Rice Dunbar LAST NAME: Dunbar FIRST NAME: Rice MIDDLE NAME:  NICKNAME:  MAIDEN NAME:  AKA 1:  AKA 2:  AKA 3:  TITLE: Mr. GENDER: M MILITARY: Indian Wars (Oregon) BORN: 6 Feb 1802 DIED: 15 Sep 1870 BURIED: 16 Sep 1870 ETHNICITY:   OCCUPATION:  Carpenter BIRTH PLACE:  Brown Co., Ohio DEATH PLACE: Salem, Marion Co., Oregon NOTES:  IOOF - Rice Dunbar, age 68 y's 7 m's 9 d's, born in Brown Co., Ohio, died in Salem from "Stricture of stomach". 1860 OR CENSUS - Rice Dunbar, age 58, b. Ohio, carpenter; W. R. Dunbar, male age 21, b. Illinois, farmer; E. Dunbar, female age 19, b. Illinois; A. Dunbar, female age 17, b. Illinois; R. O. Dunbar, male age 15, b. Illinois; O. Dunbar, male age 12, b. Oregon; E. Dunbar, female age 10, b. Oregon and Frances Dunbar, female age 8, b. Oregon.  BIOGRAPHICAL:  (From Rootsweb site on Illinois) "Schuyler County, Illinois - Biographies SOURCE: THE GAZETTE (BEARDSTOWN, IL) FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 10, 1847 S. EMMONS, EDITOR BELOW IS AN A LETTER THAT WAS WRITTEN TO JAMES LAWLER,ESQ FROM RICE DUNBAR AND IT WAS PUBLISHED IN "THE GAZETTE" (note I have typed it just as it appeared-tlb)  From Oregon. OREGON TERRITORY, Champoeg Count, April 26, 1847. To JAMES LAWLER, Esq: Dear Sir- When I last wrote to you from Fort Hall, we were full of the belief that our journey would soon be at an end. But O! despair. We had the finest time to Fort Hall that could be thought of. Good road, good grass, and every thing went on well, untill we left the old road, 40 miles down Snake River, from Fort Hall; here we were induced by Mr. Applegate to take what he called his new route. We traveled south about 500 miles-here we left the California road, and took a course for the head of the Clamit River. Here we were beset with the worst and most savage tribes of Indians in all the country- - they drove off all the cattle and horses they could lay hands on. At length we arrived at the Umqua Mountains, 200 miles from the head of the Wallamette Valley-here the rain set in on the 28th day of October; we undertook to go through the mountains, but the snow and rain prevented. We had to leave our wagons and carry our goods and pack through- we sent some of the company on for horses and provisions. Here we were out of provisions and had to resort to killing our poor cattle to live on. Father Brislim died in this mountain from fatigue and want- - even the women and children had to wade through this mountain (16 miles) in the water from ankle to waist deep. On the 12th day of December the men returned with some horses and flour. We started on horse back, only taking some few of our wearing clothes, and after enduring the most extreme hardships through mud and water we arrived in the settlements on the last day of December, completely used up- without wagons, cattle, bedding or tools. But, yet I feel rich, when I look around and see all of my family well, and all of our neighbors healthy and enjoying good health, I feel more than compensated for our loss and privations. I have not seen a sick person since I have been in the Territory. We have no billious fever, ague and fever, congestive chills, winter or lung fevers, liver complaint, nor any other diseases. The people are all perfectly healthy in this country. I have taken a claim (one section) about 40 miles from the Wallamette Falls, up the valley, about 10 miles from the River on the east side. I have about 400 acres of the finest kind of prairie, and the rest of the section in the best kind of Oak, ash and fir timber, and one step will take you out of the best kind of prairie into the best kind of fir timber, where you can get from ten to fifteen rail cuts from one tree, and not be more than 15 or 20 inches through at the stump. The land is of a better quality here than I expected to see- - I think that the red or hilly land in this country is the best of wlient, though either is very good. What is called hilly land here is like your rolling prairies in the States—that is the land that lays between the bottoms and the mountains. I have seen the best wheat here that I ever saw in any country—it is as much better than your best wheat, as your best wheat is better than your poor spring wheat. They commence ploughing and putting in winter wheat the first of September, and continue on until the middle of March, and from then until the last of May for their spring wheat. It is not first rate for corn, thought they raise from 15 to 30 bushels to the acre. Potatoes grow fine, and the turnips are the best and largest in the world. I need not enter into a long detail of the different productions of this country, as it would be but a repetition of what you have all read and heard. The country is well adapted to the growth of fruit of all kinds, wild and tame. Wheat crops never fail in this country. This past winter has been the hardest ever known by the American settlers. The ground was covered with snow for three or four weeks, though it did not seem like winter to me compared with Illinois, the cattle kept fat all the winter, no feeding of stock corn in this country. There has been four ships in this spring. Goods are tolerable cheap and coming down. Wheat is commanding $1 per bushel cash- - two ship loads went out of this valley last week, one for the Sandwich Islands and the other to the army in California and Mexico. I want you to come to Oregon, there is room enough for you all-prepare yourselves with good strong two horse wagons, and good oxen and as many cows as you can bring safely-broodmares sell here very high- - start early and keep off of new routs. I find a number of Illinois acquaintances here, and some relations from Virginia and Kentucky. Young ladies are in great demand here, and that class of emigrants are received with open arms. Yours, &c., RICE DUNBAR". NOTE - Photograph of Rice and Jane Dunbar, courtesy of the Silverton County Historical Society, OBITUARY:  DIED -- At his residence in Salem, Sept. 15th, 1870, Rice Dunbar, in the 68th year of his age. The deceased was born in Ohio, February 6th, 1802, moved in early life to Illinois and thence to Oregon in 1846. His death leaves a family of three sons and six daughters all grown, to mourn his loss, and in their affliction they have the sympathy of a host of friends. The funeral will take place today. Friends are invited to attend. The funeral sermon will be preached on Sunday next at the M.E. Church.  Weekly Oregon Statesman 21 Sept. 1870 1:8  RICE DUNBAR, Esq., was born in Brown county, Ohio, February 6th 1802. While a single man he moved to Illinois, and was there married to Jane Miller Brisbin, January 22d, 1830. In 1846 he came to this county, and settled in Waldo Hills. For some time after he came to Oregon, he was sceptical in regard to revealed and experimental religion, after the death of his wife, some twelve years since, he became a changed man, reading the Bible daily and offering private prayer to his Heavenly Father. The children have often heard him praying when he had retired to rest.  Some two years since he went East, and while gone, his health failed, so that he never recovered. From February last he had been constantly going down in strength, so that for two months before his death he was confined to his bed. He did not come out fully and take the vows of the Church upon him, until something less than two months before his death. He then made a free, full and complete consecration of himself to the Lord and the Church, and was baptized and received the Sacrament of the Lords’ Supper. His trust in his decline was wholly in Jesus the Saviour of sinners. On the morning of the 15th but a short time before his death, he was heard by the family to be uttering the sweetest and most precious word in any language, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, and then when too weak to speak, with his finger pointed upward to his home in heaven he fell asleep. J. H. Wilbur, Salem.  Weekly Oregon Statesman 17 Sep 1870. INSCRIPTION:  SOURCES:  IOOF Register of Burials  1860 OR CENSUS (Silverton, Marion Co., Oregon, pg. 334-5)  OS 17 Sep 1870  WOS 21 Sep 1870 1:8 CONTACTS:  LOT: 036 SPACE:  LONGITUDE:  LATITUDE:  IMAGES: