight lines in Washington and Oregon. By 1869, the OSNC monopolized the Columbia River
Columbia River
The Columbia River is the largest river in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. The river rises in the Rocky Mountains of British Columbia, Canada, flows northwest and then south into the U.S. state of Washington, then turns west to form most of the border between Washington and the state...
transportation market. In April 1879, Henry Villard
Henry Villard
Henry Villard was an American journalist and financier who was an early president of the Northern Pacific Railway....
purchased the OSNC for its full value of $5 million. Ainsworth retired to Oak Lawn, California, after the sale.
Later years and family
After selling out, he entered the banking business in 1883 with the Ainsworth National Bank in Portland. In 1892, he started the Central Bank of Oakland. Ainsworth had four children: George, John, Harry and Daisy. Ainsworth was a Freemason, and eventually the third Grand Master of the Oregon Masonic Lodge. After retiring to California he wrote his autobiography. He died near Oakland, California, on December 30, 1893.External links
- The Oregon Steam Navigation Company and its Related Portage Tramways from Pacific Northwest Chapter of the National Railway Historical Society
- Ainsworth & The Building Of The Northern Pacific Railroad from Washington State Railroads Historical Society Museum