Joe Meek - Mountain Man and Trapper

When I visited Mrs. Olive Meek Riley recently, she said, "I am the daughter of Joe Meek. I was born in Linn City just across the Willamette river from Oregon City, in 1844. At first they called Linn City --Robin's Nest.

Robert Moore founded Linn city. He came to Oregon in 1840. He was speaker of the legislative committee before Oregon's provisional government was formed.

He died in 1857 when I was 13 years old. He had served in the War of 1812 and was about 60 years old when he came to Oregon in 1840.

He had served in the legislature of Missouri in the '30's and he founded the town of Osceola in Illinois. In 1850 he bought the Oregon Spectator at Oregon City, the first paper published west of the Rocky Mountains.

He was the first territorial printer and was succeeded by Asahel Bush. He named his place Robin's Nest but the provisional legislature changed the name to Linn City.

He used to run the ferry between Oregon City and Linn City. He wanted Linn City to be the seat of government for the provisional government, but a petition was presented to the Provisional legislature asking that action be deferred and Oregon City became the seat of government in place of Linn City. Linn City, my birthplace, was washed away in the big flood of 1861-62.

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Excerpted from Oregon Folks by Fred Lockley (1927) Knickerbocker Press, New York

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