Page:Portland, Oregon, its History and Builders volume 1.djvu/75

Rh stopped and erected Fort Hall in which he stored his trading goods for the interior. He and his party reached Fort Vancouver about the same time his ship came into the Columbia and proceeding down to the lower end of Wapato island (now called Sauvies island) Wyeth established a salmon fishery and built a trading house which he named Fort William. The salmon fishery was not much of a success, but it was the commencement of salmon packing on the Columbia, an industry that brings in many million dollars yearly to this city. Wyeth proceeded to lay out a town with streets, blocks, parks, etc., which was the first candidate for the great city of this region. A half a cargo of salmon was caught, dried and salted, the ship sailed for Boston in 1838, and never returned to the Columbia. Disheartened with disease on the island and his commercial failure, Wyeth returned to Massachusetts. While Wyeth's expeditions were disastrous to himself financially, they were of immense value to the United States. He prepared a memoir to Congress, setting forth the character and resources of the country which secured the attention of the American people, and from that day on it was but a question of time and courage upon the part of the few settlers that here should be an American state and not a British province.