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Volumes have been written concerning the part which men have played in the
development of various sections of the country during pioneer times, but
comparatively little has been written concerning what has been done by pioneer
women, whose work,on the whole,has been of a quieter and therefore less
conspicuous character but is none the less important. Enshrined in the hearts
of all who knew her in the memory of the life of Mrs. Catherine S. Davis
-- a life fraught with good deeds and kind words. The spirit of helpfulness
seemed to find its embodiment in her, and no task seemed too difficult when
it would alleviate the suffering or add to the happiness of those who, like
herself , lived in the Willamette Valley in pioneer days.
Mrs Davis was born of Dutch parentage, in the state of New York, January
23, 1811. Her father,William K. Sluyter, belonged to the old Knickerbocker
stock of New York. Unto him and his wife were born eleven sons and two daughters,
Catherine and Elizabeth, and the mother and. daughters, in addition to doing
the cooking and caring for the house, carded, spun and wove all the wool
and flax used in making clothing for the entire family. Catherine S. Sluyter
was but nine years of age when the family removed to Pennsylvania and was
a maiden of eighteen when they went to Ohio. There, three years later, she
gave her hand in marriage to Benjamin Davis. They were both strict Quakers
and were married on the 26th of October, 1831, according to the Quaker rite,
which requires the announcement of the intended marriage read in meeting
a certain number of times, and then at the appointed hour for the marriage
the couple "stand up in meeting" together and marry themselves. They lived
in Ohio for about seven years and in 1838 removed to Indiana, settling near
the present site of Plymouth. In the spring of 1847, with their six children,
they joined the train of Captain Peek, preparing to cross the plains to Oregon.
The journey was without startling incident during its earlier stages with
the exception of some annoyance from the Pawnee Indians and the exaction
of toll by them. The train divided at Fort Hall, the Davis family traveling
with that section which made its way over the southern or Applegate route
across the desert, through the Modoc country and the Rogue River valley.
They had hardly left the old track when they experienced great trouble with
the Indians, especially in the Modoc country, the red men harassing them
on every hand. When they reached the Rogue River valley complete annihilation
seemed almost certain, for two hundred warriors surrounded their camp, in
which were not more than eighteen men capable of bearing arms. Had the attack
been made the result, to say the least, would have been doubtful. By a bit
of strategy, however, Mr. Davis prevented the attack. In the back part of
his wagon was a cook stove with a drum and from this the smoke was issuing
through a pipe that extended through the top of the wagon cover. Mr. Davis
made signs that this was a cannon or some sort of explosive machine which
at his word would destroy them. Fancying its resemblance to artillery, of
which they had some knowledge, and not daring to approach nearer its gaping
mouth, the Indians gradually withdrew and allowed the train to pass. Some
years later, at a council of these Indians and the whites, the chief recalled
this incident and said they had planned to destroy the whole train and would
have done so but for the big gun in the wagon. Hardly had the train reached
the Indian country before Mrs. Davis became ill with a fever which continued
to grow worse until one morning her condition was such that her husband decided
that he would stop in camp until she became better, as it appeared that it
would surely be fatal for her to proceed. The captain and the balance of
the train, however, determined to continue on their way, as they were in
a hostile Indian country, far from their destination Mr. Davis, his resolution
to remain, fearing that it prove fatal to his wife to journey farther. The
remainder of the party started on their way except the wife of one prominent
member of the train, who was ministering to Mrs. Davis. When her husband
called her to join the others, she replied: “Father, you can go on if
you want to, but my duty is with Catherine and these little children, and
1 will stay with them." The husband therefore turned his wagons to rejoin
his wife; the next wagons, seeing this, also turned and soon the whole train
was in corral again, where they stayed until the fever abated and Mrs. Davis
was able to resume the journey.
The party proceeded on their way until the beauty and fertility of the
land in the vicinity of Eugene led Mr. Davis and his wife to secure a claim
there. But seventy-five cents remained at the end of their journey and they
were compelled to trade off a portion of their cattle for flour and seed
wheat, which could only be obtained sixty miles away. A cow bought them twelve
bushels of wheat and a yoke of oxen was traded for a thousand pounds of flour,
which it seemed would be sufficient for the family until springtime, their
liberal hospitality to the immigrants who came straggling through the mountains
exhausted their supply until the family were compelled to live on boiled
wheat. In the spring an abundance of milk and delicious wild strawberries,
without sugar, constituted a part of their diet until William Dodson, an
earlier settler of the upper Willamette, discovered their lack of money and
insisted on loaning Mr. Davis an amount sufficient to purchase provisions
at Vancouver, one hundred and forty miles away.
Mrs. Davis not only shared in all the hardships which the family experienced
but was ever ready to aid her neighbors who were in need of medical experience
or the care of a nurse. She had read medicine and nursed under a brother-in-law,
Dr. Peter Crumb, of Plymouth, Indiana, and again and again her services were
sought by families from Marys river to the Calapooia mountains.
I l857 Mr. Davis, having prospered on the farm and owning a number of horses,
cattle and sheep, to make use of his horses took a
contract to carry the mail from Corvallis to
Winchester. He made his headquarters in Eugene, which was equidistant from
the terminal points of his route, and there he purchased property and built
a livery stable on the southeast corner of Ninth and Pearl streets and a
residence on the northeast corner of the same streets; but after a short
illness he passed away on the 6th of April, 1858. After coming to Oregon,
remembering the trials and vicissitudes of his own journey across the plains,
he twice traveled eastward with supplies and. provisions to the assistance
of incoming immigrants. In 1849 he went over the old trail as far as Fort
Hall, and in 1852 aided in the rescuing of the lost train coming down the
Middle Fork of the Willamette river over the present route of the Oregon
Eastern Rail road. These immigrants were almost famished when aid reached
them. He always bore his part in the work of pioneer development until death
claimed him. His widow was left with the care of the three younger children.
In the family were seven children, one son having been born after their arrival
in Oregon. Mrs. Davis continued at the old home until 1874 when, the last
of her children having married and moved away, she broke up housekeeping
and thereafter lived with her children as she felt inclined until her own
demise on the 24th of January, l898. Never will her memory cease to be revered
and honored by those who knew her. She was indeed a ministering angel to
the isolated families of pioneer times , scattered for perhaps a hundred
miles through Lane County and adjacent territory. She was skilled in the
methods of medical practice of that day, using herbs and the simpler remedies,
which, however, proved effective in checking many an illness. Never was she
known to fail or refuse to go on her errands of mercy when the call came.
Seldom did she receive any remuneration for her services. It was at a time
when all good neighbors “helped out” and it is probable that those
who sought her services had no money with which to pay; but with the spirit
of the Good Samaritan, she never remembered those things and was always prompt
in the role of the ministering angel of mercy. No matter how dark or stormy
the night, how long the distance or from whom the summons came, her horse
was quickly saddled, the saddlebags put on and she was gone. The midnight
journey might be across the paths of wild beasts, along treacherous trails
into the foothills of the Middle Fork or the McKenzie or over to Lake Creek;
but never was this fearless, stout-hearted woman known to ask or expect escort.
Often, late at night, the family would hear the clatter of a hardpressed
horses's hoofs on the “big road”. They knew it was a messenger
after the mother, and even before the rider had reached the door one of the
boys was saddling up the horse that Mrs. Davis rode for many years. This
horse was a mixture of Indian cayuse with some high-grade animal, and she
could easily outdistance anything in the country. It is vouched for that
her pony would pace away from the fastest mount known to the early settlers
of Oregon. She would return at dawn if her mission was ended, but at times
such a call required days or perhaps weeks of faithful nursing of the sick
and frequently she would also have to act as cook, housekeeper and caretaker.
She continued in her work and her errands of mercy until the limitations
of age caused her to desist. In an account of her life published in the Oregon
Journal is found the following: “The Davis home was for almost a lifetime
an attractive white house of the L type, surmounting the crest of a sightly
knoll set back a short quarter of of a mile from the main highway. Once a
mere indian trail, this avenue became the “big road”; now it is
the “river road”. Here, where the Calapooya Indians made friends
with these settlers, and deer swarmed, the Davis family remained and the
world with all its wonders has come along the “big road” to their
yard gates. As one turns in at the big gate the vista of the old homestead
is framed between two giant fir trees that mark either side of the drive
to the house. They are the only remainders of the thick grove of firs that
once marked this pot. In her lifetime Mrs. Davis conceived great natural
affection for these splendid specimens of the primeval forest. When the time
came the old farm was sold, she stipulated that the buyers should not cut
down or otherwise destroy or mar these trees as long as she lived. It is
pleasant to note that, although Mrs. Davis passed away about fourteen years
ago, her wishes have been respected and in all probability sentiment will
decree that the trees shall remain as a memorial to her as long as they survive.
At a recent gathering of Lane county pioneers, the incalculable services
of this grand pioneer woman were discussed appreciatively and it has since
been suggested by Colonel W. G. D. Mercer that,with the consent of the present
owners, the pioneer society might well distinguish its existence and press
a well deserved tribute by erecting a memorial tablet on the big tree nearest
the highway, in of this woman’s faithful service to her countrymen."
How much more splendid it is to trace one’s ancestry to a woman of this
character, a woman whose life was filled with deeds of kindness and mercy,
than to the most eminent of the crowned heads of Europe!
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