Page:Portland, Oregon, its History and Builders volume 1.djvu/305



part in making not only a rich and prosperous city, but also a moral, peaceful, healthful and clean place to raise families in.

The work of R. R. Thompson in building the city was wholly allied with and a part of the work of Captain Ainsworth. Thompson went into the trans- portation business in a small way on the upper Columbia before The Dalles Portage Railway was constructed, and it was necessary to Ainsworth's plans in concentrating all the river traffic in one company to prevent any opposition from Thompson's boats. And so Thompson's boats were brought into the Ore- gon Steam Navigation Company by giving Thompson a large block of the orig- inal capital stock of that company. From that time on, Thompson's fortunes rose with the prosperity of that company, and in the final sale of the property to Henry Villard as trustee of the Transcontinental Company, Thompson re- ceived over a milHon dollars for his share of the proceeds. Thompson was the pioneer in transportation on the upper river, and had in that way aided in de- veloping territory which contributed to the upbuilding of Portland. But out- side of this and his co-operation with Ainsworth, his services to this city were not conspicuous. R, R. Thompson was born in Harrison county, Ohio, not far from the birthplace of David P. Thompson, another prominent capitalist of this city, but they were in no way related to each other.

As the life and growth of the city goes on, and for generations upon genera- tions hereafter, the name of Simeon G. Reed is likely to be more in the minds of men and women in this city than the names of all the other men above com- bined. Like Mr. R. R. Thompson, for the greater part of his career in Port- land, Mr. Reed shone by the reflected light of J. C. Ainsworth. Reed was a closer friend of Ainsworth than any other man, although Ainsworth, Reed and Thompson, were always spoken of as "The Triumvirate." Mr. Reed was al- ways a very charitable man, kind-hearted and gentle with lucky fortune dog- ging his steps throughout his life. He put a price on some mining stock in Nevada once, and then went off hunting sage hens, in Umatilla county. A great body of rich ore was uncovered in the mine, and before the San Francisco "mining sharps" could locate Reed with telegrams, that stock advanced a hun- dred thousand dollars in value, and Reed got back to the old town of Uma- tilla in time to cancel his offer before it could be taken up by his pursuers, S. G. Reed never lost any sleep or worried about matters he could not prevent. He was always ready to help any man that deserved his help if they did not ask too much. He finally came to regard his great fortune as a trust in his hands for the benefit of his fellow men. And having no children, and but few relatives when he passed away, he requested his life-long helpmeet, Mrs. Amanda Reed, to devote their wealth to the benefit of the people of the city of Portland. In pursuance of that wish, Mrs. Reed in her last will and testament, provided that after paying some legacies to relatives, the Reed millions should be de- voted to the founding of a great institution for the teaching of practical and scientific knowledge to the youth of this city. And that great bequest is now being administered to carry out the wishes of the large-hearted donors.

Of other notable men who have made their impress on the city and aided largely in establishing the useful institutions of the pioneer town, Judge P. A. Marquam is entitled to a high position. While he never made a million dol- lars, he did make enough, and made it honestly, to attract the wolves of finance and banking to rend him to pieces and rob him of what he had. The "Marquam case," wherein the supreme court of Oregon held that a trust deed was not a trust but a mortgage, will go down to future courts and judges as an anomaly in jurisprudence that is a disgrace to any state. But Judge Marquam's claim to honorable recognition in the history of Portland does not depend on either prop- erty or business. While in California, he served with distinction in the wars to subdue the Indians and protect the gold miners. He was elected county judge twice before coming to Oregon. On reaching Portland he engaged in law prac- tice and soon secured a large business. Soon after he was elected county judge