James A. O'Neil
Encyclopedia
James A. O’Neil was an American
businessman and politician in the Oregon Country
and later Oregon Territory
. A New York
native, he took part in the Champoeg Meetings
and helped form the Provisional Government of Oregon
. Prior to the formation of a government he participated in the Willamette Cattle Company
, and later served as a judge in the Provisional Government.
in 1800. He was partly educated in legal studies there. In 1834, James joined Nathaniel Wyeth’s fur trading company, the Pacific Trading Company, that was organized to exploit the fur trade
along the west coast of North America.
and Willamette
rivers at present day Portland, Oregon
. O’Neil helped build Wyeth’s Fort William
on today’s Sauvie Island
. The venture was a failure, and O’Neil moved up the Willamette Valley
and took a land claim near what is now Wheatland, Oregon
, in 1835. In 1837, the Willamette Cattle Company
was formed by area settlers, led by Ewing Young
. O’Neil joined the company and sailed to California
aboard the Loriot
and then drove cattle back to Oregon.
In 1838, he was one of the people to sign a petition circulated around the Euro-American settlements of the Oregon Country
that was sent to the United States Congress
asking for the United States to extend its jurisdiction over the region. The U.S. did not do so until it formed the Oregon Territory
in 1848 after settling the Oregon boundary dispute
with Great Britain
. In 1841, Ewing Young died without an heir, leading to a series of meetings
at Champoeg
on the French Prairie
. At a later meeting in 1843, settlers voted 52 to 50 in favor of forming the Provisional Government of Oregon
with O’Neil voting with the proponents.
Following this vote, he assisted in the creation of the government by serving on the first legislative committee that wrote the Organic laws of Oregon
, and was elected as a justice of the peace for the Yamhill District. This assistance included selling several legal texts to the legislative committee to help frame the Organic law. In 1845, he was elected as a judge for the district. O’Neil also built a grist mill that year, the first in what became Polk County.
. He was buried there, but later moved to the Hart Cemetery.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
businessman and politician in the Oregon Country
Oregon Country
The Oregon Country was a predominantly American term referring to a disputed ownership region of the Pacific Northwest of North America. The region was occupied by British and French Canadian fur traders from before 1810, and American settlers from the mid-1830s, with its coastal areas north from...
and later 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...
. A New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
native, he took part in the Champoeg Meetings
Champoeg Meetings
The Champoeg Meetings in Oregon Country were the first attempts at governing in the Pacific Northwest by United States European-American pioneers. Prior to this, the closest entity to a government was the Hudson's Bay Company, mainly through Dr...
and helped form the Provisional Government of Oregon
Provisional Government of Oregon
The Provisional Government of Oregon was a popularly elected government created in the Oregon Country, in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. It existed from May 2, 1843 until March 3, 1849. Created at a time when no country had sovereignty over the region, this independent government...
. Prior to the formation of a government he participated in the Willamette Cattle Company
Willamette Cattle Company
The Willamette Cattle Company was formed in 1837 by pioneers in the Willamette Valley of present day Oregon, United States. The company was formed with the express purpose of purchasing cattle in California to bring to Oregon Country...
, and later served as a judge in the Provisional Government.
Early life
James O’Neil was born in the state of New YorkNew York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
in 1800. He was partly educated in legal studies there. In 1834, James joined Nathaniel Wyeth’s fur trading company, the Pacific Trading Company, that was organized to exploit the fur trade
Fur trade
The fur trade is a worldwide industry dealing in the acquisition and sale of animal fur. Since the establishment of world market for in the early modern period furs of boreal, polar and cold temperate mammalian animals have been the most valued...
along the west coast of North America.
Oregon
Wyeth’s party arrived in 1834 at the confluence of the ColumbiaColumbia River
The Columbia River is the largest river in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. The river rises in the Rocky Mountains of British Columbia, Canada, flows northwest and then south into the U.S. state of Washington, then turns west to form most of the border between Washington and the state...
and Willamette
Willamette River
The Willamette River is a major tributary of the Columbia River, accounting for 12 to 15 percent of the Columbia's flow. The Willamette's main stem is long, lying entirely in northwestern Oregon in the United States...
rivers at present day Portland, Oregon
Portland, Oregon
Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...
. O’Neil helped build Wyeth’s Fort William
Fort William (Oregon)
Fort William was a fur trading outpost built by American Nathaniel Jarvis Wyeth in 1834. It was located on the Columbia River on Wappatoo Island in what is now part of Portland, Oregon. It was the site of a murder and the first Euro-American trial in what is now the state of Oregon...
on today’s Sauvie Island
Sauvie Island
Sauvie Island, in the U.S. state of Oregon, originally Wapato Island or Wappatoo Island, is the largest island along the Columbia River, at 26,000 acres , and the largest river island in the United States...
. The venture was a failure, and O’Neil moved up the Willamette Valley
Willamette Valley
The Willamette Valley is the most populated region in the state of Oregon of the United States. Located in the state's northwest, the region is surrounded by tall mountain ranges to the east, west and south and the valley's floor is broad, flat and fertile because of Ice Age conditions...
and took a land claim near what is now Wheatland, Oregon
Wheatland, Oregon
Wheatland is an unincorporated community in Yamhill County, Oregon, United States. It is near the Willamette River where the Wheatland Ferry takes traffic across the river into Marion County. Its elevation is ; it is in the Pacific Time Zone.-External links:...
, in 1835. In 1837, the Willamette Cattle Company
Willamette Cattle Company
The Willamette Cattle Company was formed in 1837 by pioneers in the Willamette Valley of present day Oregon, United States. The company was formed with the express purpose of purchasing cattle in California to bring to Oregon Country...
was formed by area settlers, led by Ewing Young
Ewing Young
Ewing Young was an American fur trapper and trader from Tennessee who traveled Mexican southwestern North America and California before settling in the Oregon Country. As a prominent and wealthy citizen there, his death was the impetus for the early formation of government in what became the state...
. O’Neil joined the company and sailed to California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
aboard the Loriot
Loriot (ship)
Loriot was an American sailing ship involved in exploration of the Pacific Northwest coast of North America. This brig took a member of a United States presidential expedition to survey land and the inhabitants of the area in the 1830s...
and then drove cattle back to Oregon.
In 1838, he was one of the people to sign a petition circulated around the Euro-American settlements of the Oregon Country
Oregon Country
The Oregon Country was a predominantly American term referring to a disputed ownership region of the Pacific Northwest of North America. The region was occupied by British and French Canadian fur traders from before 1810, and American settlers from the mid-1830s, with its coastal areas north from...
that was sent 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....
asking for the United States to extend its jurisdiction over the region. The U.S. did not do so until it formed 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...
in 1848 after settling the Oregon boundary dispute
Oregon boundary dispute
The Oregon boundary dispute, or the Oregon Question, arose as a result of competing British and American claims to the Pacific Northwest of North America in the first half of the 19th century. Both the United Kingdom and the United States had territorial and commercial aspirations in the region...
with Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
. In 1841, Ewing Young died without an heir, leading to a series of meetings
Champoeg Meetings
The Champoeg Meetings in Oregon Country were the first attempts at governing in the Pacific Northwest by United States European-American pioneers. Prior to this, the closest entity to a government was the Hudson's Bay Company, mainly through Dr...
at Champoeg
Champoeg, Oregon
Champoeg is a former town in the U.S. state of Oregon. Now a ghost town, it was an important settlement in the Willamette Valley in the early 1840s. It is positioned halfway between Oregon City and Salem and the site of the first provisional government of the Oregon Country...
on the French Prairie
French Prairie
French Prairie is a prairie located in Marion County, Oregon, United States, in the Willamette Valley between the Willamette River and the Pudding River, north of Salem...
. At a later meeting in 1843, settlers voted 52 to 50 in favor of forming the Provisional Government of Oregon
Provisional Government of Oregon
The Provisional Government of Oregon was a popularly elected government created in the Oregon Country, in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. It existed from May 2, 1843 until March 3, 1849. Created at a time when no country had sovereignty over the region, this independent government...
with O’Neil voting with the proponents.
Following this vote, he assisted in the creation of the government by serving on the first legislative committee that wrote the Organic laws of Oregon
Organic Laws of Oregon
The Organic Laws of Oregon were two sets of laws passed in the 1840s that established a structure for government in the Oregon Country in the northwest corner of North America. These laws were created by a legislative committee formed after the Champoeg Meetings...
, and was elected as a justice of the peace for the Yamhill District. This assistance included selling several legal texts to the legislative committee to help frame the Organic law. In 1845, he was elected as a judge for the district. O’Neil also built a grist mill that year, the first in what became Polk County.
Later years
O’Neil then moved to Benton County and lived at Tampico where he operated a store. In 1853, he joined a commission working to build a railroad connection to California, remaining until 1854. The next year he married Tabitha C. Bowman. James A. O’Neil died in September 1874, at his farm in Polk County near the community of LewisvilleLewisville, Oregon
Lewisville is an unincorporated community in Polk County, Oregon, United States, named for 1845 pioneer David R. Lewis. Its post office opened in 1868 and closed in 1905. Nothing remains of the community....
. He was buried there, but later moved to the Hart Cemetery.