Early fur trapping companies established outposts, known as forts, before the Oregon Trail opened. One example was the rendezvous point along the Umpqua River known as the 鈥淥ld Establishment鈥� or 鈥淢cKay鈥檚 Old Fort,鈥� built in the early 1820s by the North West Company, a Canadian firm active in the fur trade from the 1780s to 1821.
The fort, possibly consisting only of a few log huts used to store furs, was named after one of the builders, Thomas McKay, and saw seasonal use into the 1830s.
McKay was a Canadian fur trader, guide and company clerk who became a legendary hero among trappers. Born in 1796, he settled in Oregon, married three times and had six sons and two daughters. He became a U.S. citizen before dying in 1849. Interested visitors can reach the fort鈥檚 original site by taking Exit 136 on Interstate 5 and following State Route 138 west to Fort McKay Road, which leads about six miles to the presumed site.
The Douglas County Museum and Parks have placed a plaque at the intersection of Fort McKay Road and the Umpqua Bridge.
Sources: Perino, Chuck. "McKay's Fort Site and Plaque." Douglas County Historic Resource Inventory Oregon Inventory of Historic Properties Historic Resource Survey Form, Douglas County Planning Department, 1 Sept. 2002, www.co.douglas.or.us/planning/hrrc/regions/pdfs/McKaysFortSite.pdf. Accessed 31 May 2018; LaLande, Jeff. "Fort Umpqua (HBC fort, 1836-1853)." The Oregon Encyclopedia, Oregon State University and Oregon Historical Society, 17 Mar. 2018, https://oregonencyclopedia.org/articles/fort_umpqua/#.Ww4q1-4vzX4. Accessed 31 May 2018.
