Page:Oregon Historical Quarterly volume 16.djvu/207



PLACE OF RIVER IN NORTHWEST HISTORY 187

THE COMING OF THE "COLONEL WRIGHT/' COMMANDED BY

LEONARD WHITE, WITH E. W. BAUGHMAN

AS MATE AND PILOT.

Some one has described these early days as the coming and going of thousands of miners. They at first all came up the Snake river. The steamboat was the most practicable method of taking care of this new transportation of both men and freight. Former Governor of Washington, George E. Cole, thus describes the trip of the first steamboat to Lewiston :

"In the spring of 1861 the Colonel Wright, the first steamer navigating the Columbia river above The Dalles, left Celilo on a trip to ascertain the practicability of navigating the Snake and Clearwater rivers, so as to transport freight and passengers as near as possible to the newly discovered mines of Oro Fino. Captain Len White, an experienced pilot of the upper Willam- ette river, was in charge of the boat. He had previously gone from Wallula via Walla Walla to the mouth of the Clearwater, and procuring a skiff, he went down the Snake river to its mouth and thence to Wallula.

"Living at Walla Walla at the time, and having a short time before made a trip by land to the mines, I was requested by Captain White, who had previously been in my employ as pilot on the Willamette river, to meet the "Colonel Wright" at Wallula and make the contemplated trip with him. I went aboard the boat at that point. Quite a number of passengers from Portland and some freight were on board. Among them I recall the names of Captain Ankeny, Lappeus, McMillan, Slater and Vic. Trevitt of The Dalles. The first day we reached the foot of Palouse rapids. On the following day we entered the Clearwater and tied up at a point near the mouth of the Lapwai for the night.

"Making the big eddy in the morning, we encountered much difficulty and made slow progress. It was necessary to get out a long line with which the boat had been provided. The passengers and the boat's crew attempted to propel the