Oliver Cromwell Applegate
Encyclopedia
Captain Oliver Cromwell Applegate (June 11, 1845–October 11, 1938) was an American politician and Indian agent in the state of Oregon
. A member of the Applegate family that helped open the Applegate Trail
, he was raised in Southern Oregon
where he later was in charge of the Klamath Indian Reservation. He worked as a scout during the Modoc War
, was an Indian agent for all of Oregon, and was an editor of the Ashland Tidings
.
, in what is now Polk County, Oregon
, on June 11, 1845. At the time the area was part of the Oregon Country
, but in 1848 became part of the Oregon Territory
. He was the sixth son and seventh child of the well-known pioneer, Lindsay Applegate
, a native of Kentucky
, and his wife, Elizabeth (Miller) Applegate, who was born in Tennessee
in 1816. Lindsay Applegate was one of the leaders of the Great Migration of 1843 which Americanized Oregon and was prominent in the early Indian wars, and as an explorer.
When Oliver Applegate was five years, the family moved to the Yoncalla Valley in middle western Oregon; there were only three or four other families in that region at that time besides the Applegate contingent, which consisted of the brothers, Charles, Lindsay and Jesse
, and their families.
The system of common schools was rudimentary then, and their continuity could not be depended upon for more than a few weeks or months in each year. The Applegate families were fairly well supplied with books, however, to supplement the otherwise meager opportunities for education, and as a rule the scions of these strong frontiersmen availed themselves of every opportunity offered to inform their minds, as well as to become accomplished horsemen, efficient in the use of the rifle and otherwise prepared for the border wars which were liable to occur at any time with the aboriginal inhabitants of the country.
In 1860 the family removed to the Siskiyou Mountains
near the California boundary, Lindsay Applegate having become owner of the toll road over the mountains, and in 1862, removed to Ashland, Oregon
, which continued to be the family home for many years.
In 1865, his father was appointed United States Indian Agent over the Klamaths and Modocs at Fort Klamath. According to the treaty of 1864, the Indians were to be gathered on the Klamath Reservation. The fort was the only place east of the Cascades in that immediate region where there were any white people . The younger Applegate was appointed assistant to the agent, and that was the beginning of a service that lasted for several years, under various agency administrations, during which time he gained influence over the tribes of southeastern Oregon, which he used to good advantage later when the Modoc outbreak of 1872 occurred. This influence probably more than any other agency resulted finally in the conversion of the most turbulent of the Indian tribes into quiet farmers and stockmen.
When 21 years of age, Applegate had charge of a unique company of scouts, called the "Ax and Rifle Company," because every man carried an ax as well as a rifle. This company consisted of fifty men, the captain the only white man, while different chiefs of the various tribes ranked as lieutenants and sergeants. They cleared the way through the pine forests for a great wagon train of provisions and beef cattle that came down to the Klamath agency from The Dalles
, marking the first step in the commencement of operations under the treaty of 1864 for the benefit of the southeastern tribes of Oregon. This was during the war with the Snake or Paiute
Indians.
For some time before the Modoc outbreak of 1872, Applegate had charge of Yainax sub-agency, forty miles west of the headquarters' agency, then under supervision of Agent Laroy S. Dyar. Near Yainax was located the main band of the Modocs. under the famous old Chief Schonchin, and with him were to be domiciled the turbulent bands under the haughty Modoc chieftain, Captain Jack. The story of how Captain Jack and his band refused to come onto the reservation, and the subsequent events, make up the history of the Modoc War
. Applegate played a prominent part in the bloody drama.
In 1876, some of Applegate's friends asked to have him appointed general Indian agent for Oregon, assuming that in such a way his unusual experience in the management of Indian affairs could be used to good purpose in promoting progressive conditions to the several agencies in the state. Ex-Senator Nesmith, who was himself a Democrat
, was an ardent advocate of the plan and wrote as follows, to Hon. Zach Chandler, Grant's Secretary of the Interior
, with whom he had served in the U.S. Senate: "Mr. Applegate is a gentleman of culture and ability, and, unlike myself, he is a prominent Republican
and is as honest as is possible for a man to be possessing his perverted political notions. You will pardon me, I know, for proposing appointments to an administration which I do not indorse, but I do so in order to promote the reforms which you have so happily inaugurated." In 1898, Applegate took charge of the Klamath Reservation as United States Indian agent, and served as such for five years. Congress then discontinued the position of agent and he was appointed bonded superintendent of the agency and training school, a position which he resigned after serving two years.
During this period of seven years he did much to advance the Indians in civilization, helped establish their claim to over half a million dollars for lands excluded from the reservation by erroneous boundary surveys, and developed comprehensive plans for irrigation and drainage, which added to the wealth of the reservation, an area approximating in size the state of Delaware, when that splendid section shall be freed from reservation restraints.
He was identified with various enterprises looking to the development of southern Oregon, had experience in the newspaper business, and had a reputation as a writer of both prose and verse.
at Chicago in 1892. Oliver Cromwell Applegate died on October 11, 1938, at the age of 93.
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 member of the Applegate family that helped open the Applegate Trail
Applegate 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:...
, he was raised in Southern Oregon
Southern Oregon
Southern Oregon is a region of the U.S. state of Oregon south of Lane County and generally west of the Cascade Range, excluding the southern Oregon Coast. Counties include Douglas, Jackson, Klamath, and Josephine. It includes the Southern Oregon American Viticultural Area, which consists of the...
where he later was in charge of the Klamath Indian Reservation. He worked as a scout during the Modoc War
Modoc War
The Modoc War, or Modoc Campaign , was an armed conflict between the Native American Modoc tribe and the United States Army in southern Oregon and northern California from 1872–1873. The Modoc War was the last of the Indian Wars to occur in California or Oregon...
, was an Indian agent for all of Oregon, and was an editor of the Ashland Tidings
Ashland Daily Tidings
The Ashland Daily Tidings is an afternoon newspaper serving the city of Ashland, Oregon, United States. Like its sister publication, the Medford-based Mail Tribune, it is part of the Dow Jones Local Media Group chain, a subsidiary of Dow Jones....
.
Early years
Oliver Applegate was born in a log cabin in Yamhill DistrictYamhill County, Oregon
-National protected areas:*Siuslaw National Forest *Tualatin River National Wildlife Refuge -Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 84,992 people, 28,732 households, and 21,376 families residing in the county. The population density was 119 people per square mile . There were 30,270...
, in what is now Polk County, Oregon
Polk County, Oregon
Polk County is a county located in the U.S. state of Oregon. The county is named for James Knox Polk, the 11th president of the United States. In 2010, its population was 75,403. The seat of the county is Dallas....
, on June 11, 1845. At the time the area was part of 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...
, but in 1848 became part of the Oregon Territory
Oregon Territory
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...
. He was the sixth son and seventh child of the well-known pioneer, Lindsay Applegate
Lindsay Applegate
Lindsay Applegate was a pioneer known for blazing the Applegate Trail, an alternative end of Oregon Trail in the U.S. state of Oregon. The trail was blazed with his brothers Charles and Jesse in 1846.-Early life:...
, 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...
, and his wife, Elizabeth (Miller) Applegate, who was born in Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
in 1816. Lindsay Applegate was one of the leaders of the Great Migration of 1843 which Americanized Oregon and was prominent in the early Indian wars, and as an explorer.
When Oliver Applegate was five years, the family moved to the Yoncalla Valley in middle western Oregon; there were only three or four other families in that region at that time besides the Applegate contingent, which consisted of the brothers, Charles, Lindsay and Jesse
Jesse Applegate
Jesse Applegate was an American pioneer who led a large group of settlers along the Oregon Trail to the Oregon Country. He took part in the early government of Oregon, and helped establish the Applegate Trail as an alternative route to the Oregon Trail.-Early life:Jesse Applegate was born in Henry...
, and their families.
The system of common schools was rudimentary then, and their continuity could not be depended upon for more than a few weeks or months in each year. The Applegate families were fairly well supplied with books, however, to supplement the otherwise meager opportunities for education, and as a rule the scions of these strong frontiersmen availed themselves of every opportunity offered to inform their minds, as well as to become accomplished horsemen, efficient in the use of the rifle and otherwise prepared for the border wars which were liable to occur at any time with the aboriginal inhabitants of the country.
In 1860 the family removed to the Siskiyou Mountains
Siskiyou Mountains
The Siskiyou Mountains are a coastal mountain range in the northern Klamath Mountains in northwestern California and southwestern Oregon in the United States. They extend in an arc for approximately from east of Crescent City, California northeast along the north side of the Klamath River into...
near the California boundary, Lindsay Applegate having become owner of the toll road over the mountains, and in 1862, removed to Ashland, Oregon
Ashland, Oregon
Ashland is a city in Jackson County, Oregon, United States, near Interstate 5 and the California border, and located in the south end of the Rogue Valley. It was named after Ashland County, Ohio, point of origin of Abel Helman and other founders, and secondarily for Ashland, Kentucky, where other...
, which continued to be the family home for many years.
Career
During the winter of 1862, Oliver attended the district school in Ashland, and the next spring received a certificate and in the ensuing fall became the teacher, and for four successive winters, conducted the Ashland school. In the spring of 1863, he became a member of an independent military company, the only one in Southern Oregon, a cavalry company known as the "Mountain Rangers," to which many of the leading citizens of the country belonged. He served as a private in this company the first year, the second year as a sergeant and in the third year was chosen captain, receiving his commissions before he had reached his twentieth year from Addison C. Gibbs, the old war governor of Oregon.In 1865, his father was appointed United States Indian Agent over the Klamaths and Modocs at Fort Klamath. According to the treaty of 1864, the Indians were to be gathered on the Klamath Reservation. The fort was the only place east of the Cascades in that immediate region where there were any white people . The younger Applegate was appointed assistant to the agent, and that was the beginning of a service that lasted for several years, under various agency administrations, during which time he gained influence over the tribes of southeastern Oregon, which he used to good advantage later when the Modoc outbreak of 1872 occurred. This influence probably more than any other agency resulted finally in the conversion of the most turbulent of the Indian tribes into quiet farmers and stockmen.
When 21 years of age, Applegate had charge of a unique company of scouts, called the "Ax and Rifle Company," because every man carried an ax as well as a rifle. This company consisted of fifty men, the captain the only white man, while different chiefs of the various tribes ranked as lieutenants and sergeants. They cleared the way through the pine forests for a great wagon train of provisions and beef cattle that came down to the Klamath agency from The Dalles
The Dalles, Oregon
The Dalles is the largest city and county seat of Wasco County, Oregon, United States. The name of the city comes from the French word dalle The Dalles is the largest city and county seat of Wasco County, Oregon, United States. The name of the city comes from the French word dalle The Dalles is...
, marking the first step in the commencement of operations under the treaty of 1864 for the benefit of the southeastern tribes of Oregon. This was during the war with the Snake or Paiute
Paiute
Paiute refers to three closely related groups of Native Americans — the Northern Paiute of California, Idaho, Nevada and Oregon; the Owens Valley Paiute of California and Nevada; and the Southern Paiute of Arizona, southeastern California and Nevada, and Utah.-Origin of name:The origin of...
Indians.
For some time before the Modoc outbreak of 1872, Applegate had charge of Yainax sub-agency, forty miles west of the headquarters' agency, then under supervision of Agent Laroy S. Dyar. Near Yainax was located the main band of the Modocs. under the famous old Chief Schonchin, and with him were to be domiciled the turbulent bands under the haughty Modoc chieftain, Captain Jack. The story of how Captain Jack and his band refused to come onto the reservation, and the subsequent events, make up the history of the Modoc War
Modoc War
The Modoc War, or Modoc Campaign , was an armed conflict between the Native American Modoc tribe and the United States Army in southern Oregon and northern California from 1872–1873. The Modoc War was the last of the Indian Wars to occur in California or Oregon...
. Applegate played a prominent part in the bloody drama.
In 1876, some of Applegate's friends asked to have him appointed general Indian agent for Oregon, assuming that in such a way his unusual experience in the management of Indian affairs could be used to good purpose in promoting progressive conditions to the several agencies in the state. Ex-Senator Nesmith, who was himself a Democrat
Democratic Party of Oregon
The Democratic Party of Oregon, based in Portland, is the official Oregon affiliate of the United States Democratic Party. It is recognized by the state of Oregon as a major political party, along with the Oregon Republican Party...
, was an ardent advocate of the plan and wrote as follows, to Hon. Zach Chandler, Grant's Secretary of the Interior
United States Secretary of the Interior
The United States Secretary of the Interior is the head of the United States Department of the Interior.The US Department of the Interior should not be confused with the concept of Ministries of the Interior as used in other countries...
, with whom he had served in the U.S. Senate: "Mr. Applegate is a gentleman of culture and ability, and, unlike myself, he is a prominent Republican
Oregon Republican Party
The Oregon Republican Party is the state affiliate of the United States Republican Party in Oregon, headquartered in Lake Oswego. The first state party convention was held in Salem on April 21, 1859, and its first nominee for Congress, Portland attorney David Logan...
and is as honest as is possible for a man to be possessing his perverted political notions. You will pardon me, I know, for proposing appointments to an administration which I do not indorse, but I do so in order to promote the reforms which you have so happily inaugurated." In 1898, Applegate took charge of the Klamath Reservation as United States Indian agent, and served as such for five years. Congress then discontinued the position of agent and he was appointed bonded superintendent of the agency and training school, a position which he resigned after serving two years.
During this period of seven years he did much to advance the Indians in civilization, helped establish their claim to over half a million dollars for lands excluded from the reservation by erroneous boundary surveys, and developed comprehensive plans for irrigation and drainage, which added to the wealth of the reservation, an area approximating in size the state of Delaware, when that splendid section shall be freed from reservation restraints.
He was identified with various enterprises looking to the development of southern Oregon, had experience in the newspaper business, and had a reputation as a writer of both prose and verse.
Later years and family
In 1878, Applegate was married to Miss Ella Anderson, a daughter of Rev. Jesse Marion Anderson, a pioneer Methodist minister, who was widely known in southern Oregon as a man of ability and worth. The bride, like the groom, was a native of Oregon, having been born in the territory in 1855. They had three sons and three daughters. Frank Lindsay, the oldest, was born October 10, 1879; Annie Elizabeth, September 13, 1881; Laroy Gilbert, August 19, 1885; Rachel Emma, November 23, 1887; Jennie Margaret, April 5, 1894; and Oliver C., Jr., July 5, 1896. As of 1912, Applegate resided at Klamath Falls, Klamath County, Oregon. In politics, he has always been a consistent Republican and was a delegate to the Republican National ConventionRepublican National Convention
The Republican National Convention is the presidential nominating convention of the Republican Party of the United States. Convened by the Republican National Committee, the stated purpose of the convocation is to nominate an official candidate in an upcoming U.S...
at Chicago in 1892. Oliver Cromwell Applegate died on October 11, 1938, at the age of 93.
External links
- Guide to the Oliver Cromwell Applegate Papers 1841-1938 (Washington State University)