1877 Cattle Drive from Willamette Valley to Imnaha River

Date: 8 Jun 1877 to 1899
Location: Oregon, United States
Surname/tag: Dunlap, McCaw, Findley,Lewis,Crawford,

"On June 8, 1877, John Knox and Hugh De Calb left Brownsville with cattle- 60 or 70 head and started for the Touchet. They arrived in Waitsburg, Washington Territory on June 29, 1877. They were exactly 3 weeks on the road. This was my Father's [John Knox] first trip out of Brownsville, except a hunting trip to Prineville one winter. An old German, Francis Frank and a Young man by the name of Low, Uncle Dave, Tim A Lewis (married Lou Crawford, Aunt Mary Dunlap's sister) with the boys. They had some cattle. "Uncle Hugh was chosen boss and Francis Frank drove the team. The other two helped herd. Uncle Bob and Bee Crawford helped herd across the mountains. When they reached Cash Creek (just at the foot of Sand Mountain of the Santiam Road) they turned back and went back to Brownsville. When they got to Camp Polk the situation was quite different as the cattle struck grass. Father was chief cook assisted by Francis Frank. First Camp was on Squaw Creek. They crossed the Toll Bridge on the Deschutes at Millers Bridge. Amount of toll charged for cattle has been forgotten. Second camp on Crooked River, next camp Willow Creek, came thru Grass Valley, swam the cattle at John Day and came thru by what is now Fossil, on across to Heppner, crossed the Umatilla River below the agency on up the east side of the Wildhorse to Centerville (now Athena). "The night they camped at Athena there was a camp meeting across the road. Pasture was secured from Bob Kopic who had married one of the George Finley daughters and the boys gave him a little lame cow in payment for the pasture. On up to Milton and then thru to Dry Creek and turned the cattle loose and on the [to?] Waitsburg. "Papa and Uncle Hugh went to see Aunt Lizzie and Uncle Jap. "Uncle Hugh played for a swing the first 4th of July. "Papa came down to Prescott and worked for Uncle Sam Erwin (Aunt Mary McCaw Erwin's Mother was Grandmother's sister- her name was Sarah Finley). "Uncle Dave and Tim Lewis returned by boat to the valley where Uncle Dave's family lived. They reached home about the time the Piute War broke out. The Joseph War broke out about the same time. "Papa worked all summer for Uncle Sam, and in the fall he and Uncle John McCaw went to Wallowa and took up places adjoining about three miles above the town of Wallowa. "Uncle Hugh stayed with Aunt Lizzie and went to school for a while. "First summer Uncle Hugh worked for Lewis Cox and Ves Cannon. Still stayed in Waitsburg. He took the cattle over the spring of 1878. In the fall of 1878 he went to Wallowa and stayed all winter. Drove team and wagon loaded with fruit. Went over the Thomas and Ruckles Road up the Umatilla. Stayed with Papa. Papa, Uncle Hugh and Uncle John McCaw took their cattle down and wintered them on The Joseph Creek. "As soon as spring opened up Papa and Alex Finley went down on snow shoes and pulled their supplies in on handsled from Chesnimness [now Chesnimnus Creek, a tributary to Joseph Creek] to Joseph Creek to see how the cattle wintered. They were fine. Finley returned but Papa stayed. Later Finley's and Uncle Hugh went in again, but with horses. Papa and Uncle Hugh brought their cattle and Uncle John McCaw's cattle out, drove the cattle out by foot through the snow to Chesnimness. Uncle Hugh came out for the 4th and then returned and helped build fence, split rails, etc. Papa and Uncle John sheared sheep. Uncle Hugh never returned from 1879 for 45 years. Papa came out to harvest and then worked on the railroad here for a while. Uncle hugh worked in harvest and then hauled wheat. He stayed in Waitsburg that winter and played for dances. Met Aunt Sarah then. Next winter worked for the Hutchinsons, also next summer, fall and winter. They moved to Paha and Uncle Hugh accompanied them. "In the fall of 1882 Papa and Uncle Hugh went down horseback to Brownsville. They stayed there a year. Page 476 "Next year (1883) they sent Grandmother and Grandfather [John Alexander Dunlap] up on a boat to Uncle Sam's and the boys brought up some cattle, clothes and bedding. "Grandmother Dunlap died at Uncle Sam Erwins in the fall of 1884 [26 Jul 1884]. She was born in Indiana Oct. 29, 1816 and was married before leaving Illinois. She was rather fair and tall. She was buried at the IOOF Cemetery at Waitsburg, Washington. "In 1884 Uncle Hugh helped Sam Hutchinson various places in the fall. Grandfather and Uncle Bob and Papa went to the Imnaha from Prescott in a hack. They stopped to see Uncle Hugh at LaGrande where he was harvesting. "Grandfather and Papa stayed at Alex B. Finley's while Uncle Bob returned to Waitsburg to get Aunt Mary (Pool) and Emma. He brought them back and settled on the Imnaha about 2 miles above the bridge. Emma and Aunt Mary stayed at Jack Johnsons while Grandfather, Papa and Uncle Bob constructed a dug out for them to live in. They all lived in the dug-out until the next fall when they built a lumber house. While at the Johnsons before going to the Imnaha, Jack Johnson, Ben Johnson, Waldo Chase, Papa and Uncle Bob went hunting. They got 20 deer. Papa and Uncle Bob got ten and the other three got ten. "In the spring the men broke up the land, sod and brushy river bottom land, took out an irrigation ditch and planted garden. They raised some remarkably fine sugar beets. In the summer Uncle Bob and Papa came over here and harvested at Uncle Sam Erwins. In the Fall they returned to the Imnaha, where Uncle Bob hauled lumber from Prarie Creek to build the house. After Uncle Bob and Papa had built Uncle Bob's house, they hewed out logs and build grandfather a house. Papa came back to Uncle Sams in the spring and worked until fall. He returned to the Imnaha that year, but came out again and stayed. He later made a trip in there in the middle of winter. "Elmer Dunlap was born on the Imnaha Oct. 5. 1887. "Uncle Dave and Aunt Mary left the Willamette Valley in 1885 and went to the Imnaha.