1924, OR: Warren N. Vaughn, Early settlement of Tillamook County

Firsthand memories of the frontier era in northwestern Oregon, from Warren N[icholas]. Vaughn (1823-1907), mention a number Jargon-related people and events.

These were published in the Tillamook (OR) newspaper, the Headlight, in 1924 and possibly into 1925. They’ve also come out as a book “Till Broad Daylight”, because they’re too rewarding to lose to the sands of history.

Warren Vaughn (image credit: Oregon Encyclopedia)

Vaughn, a New Yorker, came to Oregon Territory in 1851, at the peak of Settler immigration. He lived from 1823 to 1907.

Here’s just a sketch of some interesting things I pulled from the newspaper serial of his memories. But there’s so much more of interest in there, I promise you, you’ll be delighted if you click the links to read everything he wrote.

• Issue of October 31, 1924, pages 2 & 4-5: page 2, non-Jargon-speaking new Settlers being guided by someone we know well from Grand Ronde Reservation history, Louis Labonté (1780-1860) & his wife Hujn (?) (Kilakotah Coboway, circa 1793-1873) in 1852; the local pronunciation “Grand Round” is mentioned a lot; page 4, “the ‘Tehi‘ or ‘Great Man’ ” of a tribe of Tillamooks (táyí ‘chief’); page 5, “Chum or spotted salmon” (t’sə́m sámən).

*NO INSTALLMENT in Nov 7th issue*

• Issue of November 14, 1924, page 2-3 & 6 — page 2, the explorers steal boards from a currently unoccupied traditional Tillamook big house (they know the residents are away fishing; the writer details how these boards are traditionally made and states they are exceptionally “valuable to them”); Indigenous people show up & Cook talks Jargon with them “Hyhn Indians (háyú ínjən-s*) –Indian Sam was making ‘Tanuranimas,’ this was a great Indian Doctor” (t’əmánəwas ‘guardian spirit power’); “Tillacom or friend” (tílixam); Chief (of the) Kilchis (tribe) “could not ‘savvy’ Jargon” but [White friend] Sam could talk a bit of (pidgin I’d think) Tillamook; “hias close” (hayas-ɬúsh ‘very good’); page 3, “Halo Injun” (hílu ínjən* ‘no Natives’); page 6 “the great salt ‘chuck,‘ or ocean” (sáltsəqw i.e. ‘saltwater’); Indigenous man guiding them from Grand Ronde could talk a bit of English; ” ‘moosum‘ or sleep” (músum)…” ‘satkum poleachly,’ or midnight” (sítkum púlakʰli)…”Inipoos” (ínəpʰu-s ‘flea-s’)…”the ‘close ille,’ or prairie” (ɬúsh-íliʔi, i.e. ‘good land’)…” ‘wake close‘ or not good” (wík-ɬúsh, i.e. ‘bad’)…” ‘Chickaman dollars,’ or silver money” (chíkʰəmin dála)…” ‘Boston man‘ or white man”…Indian Tom was then about 10 and “could talk jargon, but I understood very little of it”…” ‘wake close,’ or ‘not good to eat’ “…” ‘mox dollar pe sitcum‘ or $2.50″ (mákwst dála pi sítkum, i.e. ‘two dollars and a half’)…” ‘mox dollar‘ “…
• Issue of November 21, 1924, page 2 — ” ‘Boston men’ (white men)” (bástən-mán) …” ‘kilapied’ or turned around” (k’ílapay)…” ‘fire ships’ or steamers they [=that] were ‘hias‘ or very large” (páya-shíp…háyásh)…

Issue of November 28, 1924, pages 2-3 & 7 — NO CHINOOK JARGON…

• Issue of December 5, 1924, pages 2-3 & 7— page 2, the “Miami Indians” (máyʔmi ‘downstream’, a Tillamook Salish tribe)
• Issue of December 12, 1924, pages 3-5 & 7-8 — page 5, “Hias Sunday” as Indigenous people’s term for any big celebration (háyásh sánti, a ‘big Sunday’)
• Issue of December 19, 1924, pages 2-3 & 6 — page 2, the personal name “turnip latate” for an Indigenous woman (tə́nip-latét ‘turnip-head’)… page 6, “Boston sick…Indian sick” (bástən sík…ínjən* sík, ‘White-people’s disease…Natives’ disease’) …”Boston soldiers” (‘American/White soldiers’)…
• Issue of December 26, 1924, page 2 — “Halo Muck-a-muck” (hílu mə́kʰmək, ‘without food; no food’)

The end of December 1924 is as far as the Oregon Historical Newspapers collection reaches for this newspaper; I found no more issues in Newspapers.com or Chronicling America.

ikta mayka chaku-kəmtəks?
Ikta maika chako-kumtuks?
What have you learned?
And, can you say it in Jargon?