George Abernethy
| George Abernethy | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Governor of the Provisional Government of Oregon | |
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In office 1845–1849 |
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| Preceded by | Second Executive Committee |
| Succeeded by | Position dissolved (Joseph Lane as territorial governor) |
| Constituency | Oregon Country |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
October 7, 1807 New York City, New York, U.S. |
| Died | March 2, 1877 (aged 69) Portland, Oregon, U.S. |
| Spouse(s) | Anne Pope |
| Occupation | Merchant, politician |
George Abernethy (October 7, 1807 – March 2, 1877) was an American politician, pioneer, notable entrepreneur, and first governor of Oregon under the provisional government based in the Willamette Valley, an area later a part of the American state of Oregon. He traveled to Oregon Country as a secular member of the Methodist mission, where he became involved in politics and helped found the first American newspaper west of the Rocky Mountains.
Abernethy was born on October 7, 1807 in New York City. He was of Scottish descent. He received his education in New York as well as learning the commercial trade. In 1830, Abernethy married Anne Pope. Missionary Jason Lee recruited Abernethy in 1839 to join him at the Methodist Mission in Oregon Country. He, his wife, and two children joined the Great Reinforcements that sailed on the ship Lausanne around Cape Horn to the Pacific Northwest.
Arriving on June 1, 1840, Abernethy was placed in charge as Steward of the Oregon Mission, focusing on the Mission’s mercantile business in Oregon City. His specific instructions from the Methodist board requested an annual
"account of all the goods, merchandise, clothing, farming and mechanical utensils, the produce of the farms, and the mechanical shops, the stock on the farm at a fair valuation, together with the worth of the houses, barns, mills, and ships, or whatever else may belong to the Mission, and likewise charge to each member of the Mission family the article or articles he or she may take from the store or farms for his or her use..."
Among his early accomplishments were establishing the first newspaper (the Oregon Spectator) in the Oregon Territory and establishing good business relations with the British Hudson's Bay Company. Abernethy was also a member of the Oregon Lyceum in Oregon City. In 1842 he introduced a resolution there to hold off forming an independent country. This was adopted and counter-acted a resolution introduced by Dr. John McLoughlin of the HBC that had earlier been adopted by the Lyceum.
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