Fort Astoria was the Pacific Fur Company's primary fur trading post in the Northwest, and was the first permanent U.S. settlement on the Pacific coast. It was an important post for American exploration of the region and was influential in helping establish American claims to Oregon Country.

Founding

The fort was founded in March 1811 when the company arrived on board Captain Jonathan Thorn's ship,Tonquin. By the end of May the fort was complete, built with bark covered logs enclosing a stockade that had guns mounted for defense.^[1] By the time an overland party joined them in February, 1812, they had constructed a trading store, a blacksmith's shop, a dwelling house, and a storage shed for pelts acquired from trapping or trading with the local native Americans. Cannons were arranged around the perimeter for defense. The outpost was to serve as an administrative center for various satellite forts such as Fort Okanogan.

Operations

The inhabitants of the fort differed greatly in background and position, and were structured into a corporate hierarchy. The partners of the company were at the top, with clerks, craftsmen, hunters, and laborers in descending order. Nationalities included Scots, French Canadian, American, Hawaiian, and Native American. They found life quite monotonous, with the fish and vegetable diet boring. Venerial diseases from the native women were problematic.

Types of fur taken at the fort included beaver, sea otter, squirrel, and red fox.

Thorn and the Tonquin left for Russian America in June 1812, but the ship and crew was destroyed at Vancouver Island after troubles with the First Nations there.

Astor sent the Beaver to resupply the fort and to carry fur to Russian America, and thence to Canton in exchange for highly valuable Chinese goods.

Ownership change

The War of 1812 between the British and Americans brought tension to this fort. In 1813, the Pacific Fur Company officials, desiring to abandon the fort, sold it to the British North West Company, who had been running low on food supplies. Despite this sale to a British company, the fort was seized by the British ship HMS Racoon and was renamed Fort George. This transfer of the fort cemented the transition of the area from American to British control.

While the fort was restored to the U.S. in 1818, control of the fur trade would remain under the British until American pioneers following the Oregon Trail began filtering into the port town in the mid-1840's.

See also

• Albatros
• Astor Expedition

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