Elkanah Walker (1805–1877) was an American pioneer

settler A settler or a colonist is a person who establishes or joins a permanent presence that is separate to existing communities. The entity that a settler establishes is a Human settlement, settlement. A settler is called a pioneer if they are among ...

and Christian

missionary A missionary is a member of a Religious denomination, religious group who is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thoma ...

in the

Oregon Country Oregon Country was a large region of the Pacific Northwest of North America that was subject to a long Oregon boundary dispute, dispute between the United Kingdom and the United States in the early 19th century. The area, which had been demarcat ...

in what is now the states of

Oregon Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...

and

Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...

Early life and education

Walker was born August 7, 1805, the sixth child of Jeremiah and Jane Walker, on a farm near

North Yarmouth, Maine North Yarmouth, officially the Town of North Yarmouth, is a New England town, town in Cumberland County, Maine, Cumberland County, Maine, United States. North Yarmouth is included in the Lewiston-Auburn, Maine metropolitan New England city and tow ...

. He attended the

Bangor Theological Seminary Bangor Theological Seminary was an ecumenical seminary, founded in , in the Congregational tradition of the United Church of Christ. Located in Bangor, Maine, and Portland, Maine, it was the only accredited graduate school of religion in Northe ...

Missionary career

Walker wanted to serve in

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

under the

American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions The American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions (ABCFM) was among the first American Christian mission, Christian missionary organizations. It was created in 1810 by recent graduates of Williams College. In the 19th century it was the l ...

, but unrest there led the board to direct him towards the Oregon Country. William W. Thayer introduced him to

Mary Richardson Mary Raleigh Richardson (1882/3 – 7 November 1961) was a Canadian suffragette active in the women's suffrage movement in the United Kingdom, an arsonist, a socialist parliamentary candidate and later head of the women's section of the ...

, who also wanted to serve as a missionary. On April 22, 1837, Mary and Elkanah met, 48 hours later they became engaged. They married hurriedly on March 5, 1838 near her home, as they would depart on March 7 for their mission. They had eight children in the Oregon Country: Cyrus Hamlin Walker, Abigail Boutwell Walker (mother of Ruth Karr McKee), Marcus Whitman Walker, Joseph Elkanah Walker, Jeremiah Walker, John Richardson Walker, Levi Chamberlain Walker, and Samuel Thompson Walker. The Walkers traveled to the Oregon Country with other missionaries. From August 1838 to June 1848, under the auspices of American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions, he and

Cushing Eells Cushing Eells (February 16, 1810 – February 16, 1893) was an American Congregational church missionary, farmer and teacher on the Pacific coast of America in what are now the states of Oregon and Washington. His first mission in Washington State ...

and their wives created and lived at the

Tshimakain Mission The Tshimakain Mission started in September 1838, with the arrival of Congregationalist missionaries Cushing and Myra Fairbanks Eells and Elkanah and Mary Richardson Walker to the area along Chamokane Creek at the community of Ford, Washington. ...

, studying the local language and bringing their Protestant faith to the

Spokane People The Spokan or Spokane people are a Indigenous peoples of the Northwest Plateau, Native American Plateau tribe who inhabit the eastern portion of present-day Washington (state), Washington state and parts of northern Idaho in the United States o ...

. In 1842, Elkanah Walker with support from Cushing Eells printed the ''Spokane Primer'', a

Salish Salish () may refer to: * Salish peoples, a group of First Nations/Native Americans ** Coast Salish peoples, several First Nations/Native American groups in the coastal regions of the Pacific Northwest ** Interior Salish peoples, several First Na ...

language primer. This was the first book written in Washington. On November 29, 1847, Cayuse Indians massacred the members of the

Whitman Mission Whitman Mission National Historic Site is a United States National Historic Site located just west of Walla Walla, Washington, at the site of the former Whitman Mission at Waiilatpu. On November 29, 1847, Dr. Marcus Whitman, his wife Narcissa ...

in Walla Walla. Elkanah Walker and Cushing Eells were supposed to be at the Whitman Mission during the time of the massacre, but Elkanah Walker became sick, and Cushing Eells did not want to leave the families without support with during winter. The Oregon Mounted Volunteers escorted the Eells and Walker families to the area of

Oregon City, Oregon Oregon City is the county seat of Clackamas County, Oregon, United States, located on the Willamette River near the southern limits of the Portland metropolitan area. As of the 2020 census, the city population was 37,572. Established in 1829 ...

on June 22, 1848.

Later life and death

After arriving in Oregon City, Elkanah Walker purchased a wagon on credit and began freighting goods. He and his family moved to

Forest Grove, Oregon Forest Grove is a city in Washington County, Oregon, United States, west of Portland, Oregon, Portland. Originally a small farm town, it is now primarily a commuter town in the Portland metro area . Settled in the 1840s, the town was platted in ...

in October 1849, where he purchased a

donation land claim The Donation Land Claim Act of 1850, sometimes known as the Donation Land Act, was a statute enacted by the United States Congress in late 1850, intended to promote homestead settlements in the Oregon Territory. It followed the Distribution-Pree ...

. He began farming and preaching. For many years he served Congregational churches in Forest Grove. Walker was a member of the first Board of Trustees of

Whitman College Whitman College is a private liberal arts college in Walla Walla, Washington. The school offers 53 majors and 33 minors in the liberal arts and sciences, and it has a student-to-faculty ratio of 9:1. Founded as a seminary by a territorial l ...

in 1860. He gave land to the college on which the first building was erected. Elkanah Walker died at Forest Grove on November 21, 1877. Mary Walker lived until 1896 or 1897.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Walker, Elkanah 1805 births 1877 deaths American Congregationalist missionaries Bangor Theological Seminary alumni Oregon pioneers People from Forest Grove, Oregon People from North Yarmouth, Maine People from pre-statehood Washington (state) Whitman College people Congregationalist missionaries in the United States

Early life and education

Missionary career

Later life and death

See also

References