Page:The History of Oregon Bancroft 1888.djvu/737

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ten millions, and in 1884 was not far from eighteen millions. Deady, in Over land Monthly, i. 38; Reid s Progress of Portland, 23. The principal public building in Portland in 1868 was the county court-house on Fourth S^eet, which cost about $100,000, built of brick and stone in 1866. The United States erected the post-office and custom-house building on Firth Street, of Bellingham Bay freestone, in 1869-70, at a cost, with the furniture, of $450,- 000. The methodist church on Taylor Street was finished in 1869 the first brick church in the city costing $40,000. The Masonic Hall and Odd Fel lows Temple were erected about this time, and the market and theatre on First Street. From this period the improvement in architecture, both do mestic and for business purposes, was rapid, and the laying-out and paving or planking of streets proceeded at the rate of several miles annually. A million dollars was expended in enlarging the gas and water works between 1868 and 1878. A mile and a quarter of substantial wharves were added to the city front, and a number of private residences, costing from $20,000 to $30,000, were erected. Since 1877 these fine houses have multiplied, that of United States Senator Dolph and ex-United States Attorney-general Williams being of great elegance, though built of wood. The squares in Portland be ing small, several of the rich men took whole blocks to themselves, which, being laid out in lawns, greatly beautified the appearance of the town.

Among the prominent business men of Portland, who have not been hith erto named, I may mention Donald Macleay, who was born in Scotland in 1834, and when a young man went to Canada, where he engaged in business at Richmond, in the province of Quebec. From there he came to Portland in 1866, going into a wholesale grocery trade with William Corbitt of San Fran cisco, and carrying on an importing and exporting business. In 1869 his brother, Kenneth Macleay, was admitted to the firm, which does a large ex port trade, and has correspondents in all the great commercial cities. This firm made the first direct shipment of salmon to Liverpool, and is interested at present in salmon -canning on the Columbia. It has exported wheat since 1869-70, and more recently flour also, being the first firm to engage in the regular shipment of wheat and flour to London and Liverpool. In 1872-4 it purchased several ships, which were placed in the trade with China, Aus tralia, and the Sandwich Islands. One of these, the Mattie, Macleay, was named after a daughter of D. Macleay. Since his ad vent in Portland, Macleay has been identified with all enterprises tending to develop the country. He is one of the directors of the Cal. & Or. R. R., and has been vice-president; and has been vice-president of the N. W. Trading Co. of Alaska, in which he is a stockholder, a director in the Southern Or. Development Co. ; local presi dent of the Or. & Wash. Mortgage Savings Bank of Scotland, which brought much foreign capital to the country; and trustee of the Dundee Trust Invest ment Co. of Scotland, representing a large amount of capital in Oregon and Washington. For several terms he has been president of the board of trade, and at the same time has not been excused from the presidency of the Arling ton Club, or the British Benevolent and St Andrews societies. Few men, have discharged so many and onerous official duties.

Richard B. Knapp was born in Ohio in 1839, where he resided until 1858, when he went to Wisconsin, from which state he came to Oregon the follow ing year. In 1860 his brother, J. B. Knapp, together with M. S. Burrell, founded the house of Knapp & Burrell, dealers in hardware and agricultural implements, to which he was admitted in 1862, and from which his brother retired in 1870. This house was the first to engage in the trade in agricultu ral machinery, for a long time the only one, and is still the most important in the north-west. It has done much to develop the farming interest of eastern Oregon and Washington, and recently of British Columbia.

Although Portland is 112 miles from the sea, and twelve above the junc tion of the Willamette with the Columbia, it was made a port of entry for the district of the Willamette. In 1848, when the territory was established, congress declared a collection district, with a port of entry at Astoria, the president to name two ports of delivery in the territory, one to be on Puget \n