Liquid Highways: Early Water Travel on the Yamhill River

What was it like in Yamhill County in the mid 1800s? Kory Knutz tells the history of steamboat travel as the only way to conduct commerce in early Oregon history. Great historical photos of locations around Yamhill County. Kory does a great job telling the stories, not even reading from a script. He is the one playing the piano music in the background.

[@GrandmaBev64]

How interesting. I used to live in the old Doctors house on the Yamhill river. It was the 5th house ever built in Dayton and it is in this video. When they tore it down, it still had the watermarks on the roof from this flood. A man and 2 children died in the attic trying to get higher than the water. We were the last people to live in the old house. There's a brand new house there now. I loved that old house. Thank You for this video. I thought I would never have a good picture of it.

[@l.l.2463]

Happy new subscriber. Been here 30 years and have never been able to make heads or tails of the photos from the 1800's because things have changed so much. Well done!

[@lindastreet-ely9780]

Thanks for the very interesting presentation! We really enjoyed it. My husband's family is from Amity, and the Yamhill River flows right by their property.

[@tcboes]

Thank you. As a former West Linn resident, I very much appreciate rated this well narrated bit of history.

[@truthseeker316]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@edwardhuster8466]

Never knew they had river boats in Oregon. Thought all on Mississippi and the Missouri rivers.

[@frederickbooth7970]

My mother & I moved to Dayton from Tillamook county 25 years ago.Always have liked history! Enjoyed learning new things about this area. We were always told that 1 of our family members from the NJ area had come west on the Oregon trail. When we moved here to Stockhoff Road much to our interest we discovered Booth Bend road! This area must have been where our Oregon trail family member ended up.We also raise Thoroughbred horses. Once establishing ourselves here the horses seem to just act as if they were born here. Later we found out that Eola Village was at one time a US army remount station! Our field is somewhat special as we have been told that it has a type of vetch planted > 120 years ago that`s actually from Northern Europe.

[@truthseeker316]

That might make a great story in and of itself. Let me know if you want to explore that. Thanks for your history!

[@frederickbooth7970]

@@truthseeker316 I would be delighted to share our family history with you! Since I`m the last of the line as my parents have all passed & my closest nephews show no interest in their grandparents histories it is kind of sad to me. Our family history goes way back to the Revolutionary war where several of our family members were in the military. I have several large documents showing their rank. My father also served in the merchant marine & was torpedoed twice! Thankfully all duds as I would not be here! He traveled all over the M.E. & Iceland on those Liberty ships as well as Victory ships & old T2 tankers as he called them & old coal boats. My mothers father operated a leather goods store in New York city that went through an entire city block on Chambers street. During the 1930`s fathers mother did well supplying all manner of equine leather goods to the various equine race tracks as well as the mounted police forces throughout the country. On my Uncles ancient XP operating system PC I have several files where he found & kept the location of the bldg. as well as the history of it. My father was a journeyman plumber who scored the highest score on his state exam towards becoming a licensed union plumber here in Oregon. His father in turn had a plumbing shop in Nutley N.J. where I have a picture of him with his trucks in the 1930`s. It was called Francis plumbing. Our family also has a park & high school named after us in n Nutley as well.

[@l.l.2463]

@@frederickbooth7970 Oh PLEASE get everything you've got online!! There are undoubtedly living or future living connections who will someday want this information. Don't let it be lost! I'm not even related and my husband and I have always wondered where Booth Bend Road got its name!

[@avatarcowboy2435]

Today, so many young Oregonians, having similar aspirations to own their own place, are facing the reality of the "you will own nothing and be happy" land grabs, and have no "Oregon" where they can go to and find a place of their own. Sad. Profoundly sad.

[@truthseeker316]

I have faith that it will turn around!😊

[@danieloconnor548]

Water Highways is the correct title, I expect you to do better with future titles. If you need help let me know.

[@truthseeker316]

That was the original title of Kory's talk to the historical society.

[@l.l.2463]

That was an extremely fat-headed thing to say. His title makes it more interesting, in my opinion.

[@danieloconnor548]

@@l.l.2463 your opinion is nothing just go away if you need help doing that there is always hemlock

[@davidbarr8394]

Good stuff. Astoria established a fort in 1811, but the Brits took it in 1814, abandoned the site, and the settlement wasn't started until much later. Oregon City, on the other hand, is the oldest incorporated town west of the Rockies: settled in 1837 (Portland in 1839) and the Doctor's fort at Vancouver in 1825. So, Astoria was not first because not continuous, and until the salmon fisheries along the Columbia a non entity. Ft Vancouver earliest but also abandoned; Oregon City not only continuous but also the end of the Oregon Trail. Oregon history begins at Willamette Falls.