McLoughlin Memorial Association
The McLoughlin House stands today as a reminder of the great contribution Dr. John McLoughlin made to the settlement of the Oregon Country. Dr. McLoughlin was chief factor (superintendent) of the British Hudson's Bay Company (HBC) based at Ft. Vancouver on the Columbia River. The fur trade brought the first permanent white settlers to the area. Dress hats made of beaver fur were worn by men and women around the world. British, French and American trappers swarmed over the western wilderness to bring in the sought-after pelts.
Dr. McLoughlin crossed the Rockies in 1824 and established Ft. Vancouver in 1825. He proved to be a shrewd businessman, but he was always fair in dealing with natives and settlers alike.
When American pioneers arrived on the Oregon Trail, they asked McLoughlin for supplies to help them survive their first winter in Oregon. His kindness to them would eventually cost him his job with the HBC. He had purchased HBC's land claim at Willamette Falls (Oregon City), and he and his family moved into his newly-built mansion in 1846 after being forced to retire. He died in this home in 1857.
Dr. John McLoughlin’s key role in Oregon's early history prompted a later state legislature to name him the ‘Father of Oregon.When the McLoughlin House faced demolition in 1909, the McLoughlin Memorial Association was formed and money was raised to move the house to a public park atop the bluff. McLoughlin's home opened as a museum in 1910.
It continues to draw thousands of visitors each year from all over the world.
In 1941, Congress designated the McLoughlin House a National Historic Site, the first in the West.
The McLoughlin House was added to the National Park System in 2003 as a unit of Fort Vancouver National Historic Site. It is the flagship site of several historic homes in Oregon City. These sites include the Barclay House and the Rose Farm, where the first Oregon Territorial Legislature met in July 1849. Authentic furnishings, artifacts, and early photos take visitors back 150 years to the beginnings of the ‘American West.’
