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Springfield, Oregon, is a beautiful city with much of history behind it. Springfield’s history has many interesting qualities with many different aspects. In 1850, Congress passed the Donation Law to encourage immigration to Oregon. The Donation Law provided that each person who should immigrate to Oregon before the date of December, 1850, would receive a donation of 320 acres of land from the government. Springfield was first settled more by exhaustion than by choice(General History). Elias and Mary Briggs arrived in the Willamette Valley in the winter of 1848. They were among the first party to travel to the Willamette Valley. The trip was longer and harder than they anticipated because it was during a time when overland trips were long and treacherous. Before the Briggs family got to the Willamette Valley the winter rains had already set in. When they arrived they were very tired and weary from the long and treacherous trip. So they decided to settle and make a claim at the first good site they came across. Elias chose his site well, on the east bank of the Willamette. The Donation Law allowed both Elias and Mary to claim 640 acres of land between the Willamette and McKenzie Rivers. His claim provided them with lush rich prairie and plenty of the surrounding virgin timber. To make his claim he placed a spring in the middle of a field and he called his claim Springfield, Later he called this claim Springfield which is how our city got its name. Today the location where Elias placed the spring would be at the corner of 2nd and B Streets. Elias Briggs was the type of person who liked to build and start things. He was real business oriented. For example, a couple of years after they settled, Elias started a ferry system known as "Briggs Ferry." The ferry was a much-needed service since all the northern settlers were rushing south to get to the California gold fields. To get there they had to cross the Willamette River. Yet, before Elias constructed the ferry it was a big problem to cross the river. To get their wagons across the river the early settlers had to fully disassemble their wagons. After they took them apart they had to put all the wagon pieces upon two canoes that were tied together and pull them across. If they had any kind of farm animals they had to swim beside them.
In 1852 Elias realized the potential of the Willamette River’s swiftness to make power out of the moving waters. By using a spade, a shovel, a plow and an ox he built a millrace (which is a small canal from a larger river or stream that carries a current). In 1853-1854 Elias teamed up with another settler named Briggs to build a sawmill and a flour mill. They used the water current from the millrace to turn the mill wheel to power the sawmill and the flour mill. About a year or two after that, they used the sawmill to build the very first Springfield Courthouse. These mills were not the usual slap together mills, either. Elias and Briggs Briggs used the newest up-to-date machinery. When they designed the flour mill it was the only one of its design in the entire country. They spent a total of about $10,000 on their expensive project, which was a lot of money back then. The two mills became the basic foundation for Springfield’s industrial and economical growth. The two mills were very successful until the mills had a major slow down because of the large flood of 1861. lso, at about the same time the Civil war was getting started.
Springfield started to develop a small commercial area. The first trading post was started by James Huddleston. He left the area soon after and man by the name of J. N. Donalds acquired the trading post after Huddleston left. The trading post was located at Mill and Main Streets. Most of the first Springfield businesses were built along these two streets. By 1860 there were several different people who sold goods and services in Springfield. The people of Springfield could find a shoemaker, a wagon maker, a cabinetmaker, four carpenters, two blacksmiths, a physician, a merchant, a school, a general store and several workshops. A writer for the Morning Oregon reported in 1864 that Springfield was one of the busiest places he had ever seen (General History).
During this period, economic development was the main drive of the city, yet schools and churches were also being built. During the time when Elias and Briggs were constructing the sawmill and the flour mill, the Springfield School District was first established. Miss Agnes Stewart opened the first school here as Springfield’s very first teacher. The first school house was probably just a crude little building that would be located at about present day 7th and South B Streets. The small little schoolhouse was used until about the 1880s. The Springfield Methodist church was built in about 1868. When the church started it only had about 16 members and four probationary members. The services were held in a two-room school building on Mill Street between D and E Streets.
In 1865, a new company sprouted. The company was called the Springfield Manufacturing Company, which was made up of several men who purchased the suffering flour and sawmill from Elias Briggs. The company rebuilt both of the mills. They modified the sawmill with double circular saws. Also, they moved the flour mill 125 yards south of its original location (Historic Springfield). The mill was considered the best mill in Lane County. In 1882 it was a big catastrophe when the mill burned down. The mill was immediately rebuilt with a larger sawmill. The mill was four stories high and had the capacity to produce 30,000 feet of sawed lumber daily. The Springfield Manufacturing Company also started a woolen mill. The Springfield Manufacturing Company actually owned most of the town until the company went down hill and out of business.
Springfield’s population grew very slowly even though they hafortunate natural settings and high growth predictions. In fact, at one point in Springfield’s history the population actually declined from 649 people in 1870 to about 371 people in 1890. Although the Steamboat Relief made it to Springfield in 1861, Springfield turned out to be the head of navigation only when the Willamette river floods (General History). Without reliable river transportation, all markets were pretty much inaccessible. The real blow to Springfield growth happened in 1871 when Eugene happened to get the main line of the Oregon & California Railroad. A group of Eugene businessmen paid the railroad financier Ben Holiday $48,000 to by-pass Springfield by crossing the Willamette River near Harrisburg, although it was originally planned to cross at Springfield (General History). Eugene then prospered while Springfield struggled. Springfield has had its struggles but Springfield has always bounced back and recuperated. Springfield is a beautiful place to live not only because of its beauty but also because of its history. Springfield has its own unique history that’s different from all other places. It’s nice to know a little bit about the history and roots of little old Springfield. Bibliography Fogle, Crystal Bryan. "Springfield... The First Hundred Years." Springfield News, December 1, 1949
Graham, Barbara, "General History of the City of Springfield." November 1979
Long, Barbara. "Churches Meet the Cities Needs." The Springfield News, 1985
Norland, Richasd, and Lyle Kohl. "Historic Springfield: The First Fifty Years."
Velasco, Dorothy, and Mara Velasco. "Springfield: Between Two Rivers." Montgomery, Alabama: Community Communications Inc, 1999. Jeremy Burris 20 Mile Radius Project Thurson High School May 19,2000 Project in its entirety available at: The Springfield Museum 590 Main St. Springfield, OR 97477 |
