Charles S. Drew
Encyclopedia
Charles Stewart Drew was a representative in the legislature of the Oregon Territory of the United States
Oregon Territorial Legislature
Oregon’s Territorial Legislature was a bicameral legislative body created by the United States Congress in 1848 as the legislative branch of the government of the Oregon Territory...

 and quartermaster general
Quartermaster
Quartermaster refers to two different military occupations depending on if the assigned unit is land based or naval.In land armies, especially US units, it is a term referring to either an individual soldier or a unit who specializes in distributing supplies and provisions to troops. The senior...

 of the territorial militia in the 1850s. During the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...

, he was a Union Army
Union Army
The Union Army was the land force that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. It was also known as the Federal Army, the U.S. Army, the Northern Army and the National Army...

 officer, serving in the 1st Oregon Cavalry
1st Oregon Cavalry
The First Regiment, Oregon Cavalry was a regiment in the volunteer Union army that participated in the American Civil War. With many men recruited from California, the regiment primarily served to protect the state of Oregon and surrounding territories in the Pacific Coast Theater of the American...

 regiment. He eventually reached the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. In 1864, he led an Army reconnaissance party into southeastern Oregon. The expedition, known as the Owyhee Reconnaissance, traveled through uncharted country from Fort Klamath to Fort Boise
Fort Boise
Fort Boise refers to two different locations in southwestern Idaho. The first was a Hudson's Bay Company trading post near the Snake River on the Oregon border, dating from the era when Idaho was part of the fur company's Columbia District. After several rebuilds, it was ultimately abandoned in...

 and back. Drew was the author of two historically important military reports; one documented Indian attacks on American settlers in the Oregon Territory
Oregon Territory
The Territory of Oregon was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from August 14, 1848, until February 14, 1859, when the southwestern portion of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Oregon. Originally claimed by several countries , the region was...

 and the other was his report of the Owyhee Reconnaissance.

Early life

Drew was born on April 2, 1825 in Bolton, Brome
Brome-Missisquoi Regional County Municipality, Quebec
- External links :* * *...

, Quebec, Canada. He emigrated to Oregon
Oregon
Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...

 in the early 1850s, settling in the Rogue River Valley. By 1853, Drew was selling supplies to the Rogue River Indian people.

Drew became a leader in the movement to join southern Oregon and northern California to create a new territory. In January 1854, a meeting was held in Jacksonville, Oregon
Jacksonville, Oregon
Jacksonville is a city in Jackson County, Oregon, United States, a few miles west of Medford. It was named for Jackson Creek, which runs through the community and was the site of one of the first placer gold claims in the area. It includes Jacksonville Historic District which was designated a U.S....

 to discuss forming a new territory. Attendees elected Drew as one of two secretaries to record the proceedings. At the meeting, letters to the United States Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....

 and the Oregon and California legislatures were drafted. The proceedings of the convention were published in leading west coast newspapers, but the project received no encouragement from legislators and interest in the idea waned.

In April 1854, Drew was appointed quartermaster general of the territorial militia by Oregon’s Democratic
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...

 governor, John W. Davis
John Wesley Davis
John Wesley Davis was a doctor and a prominent U.S. politician during the 1840s.-Early life and education:...

. Later that year, the voters of Jackson County
Jackson County, Oregon
-National protected areas:* Cascade–Siskiyou National Monument* Crater Lake National Park * Klamath National Forest * Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest * Umpqua National Forest -Demographics:...

 elected Drew as their representative in the territorial legislature. He served in the Oregon House
Oregon House of Representatives
The Oregon House of Representatives is the lower house of the Oregon Legislative Assembly. There are 60 members of the House, representing 60 districts across the state, each with a population of 57,000. The House meets at the Oregon State Capitol in Salem....

 from December 4, 1854 until February 1, 1855. However, Drew left the Democratic Party in 1855, becoming active in the Know-Nothing political movement. As a result, Governor George L. Curry
George Law Curry
George Law Curry was a United States political figure and newspaper publisher predominately in what became the state of Oregon. A native of Pennsylvania, he published a newspaper in St. Louis, Missouri, before traveling the Oregon Trail to the unorganized Oregon Country...

 removed Drew from the quartermaster general position.

In 1855, Drew was appointed adjutant
Adjutant
Adjutant is a military rank or appointment. In some armies, including most English-speaking ones, it is an officer who assists a more senior officer, while in other armies, especially Francophone ones, it is an NCO , normally corresponding roughly to a Staff Sergeant or Warrant Officer.An Adjutant...

 for the southern Oregon militia volunteer companies under Colonel John E. Ross. Beginning that summer, the southern Oregon militia was expanded because of the tense relations between Rogue River tribes and local settlers. By October, when the Rogue River Indian war
Rogue River Wars
The Rogue River Wars was an armed conflict between the US Army, local militias and volunteers, and the Native American tribes commonly grouped under the designation of Rogue River Indians, in the Rogue River Valley area of what today is southern Oregon in 1855–56...

 began, there were fifteen militia companies in the field. The local Indians kept the militia busy until June 1856, when the Indians surrendered and were sent to reservations.

In 1860, Drew sent a report to the United States Congress that documented Indian attacks in the Oregon Territory. The report was titled Communication from C. S. Drew: late adjutant of the Second regiment of Oregon mounted volunteers, giving an account of the origin and early prosecution of the Indian war in Oregon.

Civil War service

Drew served as an officer in the 1st Oregon Cavalry regiment during the American Civil War, after volunteering for service in the United States Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...

. On November 6, 1861, Drew was commissioned as a major in the 1st Oregon Cavalry. He entered active duty on December 21, 1861, and was assigned as commander at Camp Baker, near Jacksonville. He was promoted to lieutenant colonel in April 1863.

Drew remained at Camp Baker until June 1863, when he was ordered to abandon the camp and establish a new post in the Klamath Valley. Drew selected a site fifteen miles north of Agency Lake and supervised the construction of Fort Klamath during the summer of 1863. Local settlers including Lindsay Applegate
Lindsay Applegate
Lindsay Applegate was a pioneer known for blazing the Applegate Trail, an alternative end of Oregon Trail in the U.S. state of Oregon. The trail was blazed with his brothers Charles and Jesse in 1846.-Early life:...

 were unhappy that the fort was not closer to existing settlements. However, the site selected by Drew was approved in October 1863 by United States Army inspector general. The inspector general also cleared Drew of charges that he had awarded Army contracts to confederate
Confederate States of America
The Confederate States of America was a government set up from 1861 to 1865 by 11 Southern slave states of the United States of America that had declared their secession from the U.S...

 sympathizers. Drew served as commander of Fort Klamath from June 1863 through June 1864.

Owyhee Reconnaissance

In the summer of 1864, Drew was order to organize and lead an Army expedition to size up the Indian situation in southeastern Oregon and determine if additional outposts were needed to protect immigrants. Drew left Fort Klamath on July 1 on what became known as the Owyhee Reconnaissance. His reconnaissance party was made up of 39 enlisted troops, a medical officer, and eight support personnel, including scouts, teamsters, and a blacksmith.

After leaving Fort Klamath, Drew and his men proceeded to the Williamson River
Williamson River (Oregon)
The Williamson River of south-central Oregon in the United States is about long. It drains about east of the Cascade Range. Together with its principal tributary, the Sprague River, it provides over half the inflow to Upper Klamath Lake, the largest freshwater lake in Oregon...

, and then along the Sprague River, following the river to its source. Drew led his party over the low mountains into what in now Drews Valley and then over Drews Gap
Drews Gap
Drews Gap is a mountain pass in the U.S. state of Oregon traversed by Oregon Route 140. It is named for Major Charles S. Drew of the 1st Oregon Cavalry, who surveyed a route from Fort Klamath east to the Owyhee River in 1864 that became the Oregon Central Military Road.It is located between Drews...

 into the Goose Lake Valley
Goose Lake Valley
The Goose Lake Valley is located in south-central Oregon and northeastern California, United States. It is a high valley at the northwestern corner of North America’s basin and range province. Much of the valley floor is covered by Goose Lake, a large endorheic lake that straddles the...

. The expedition traveled around the north end of Goose Lake
Goose Lake (Oregon-California)
Goose Lake is a large alkaline glacial lake located in the Goose Lake Valley on the Oregon-California border. The north end of the lake is in Lake County, Oregon and the south end is in Modoc County, California. The mountains at the north end of the lake are part of the Fremont National Forest...

 and then south along the east side of the lake for 21 miles until their path crossed the Applegate Trail
Applegate Trail
The Applegate Trail was a wilderness trail through today's U.S. states of Idaho, Nevada, California, and Oregon, and was originally intended as a less dangerous route to the Oregon Territory.-Background:...

. At that point, Drew met several immigrant parties. Fearing Indian attacks, the civilian parties decide to follow Drew’s troops. The expanded company took Fandango Pass
Fandango Pass
The Fandango Pass is a gap in the Warner Mountains of Modoc County, California, USA. Located in the Modoc National Forest, its elevation is above sea level...

 over the Warner Mountains
Warner Mountains
The Warner Mountains are an 85-mile-long mountain range running north-south through northeastern California and extending into southern Oregon in the United States...

 into Surprise Valley. They then traveled northwest, passing around the north end of Cowhead Lake and over broken high desert country into the Warner Valley
Warner Valley
The Warner Valley is located in south-central Oregon, United States. It is a remote valley at the northwestern corner of North America’s Basin and Range Province. The valley is home to a chain of lakes and wetlands, known as Warner Lakes. The Warner Valley was used by Native Americans for...

. Drew’s party left the Warner Valley, moving east to the Pueblo Valley, and then north to the Army post at Camp Alvord east of Steens Mountain
Steens Mountain
Steens Mountain is a large fault-block mountain in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of Oregon. Located in Harney County, it stretches some and rises from an elevation of about above the Alvord Desert to its peak at...

. The last immigrant wagon reached Camp Alvord on August 31.
Because escort duty had slowed down their pace of travel, Drew had to cancels plans for exploring the Owyhee country
Owyhee River
The Owyhee River is a tributary of the Snake River located in northern Nevada, southwestern Idaho and southeastern Oregon in the United States. It is long. The river's drainage basin is in area, one of the largest subbasins of the Columbia Basin...

 to the river’s headwaters. Instead, Drew along with nineteen troops escorted the immigrant wagon train through the Jordon Creek Valley and on to Fort Boise
Fort Boise
Fort Boise refers to two different locations in southwestern Idaho. The first was a Hudson's Bay Company trading post near the Snake River on the Oregon border, dating from the era when Idaho was part of the fur company's Columbia District. After several rebuilds, it was ultimately abandoned in...

. Drew and his men then returned to Camp Alvord, arriving there on September 22. At Camp Alvord, Drew received orders to return immediately to Fort Klamath to participate in treaty negotiations with Indian tribes that had been skirmishing with settlers in the Klamath Valley and attacking wagon trains along the Applegate Trail.

Drew’s return route was a direct line of march from Camp Alvord to the Warner Valley. Instead of heading south to the Surprise Valley and Fandango Pass, Drew found a new pass through the Warner Mountains leading directly to the north end of the Goose Lake Valley. This new route was over one hundred miles shorter than his outbound track. Combined with the route he charted from Camp Alvord to Fort Boise, Drew cut almost three hundred miles from the original Applegate Trail route from Fort Hall
Fort Hall
Fort Hall, sitting athwart the end of the common stretch shared by the three far west emigrant trails was a 19th century outpost in the eastern Oregon Country, which eventually became part of the present-day United States, and is located in southeastern Idaho near Fort Hall, Idaho...

 to southern Oregon.

Drew successfully completed his mission, returning to Fort Klamath on October 18, 1864. However, he did not arrive in time to take part in the treaty negotiations. The peace council with the Klamath
Klamath Tribes
The Klamath Tribes, formerly the Klamath Indian Tribe of Oregon, are a federally recognized confederation of three Native American tribes who traditionally inhabited Southern Oregon and Northern California in the United States: the Klamath, Modoc, and Yahooskin...

, Modoc, and Yahooskin
Yahooskin
The Yahooskin are a band of Snake Indians comprising part of the federally recognized Klamath Tribes in Klamath County, Oregon. In 1864 they, along with the Klamath and Modoc, signed a treaty with the Federal government which established an Indian reservation in Southern Oregon for them, in...

 Indians had begun on October 9 and the treaty was signed on October 15, 1864, near Fort Klamath.

After returning from the reconnaissance, Drew submitted his resignation from the 1st Oregon Cavalry. The reason for his resignation is unknown. On November 21, 1864, Major General Irvin McDowell
Irvin McDowell
Irvin McDowell was a career American army officer. He is best known for his defeat in the First Battle of Bull Run, the first large-scale battle of the American Civil War.-Early life:...

, commander of the Army’s Department of the Pacific
Department of the Pacific
The Department of the Pacific was a major command of the United States Army during the 19th century.-Formation:The Department of the Pacific was first organized on October 31, 1853, at San Francisco, California, taking over from the previous Pacific Division. The department reported directly to...

, approved Drew’s released from active duty as soon as his Owyhee Reconnaissance report was completed. McDowell also authorized Drew to return to Jacksonville to write his report. His resignation become effective on January 31, 1865. Drew’s report was published in the Jacksonville Sentinel in serial form from January 28 to March 11, 1865. It was also published as a 32-page pamphlet, which was printed in Jacksonville.

Later life

After leaving the Army, Drew invested $1,200 in a gold mine near Jacksonville. He operated the Occidental Quartz Mill until 1868. In May 1869, The Oregon Sentinel reported that Drew was "traveling with a splendid outfit" in the employ of San Francisco businessmen. There is no record of where Drew settled or what profession he pursued after leaving Jacksonville.

Legacy

There are at least four geographic features in Oregon that bear Drew’s name, all located in Lake County
Lake County, Oregon
Lake County is a county in the high desert south central region of the U.S. state of Oregon, so named for the many lakes found within its boundaries, including Lake Abert, Hart Lake Reservoir, and Goose Lake. While Lake is among Oregon's largest counties, it is sparsely populated with 7,895...

. Drews Gap is located 14 miles (22.5 km) west of Lakeview, Oregon
Lakeview, Oregon
Lakeview is a city in Lake County, Oregon, United States. The population was 2,294 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Lake County. Although it is an incorporated city, the municipal government refers to the community as "The Town of Lakeview", and bills itself as "Tallest Town in Oregon"...

 on Oregon Route 140. Elevation at the gap is 5306 feet (1,617.3 m). Drews Valley is 2 miles (3.2 km) west of Drews Gap. Drews Creek flows southeast through Drews Valley into Goose Lake. Drews Reservoir is created by an irrigation dam on upper Drews Creek. The reservoir covers the eastern end of Drews Valley.

In addition, Drew named and recorded the location of a number of Oregon geographical features including the Sprague River, Warner Valley, and Beatys Butte.

The record of Drew’s 1864 reconnaissance through southeastern Oregon is recorded in a 32-page pamphlet titled Official Report of the Owyhee Reconnaissance, made by Lieutenant Colonel C.S. Drew, 1st Oregon cavalry, in the summer of 1864, Pursuant to the Orders of Brigadier General George Wright, Commanding Department of the Pacific. It was published in Jacksonville, Oregon in 1865 by the Oregon Sentinel Printing office. The report was also published in serial form by the Oregon Sentinel newspaper between January 28 and March 11, 1865. Original copies of the pamphlet are extremely rare. Copies are in archival collections at the University of California at Berkley, Indiana University
Indiana University
Indiana University is a multi-campus public university system in the state of Indiana, United States. Indiana University has a combined student body of more than 100,000 students, including approximately 42,000 students enrolled at the Indiana University Bloomington campus and approximately 37,000...

, and several private library collections, including The Huntington Library
The Huntington Library
The Huntington Library, Art Collections and Botanical Gardens is an educational and research institution established by Henry E. Huntington in San Marino, in the San Rafael Hills near Pasadena, California in the United States...

. It is important because it is one of the earliest records of southeast Oregon’s topography
Topography
Topography is the study of Earth's surface shape and features or those ofplanets, moons, and asteroids...

, identifying and mapping many geographic features for the first time. It also records the day-to-day details of a major Civil War era military reconnaissance operation in the western United States. In addition, Drew’s route was followed by the Oregon Central Military Wagon Road
Stone Bridge and the Oregon Central Military Wagon Road
The Stone Bridge is a causeway built by the United States Army in 1867. It crosses the marshy channel that connects Hart Lake and Crump Lake in a remote area of Lake County in eastern Oregon, United States. It was later incorporated into the Oregon Central Military Wagon Road which was completed...

.

A hardcover version of Drew’s report of Indian attacks on settlers in the Oregon Territory was published by Ye Galleon Press of Fairfield
Fairfield, Washington
Fairfield is a town in Spokane County, Washington, United States. The population was 612 at the 2010 census.-History:In 1888, E.H. Morrison named Fairfield after his wife's hometown. Fairfield was officially incorporated on March 3, 1905.-Events:...

, Washington in 1973. It was titled An Account of the Origin and Early Prosecution of the Indian War in Oregon.

External links

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