Kalama in Cowlitz County, Washington — The American West (Northwest)
Ezra Meeker First Home Site
Photographed By Chuck Hornbuckle, July 29, 2017
1. Ezra Meeker First Home Site Marker
Ezra Meeker
First home site
1853
250 ft. south
125 ft. east
Dedicated Aug. 4, 1953
Erected 1953.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: Settlements & Settlers. A significant historical year for this entry is 1853.
Location. 46° 0.608′ N, 122° 50.71′ W. Marker is in Kalama, Washington, in Cowlitz County. Erected on August 4, 1953 by the Cowlitz County Historical Society and citizens of Kalama. Two Bronze plaques are attached to a large concrete upright monument next to the Kalama City Hall. The other plaque is dated October 26, 1916, and placed by the Daughters and Sons of the American Revolution in the State of Washington. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 320 N First Street, Kalama WA 98625, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 11 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies. Oregon Trail 1844 (within shouting distance of this marker); The Finn Hall (approx. 8.6 miles away); Woodland Community Veterans Memorial (approx. 8.9 miles away); Oregon Trail (approx. 9.8 miles away); Public Library (approx. 10.1 miles away); Warrior Rock Fog Bell (approx. 10.4 miles away in Oregon); down the trodden path...
this page online
More about this marker. The monument and top plaque were part of the DAR/SAR project in 1916 to mark the Oregon Trail with 11 markers between Vancouver and Olympia. Thanks to Carol Dunn of the Mary Richardson Walker DAR Chapter for her research to solve the mystery of who placed the Ezra Meeker plaque, a puzzle that stumped even Ezra Meeker scholars. A 2016 centennial restoration of the Oregon Trail marker series was completed by DAR and DAR with subsequent re-dedication ceremonies.
Regarding Ezra Meeker First Home Site. References: Kalama Bulletin, “Ezra Meeker Plaque Dedicated Here Saturday,” August 21, 1953; Ezra Meeker; Champion of the Oregon Trail by Webber, Bert & Margie (1992 Medford, OR), “Meeker first made a claim in January 1853… on the current site of Kalama, Washington. There, he built a log cabin and began his first farm. He did not build close to the water, which proved fortunate as there was a major flood on the Columbia soon after he claimed the land. Instead, he profited from the incident, selling logs the river left on his claim, together with trees he chopped down for lumber.” Drawing: WISAARD Property ID #15794; Ox-Team
2. Drawing of Ezra Meeker's First Home in the west.
Also see . . . Ezra Meeker (Wikipedia).
Overview: Ezra Morgan Meeker (December 29, 1830 – December 3, 1928) was an American pioneer who traveled the Oregon Trail by ox-drawn wagon as a young man, migrating from Iowa to the Pacific Coast. Later in life he worked to memorialize the Trail, repeatedly retracing the trip of his youth. Once known as the "Hop King of the World", he was the first mayor of Puyallup, Washington.(Submitted on December 11, 2023.)
Additional keywords. cabin
Photographed By Chuck Hornbuckle, July 29, 2017
3. Ezra Meeker First Home Site Marker
Photographed By Mick Hersey, September 23, 2016
4. Ezra Meeker First Home Site Marker
Photographed By Shirley A Stirling
5. Ezra Meeker First Home Site Marker
Photographed By Shirley A Stirling, August 15, 2013
6. Colorguard at the plaque re-dedication ceremony.
Credits. This page was last revised on December 11, 2023. It was originally submitted on December 5, 2023, by Shirley A Stirling of Lacey, Washington. This page has been viewed 57 times since then and 17 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. submitted on December 5, 2023, by Shirley A Stirling of Lacey, Washington. 6. submitted on December 6, 2023, by Shirley A Stirling of Lacey, Washington. • Andrew Ruppenstein was the editor who published this page.
