East Gardiner near Reedsport in Douglas County, Oregon — The American West (Northwest)
Smith, Jackson & Sublette Umpqua Memorial
Smith, Jackson & Sublette Beaver Trappers
-- In Memory of --
Thomas Daws · John Gaither · John Hanna · Abraham Laplant · Joseph Lapoint · Emmanuel Lazarus · Toussaint Marechal · Martin McCoy · Joseph Palmer · Peter Ranne · John Peter Ranne · John Robeseau · Harrison G. Rogers · Charles Swift · Thomas Virgin
-- Died July 14, 1828 --
Dedicated October 28, 2023
Erected 2023 by Oregon Websites & Watersheds Project, Jedediah Smith Society, Oregon-California Trails Association.
Topics. This historical marker and memorial is listed in these topic lists: Cemeteries & Burial Sites • Exploration • Native Americans. A significant historical date for this entry is July 14, 1828.
Location. 43° 43.006′ N, 124° 5.467′ W. Marker is near Reedsport, Oregon, in Douglas County. It is in East Gardiner. Marker is at the intersection of Lower Smith River Road (County Road 48 at milepost 1), and Stables Road (County Road 498), on the left when traveling north on Lower Smith River Road. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 444-302 Lower Smith River Road, Reedsport OR 97467, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 7 other markers are within 9 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies. Jedediah Smith (approx. half a mile away); What is a Steam Donkey? (approx. one mile away); History of Local Steam Donkey (approx. one mile away); Gardiner (approx. 1.3 miles away); U.S.C.G. Station, Umpqua River, 1939 (approx. 6˝ miles away); Umpqua River Lighthouse (approx. 6.6 miles away); Brandy Bar (approx. 8.4 miles away).
More about this memorial. This stone was selected and donated by local businesses in response to a suggestion by members of the 2023 Jedediah Smith Society Rendezvous when they visited the location on April 3.
Regarding Smith, Jackson & Sublette Umpqua Memorial. The marker is a memorial to the 15 Smith, Jackson & Sublette beaver trappers who were killed here on July 14, 1828 -- historically noted as the "Umpqua Massacre" -- by local Indians, and whose remains were buried nearby on October 28, 1828 by an Hudson's Bay Company party led by Alexander R. McLeod and including Jedediah Smith and other survivors of the massacre. The burial site was officially recognized by the Oregon Commission on Historic Cemeteries on March 29, 2023 as the "Smith, Jackson & Sublette Burial Site."
Also see . . . ORWW 1828 Umpqua Memorial Project (Oregon Websites and Watersheds Project). Excerpt:
On July 14, 1828, 15 beaver trappers working for the Smith, Jackson & Sublette fur trading business and under the leadership of Jedediah Smith, were killed near the mouth of the Smith River, where it enters the Umpqua River. All of their horses, mules, guns, knives, trading goods, beaverskins, clothing, and supplies were stolen. Smith and three other men survived the attack and made it safely to Fort Vancouver, where John McLoughlin sent a Hudson's Bay Company brigade under the direction of Alexander McLeod to retrieve the stolen property. The brigade, including Smith and his men, reached the mouth of "Defeat River" on October 28, where they found:(Submitted on November 29, 2023.)
“... the Skeletons of eleven of those Miserabl Sufferers lying bleaching in the Sun, after paying the last Service to their remains we continued forward and made the Coast ...”
Additional keywords. Joint Occupancy, Oregon Country, Fort Vancouver, Hudson's Bay Company
Credits. This page was last revised on December 7, 2023. It was originally submitted on November 27, 2023, by Bob Zybach of Creswell, Oregon. This page has been viewed 229 times since then and 104 times this year. Last updated on December 2, 2023, by Bob Zybach of Creswell, Oregon. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on November 27, 2023, by Bob Zybach of Creswell, Oregon. 3, 4, 5, 6. submitted on November 28, 2023, by Bob Zybach of Creswell, Oregon. 7, 8, 9. submitted on November 30, 2023, by Bob Zybach of Creswell, Oregon. • Andrew Ruppenstein was the editor who published this page.