Eugene Skinner
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Eugene Franklin Skinner (September 13, 1809 – December 15, 1864) was an early American settler in
Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...
and the founder of the city of
Eugene, Oregon Eugene ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Oregon. It is located at the southern end of the Willamette Valley, near the confluence of the McKenzie and Willamette rivers, about east of the Oregon Coast. As of the 2020 United States Census, Eu ...
, which is named after him. Skinner was born in
Essex, New York Essex is a Administrative divisions of New York#Town, town in Essex County, New York, Essex County, New York (state), New York, United States overlooking Lake Champlain. The population was 621 at the 2020 census. The town is named after locations i ...
. His father was Major John Joseph Skinner and his brother was St John Skinner, assistant postmaster under President
Andrew Johnson Andrew Johnson (December 29, 1808July 31, 1875) was the 17th president of the United States, serving from 1865 to 1869. He assumed the presidency as he was vice president at the time of the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. Johnson was a Dem ...
. His mother died while Skinner was young. At age 14, Skinner moved with his family to
Green County, Wisconsin Green County is a county (United States), county located in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the population was 37,093. Its county seat is Monroe, Wisconsin, Monroe. Green County is included in the M ...
. As an adult, Skinner lived in
Plattsburgh, New York Plattsburgh ( moh, Tsi ietsénhtha) is a city in, and the seat of, Clinton County, New York, United States, situated on the north-western shore of Lake Champlain. The population was 19,841 at the 2020 census. The population of the surrounding ...
briefly before settling in
Hennepin, Illinois Hennepin is a village located on the Illinois River in Putnam County, Illinois, United States. The population was 757 in 2010, an increase of 50 since the 2000 census. It is the county seat and second largest village in Putnam County. Hennepin is ...
as county sheriff. He married Mary Cook on November 28, 1839. In May 1845, he and his wife Mary Cook Skinner traveled overland to California, wintering at
Sutter's Fort Sutter's Fort was a 19th-century agricultural and trade colony in the Mexican ''Alta California'' province.National Park Service"California National Historic Trail."/ref> The site of the fort was established in 1839 and originally called New Helve ...
. In 1846, the Skinners headed north to the
Oregon Country Oregon Country was a large region of the Pacific Northwest of North America that was subject to a long dispute between the United Kingdom and the United States in the early 19th century. The area, which had been created by the Treaty of 1818, co ...
, joining the party of
Elijah Bristow Elijah Bristow (1788–1872) was the first white settler to stake a claim and build a permanent cabin in 1846 in the upper Willamette Valley, in what is now Lane County, Oregon, United States. He and his wife Susannah Gabbert Bristow established ...
in exploring the
Willamette Valley The Willamette Valley ( ) is a long valley in Oregon, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. The Willamette River flows the entire length of the valley and is surrounded by mountains on three sides: the Cascade Range to the east, ...
south of present-day
Polk County, Oregon Polk County is one of the 36 counties in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2020 census, the population was 87,433. The county seat is Dallas. The county is named for James Knox Polk, the 11th president of the United States. Polk County is ...
. Skinner took a claim downriver of Bristow's claim, and was advised by the local
Kalapuya The Kalapuya are a Native Americans in the United States, Native American ethnic group, people, which had eight independent groups speaking three mutually intelligible dialects. The Kalapuya tribes' traditional homelands were the Willamette Va ...
Indian tribe to build high up due to floods. Following this advice, he built his first cabin on the hill known as
Skinner Butte Skinner Butte (often mistakenly called Skinner's Butte) is a prominent hill on the north edge of downtown Eugene, Oregon, near the Willamette River. A local landmark, it honors city founder Eugene Skinner and is the site of the municipal ...
. The Skinners farmed and raised a family of five children: four daughters (Mary, Leonora, Phoebe, and Amelia) and one son, St John. Skinner operated a ferry service across the
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. Flowing northward b ...
. Historian Robert Clark suggests that Skinner deliberately chose the land he claimed because it was the best location for a local ferry monopoly. After Oregon was organized as a US territory in 1849, Skinner became the local postmaster. In 1851, Skinner and local judge David Matteson Risdon laid out the town of Eugene City (shortened to "Eugene" in 1889). Skinner donated a portion of his property for county buildings, and took up practicing law, serving as a county clerk and trustee for Eugene City. Skinner took ill after trying to save his cattle during a flood in 1861, and suffered ill health for the last few years of his life before dying in Eugene on December 15, 1864. He is buried in the Masonic Cemetery in Eugene.


See also

*
Statue of Eugene Skinner ''Eugene Skinner'' is an outdoor bronze sculpture of the founder of the city named after him, installed outside the Eugene Public Library in Eugene, Oregon, in the United States. The life-sized statue was created by local artist Jim Carpenter, wh ...
, installed outside the Eugene Public Library


References


External links


Eugene Skinner
sculpture representation, i
Building Oregon: Architecture of Oregon & the Pacific Northwest
University of Oregon database {{DEFAULTSORT:Skinner, Eugene F. 1809 births 1864 deaths Illinois sheriffs Oregon pioneers Oregon postmasters Lawyers from Eugene, Oregon People from Essex, New York People from Plattsburgh, New York People from Hennepin, Illinois 19th-century American lawyers