THE PETER SKENE OGDEN JOURNALS
Editorial Notes by T. C. Elliott
Our last view of Mr. Ogden was on July 18 th, 1827, at some point on Snake River near Huntington, Oregon (see Or. Hist. Quarterly for June, 1910, p. 222), as he was return- ing from the expedition of that year, which had taken him into parts of Oregon unknown to white men before that time. We now renew the acquaintance thirty-six days later at Fort Van- couver, when he starts for another Snake Country expedi- tion; this time to regions already familiar to him, in south- eastern Idaho. The journeyings this season are quite easily traced as to general direction and often as to particular locality. The Indian trail from the Walla Walla river across the Blue mountain range to the Grande Ronde valley can be quite cer- tainly identified and across southern Idaho from the mouth of Burnt river to the Portneuf many names are yet recogniz- able. The party keeps to the north of the line of the Oregon Short Line Railroad, up the course of Boise river (then Reed's river) to its source and then across Big Camas Prairie and the various water courses to the sinks of Lost river, and then makes a dash across the lava beds to the Snake and Portneuf. The canyon through which Little Lost river leaves the moun- tains was then evidently called Day's Defile. The winter of 1827-8 is a very long and severe one, and Thos. McKay, who is in charge of a detached trapping party on the waters of Salmon river, is unable to rejoin Mr. Ogden until May. So many horses are used for food or have died of exposure that Mr. Ogden builds canoes to carry his furs down the Snake river, but evidently abandoned that purpose. Unfortunately the record is silent for a whole month of the return journey. He reaches Fort Nez Perces, or Walla Walla, again on July 19th, 1828, with returns far exceeding his expectations, which must have meant more than three thousand beaver skins. While at Fort Vancouver the following month Mr. Ogden must have become acquainted with Jedediah S. Smith of the American fur traders (who reached there after disaster on the
