You can probably remember a few names from the early days of white settlement in Oregon and California.
A few people were prominent in the formation of both states, including Peter Burnett. Who? Well, Mr. Burnett organized one of the first wagon trains to Oregon Territory and served in prominent positions there.
Then he moved to California and became the first governor of the new state. And he's generally regarded as a failure in that role and several others.
Historian and former Oregonian reporter R. Gregory Nokes takes up in a new book. Greg Nokes pays another visit to The Exchange.
