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The Infamous Black Bird Southern Oregon History, Revised


The Legends of Table Rock

Table Rock, circa 1910
Table Rock, circa 1910

    . . . how will he explain the circumstances of those three Indian women, who had taken refuge on the top of Table Rock, being shot, and their bodies falling over the cragged rocks, down on the steep precipice below. The sight of these mangled victims as they lay writhing in agony was so shocking that it was reported that they were scared and fell down, but Dr. Ambrose, who lived in the vicinity, informed me that they did not fall until they were fired upon.
John Beeson, letter to the editor of the Oregon Statesman, October 8, 1856, Letters Received by the Office of Indian Affairs, 1824-1880, National Archives Microcopy 234, Reel 609, NADP Document D45     In his book A Plea for the Indians Beeson says two women and a man fell off Table Rock.


    ESCAPE OF INDIANS FROM TABLE ROCK.--One day last week a number of Indians were discovered to be hiding on Table Rock, at the upper end of Rogue River Valley. There is a narrow path leading down to the river on the north side of the rock, the only means of descending on that side. A party of men were stationed at the foot of the path to shoot the Indians when they came down, and another party ascended the rock on the south side to drive the Indians into the trap. After a tedious hunt among the brush and holes they finally succeeded in finding the Indians, and sure enough they started for the path above mentioned, to make their escape to the river. But the hunt for them on the rock had lasted so long that the company placed in waiting had left their post to get something to eat, and the Indians ran down unmolested, plunged into the river and escaped to the other side. In their flight one of the squaws and an Indian boy got behind, and attempted to take a near cut to catch up, but they were traveling too fast for such dangerous ground, and fell over a precipice and were killed in the fall.--Yreka Union.
Marysville Daily Herald, Marysville, California, October 27, 1855, page 3


TABLE ROCK.
    Table Rock, an engraving of which we present in this number, is one of the prominent natural landmarks in Southern Oregon. It is situated on the north bank of Rogue River, in Jackson County, and about twelve miles from the town of Jacksonville. For many miles along the Oregon and California stage road it is plainly visible, and is an object of admiration to all who appreciate the grand and picturesque in nature's panorama. Viewed from a distance, on the southern and southeastern sides, it resembles a vast fortress with frowning battlements and insurmountable walls. Its top has the appearance of a level surface, which is more striking because it is seen without background, except the clear sky, at this season of the year. Upon close inspection, all ideas formed from a distant view vanish. Its symmetrical proportions are lost and it is found to be two walls of crescent form, enclosing a miniature valley, through which a small stream courses down into Rogue River, with the two southwest points of the crescent walls near each other. This stream was once rich in gold, but, like the many placer deposits in Southern Oregon, it was long since worked out and deserted.
    The area enclosed within the walls is, in extent, about half a mile from one extremity to the other, and is nearly round. At the northeast points of the crescents there is an opening through which a bridle trail leads down a gentle declivity into the broad valley below. From the formation of the whole geological structure, known as Table Rock, it is reasonable to believe that the walls were once complete, and enclosed the crater of a volcano. The waste of time, through the lapse of ages, wore through the stony enclosure; the fires retreated back to their subterranean home, and a cold stream of water trickles down where once flowed the molten lava. This opinion is strengthened by the fact that on the outside, and at the base of the eastern wall, a small stream of asphaltum issues forth and congeals into flinty hardness after being exposed a short time to atmospheric influences. The highest point of the wall is on the east side. Here there is a perpendicular precipice of three hundred feet, and for more then two miles the height varies from one hundred and fifty to two hundred feet. The rock is basalt, and it rests upon a gray sandstone base, which seems to dip from the outer edge of the wall, inward. The upper two-thirds of the basalt has a smooth surface, and the lower third is crystalline, or, rather, composed of groups of Doric columns, cemented together.
    Table Rock is an object of historic as well as geologic interest. In a military view it is one of the most easily fortified strongholds in the world. This fact was well understood by the Indians during their war with the settlers in 1855-6. On the 14th of October, 1855, when one of the famous Rogue River chiefs was hard pressed by the volunteers, he took refuge on Table Rock and kept his enemies at bay during the whole day. At night, he escaped with his hand, after having killed and wounded several of the attacking party, without losing a man. Fort Lane, named for Gen. Joseph Lane, was situated a short distance to the southwest of Table Rock, and the soldiers, while stationed there, by frequent excursions, made themselves acquainted with all the intricate fastnesses of the grand natural fortification.
    But the incidents we here relate have passed into history, and the herdsman's flock now wanders in security around the rocky fortress which once echoed back the wild war whoop and the sharp ring of the frontiersman's rifle.
West Shore, Portland, July 1877, page 217


    Passing Phoenix and Medford, where we intended to stop, but were prevented, we were soon on the banks of the great Rogue River, the many rapids of which were plainly visible to our optical sense. We are now in the shades of the overhanging Table Rock. Looking up its perpendicular sides, the faces of the old chiefs Joe, John and Sam loomed up in our imagination. The story that a battle was once fought on its summit and that many Indians rather than surrender jumped from the rock took prominence in our mind. Turning to Col. Ross, who occupied a seat in the car, we queried: "Can you tell us, Col., what chief it was who fought the battle on Table Rock?" The Col. laughed heartily, saying: "There was never a battle fought on Table Rock. That's all in the eye," he continued.
"Up the Valley," Rogue River Courier, Grants Pass, June 18, 1886, page 2


    Gen. John E. Ross claims, in an interview with us, that there was no battle fought by the whites against the Indians on the summit of Table Rock. He says that Capt. Taylor was killed by the Indians back of Table Rock, but no battle was ever fought on the rock. As Mr. Ross was a second lieutenant in the Cayuse War, he ought to know.
"Local and Personal," Rogue River Courier, Grants Pass, June 18, 1886, page 3



    We are now in the shades of the overhanging Table Rock. Looking up its perpendicular sides, the faces of the old chiefs, Joe, John and Sam loomed up in our imagination. Turning to Col. Ross, who occupied a seat in the car, we queried; "Can you tell us, Col., what chief it was who fought the battle on Table Rock?" The Col. laughed heartily, saying: "There was never a battle fought on Table Rock. That's all in the eye."
"As Others See Us," Ashland Tidings, June 25, 1886, page 1


    Gen John E. Ross claims, in an interview with us, that there was no battle fought by the whites against the Indians on the summit of Table Rock. He says that Capt. Taylor was killed by the Indians back of Table Rock, but no battle was ever fought on the rock. As Mr. Ross was a second lieutenant in the Cayuse war, he ought to know--Courier.
"Brevities," Ashland Tidings, June 25, 1886, page 3


TABLE ROCK.
Description of a Noted Landmark on the Rogue River.
Reminiscence of Pioneer History--The Garden of the Gods--
The Rocks an Old Lava Stream.
BY HERBERT LANG.

    The two remarkable elevations in the lower portion of the Rogue River Valley, known as Table Rocks, received their name and became noted landmarks in the early days of Oregon's settlement. Subsequently many of the most stirring scenes of pioneer history have been enacted where they stand. The most savage Indian wars which ever took place on the Pacific Coast devastated the lovely plain from which they rise. They were the chosen home for generations of the Rogue River tribe of Indians, and Sams Valley, just to the north, still bears the name of the doughty chief of the tribe who led his braves to battle in more than one hard-fought field. It is worthwhile to recount what has happened recently.
    In the thirties a trapping expedition from the settlements on the Willamette was ambushed a little further down on Rogue River by Indians, and several persons killed or wounded, as narrated by Gen. Nesmith. Turner and Gay, old pioneers of the Willamette Valley, were of this party, but both escaped. In 1851 Phil Kearny, then major of dragoons, led a military expedition into the Rogue River Valley and fought a severe fight with the Indians near the mouth of Little Butte Creek, about ten miles above the Rocks, and defeated them, losing an officer. Capt. Stuart, who was mortally wounded, and dying soon after, was buried near where now stands the village of Phoenix, southeast of the Rocks, and some fifteen miles away. In that and succeeding years
in Southern Oregon, and the streams issuing from the rugged mountains along the south boundary of Rogue River Valley from Wagner Butte to Galice Creek became the resort of numerous miners. The bars upon the river not far from the Rocks were worked and yielded tolerably. The agricultural possibilities of the country were soon perceived and settlements were made in favorable spots, one result being the gradual restriction of the Indians to a reservation adjoining the Table Rocks, and including Sams Valley, previously spoken of. As the settlers express it, the Rocks and the neighborhood were the principal stamping ground of the Indians in 1853. A short-lived though formidable Indian war broke out, the Indians under chiefs Sam and Joe leaving their reservations and taking to the steep mountainous country to the northwest. It was this war that gave "me and Joe Lane" a chance to signalize themselves, and the Indians were induced to capitulate and return to the reservation, under promises of better treatment than they had received before.
THE TERMS OF PEACE
were discussed between the whites and Indians on lower Table Rock on a certain day in September, 1853. The whole Indian tribe was present, men, women and children, and a delegation of whites, the names of some of whom have become very distinguished. Judge Deady was there, and has written a very interesting account of the proceedings, which has been published in this paper. To guard the Indians and preserve peace between them and the whites, the U.S. government built Fort Lane directly opposite the lower rock and across the river from it. The ruins of this once noted post may still be seen by the curious tourist. The fort was abandoned in 1856. For the next two years the savages stayed on the reservation, but in October, 1855, broke out, raided on the settlers down the river, committed
A MEMORABLE MASSACRE
of a score of people, and brought on the war of 1855-56. Not much of the fighting was in the vicinity of the rocks, but occurred further down the river. The war closing led to the expulsion of the savage, and the fertile fields of Southern Oregon knew them no more. Their reservation in Sams Valley was thrown open to white settlement, and no traces of savage occupancy are now to be seen save that the plow of the agriculturist occasionally throws up a stone mortar or a pestle, whose workmanship reveals its origin.
    The first newspaper ever published in Oregon south of the Calapooias was published in Jacksonville and named the Table Rock Sentinel. After a few issues its name was changed to the Oregon Sentinel, which it still remains. It was established by W. G. T'Vault, one of the earliest pioneers of Oregon.
VIEWS FROM THE SUMMIT.
    The summit of Table Rock, overlooking what is one of the most beautiful and fruitful vales of the Pacific Coast, and indeed of the whole United States, affords an almost unsurpassed panorama of grand mountains, snow-capped peaks, deep gorges, and all the sublime phenomena of nature, in sharp contrast with peaceful pastoral scenes. The cultivated fields of the Bear Creek and Rogue River valleys resemble at this season an irregular checkerwork of bright and contrasting colors. The villages of Ashland, Medford, Central Point and Phoenix are visible to the southeast, peeping through the trees that line the placid banks of the Bear. Eagle Point is to the northeast, and Jacksonville, the most interesting of Southern Oregon's towns, as it is the only one which possesses important recollections, is scarcely visible in its sequestered nook in the wooded hills to the south. Mt. McLoughlin, the most symmetrical of all the great volcanic milestones of the Cascade Range, towers ten thousand feet high and is fifty [sic] miles away; but so plainly are objects outlined upon its sides in this clear air that it hardly looks five. This splendid natural object is known on maps as Mt. Pitt, but the origin of the name is unknown. It is as unfit and meaningless a designation as possible, while the other name is one which should be kept alive as long as Oregon endures. While on the subject of names it is well to remark that another beautiful mountain, styled on maps Mt. Thielsen, but more frequently spoken of as Cowhorn Peak, offers an opportunity for the deserved perpetuation of another honored name in Oregon's history. Certainly the name Mt. Jo. Lane would be a more suitable appellation than either Mt. Thielsen or Cowhorn Peak. Patriotism and propriety alike urge the change.
GEOLOGY OF THE ROCKS.
    But however interesting the Table Rocks are in a historical sense, they are not the less so in their mode of origin. They lie roughly parallel to the course of the Rogue, which flows close by. They are about 500 feet high above the river and from a distance appear to be capped by a curious tubular formation, which presents perpendicular cliffs for the upper hundred feet or so and has a tendency to columnar structure. There are no other elevations in all the country like them. They present nearly the same appearance on all sides, and the lower part slopes uniformly away at an angle of 30 degrees or thereabouts. The upper rock is two miles from the lower and lies about northeast from it.
    Ascending them, they are seen to be composed wholly of a coarse-grained, black, hard, tough and dense basalt or dolerite, not unlike the typical volcanic rocks of the eastern plateau of Oregon. The upper surface of the Tables are truly level in general, as far [as] the eye can discern, and it is obvious at once that both rocks once formed a continuous plane surface, which has been partly removed. They were, in fact, part of an ancient lava stream, which ran down the valley of the Rogue and hardened into solid rock, where they now stand. The whole structure of the elevation proves it. They are doubtless composed entirely of lava and stand in an abandoned river bed, that of the Rogue, perhaps, or an ancient relative of that stream, although the first glance conveys the idea that only the tubular layer on top is so composed. The slant of the lower part of the hill is the angle of stability of the broken-down outer portions, which form a huge talus, skirting the central mass. The dolerite has a strong tendency to divide into roughly spherical masses a foot or so in diameter for the most part, and these being held with a slight cohesion to the parent blocks soon weather loose and roll downhill and are carried by pluvial agencies to a considerable distance.
A RIVER CRESCENT.
    What gives additional proof of the lava occupying an accessible river bed is the form in plan of the lower rock, which is regularly crescentic in shape, and is called by the neighboring farmers "The Horseshoe." While the total length is said to be about four miles, and the area of the upper surface 1000 acres more or less, the enclosed basin opening to the south is perhaps a mile in diameter, its floor sloping regularly toward the river. The gap between the upper and lower rocks is about two miles wide and some 400 guessed feet in depth, measured vertically from the upper surface of the rocks. On top the solid ledge is half covered by loose boulders of lava, black mainly, but some of a lighter color, the most of them about a foot in diameter. No other rocks are to be found save a very few water-worn gravel stones, apparently siliceous, which the writer picked up. Still, the existence of these little erratics is sufficient to prove that water or ice once covered the Table Rocks.
ORIGIN OF THE ROCKS.
    It is probable that the lava of which the Table Rocks is composed originated as a part of the great sheet which overwhelmed and now covers almost all Eastern Oregon and the neighboring territories. Probably it was a roving streamlet of that gigantic sea, which, leaving the parent body in the higher regions of the Cascade Range, flowed down the bed of a then existing river and did not solidify until reaching the lower end of the valley, which there is good reason to suppose existed at that time, but not to its present depth. It probably came to the end of its course where we now see these remains, just at the entrance to the Rogue River canyon. By this intrusion the river would of course be forced from its channel and would begin to wear another one. River erosion would under ordinary circumstances account for the carving out of a good-sized valley in the time subsequent to the lava age of Oregon, and it is very possible that the principal work of sculpturing the valleys and mountains of Southern Oregon has taken place since that time. The geological problems presented in that region are, however, of great complexity, and not to be settled by anything short of the severest study.
SIMILAR CASES ELSEWHERE.
    There are in California several parallel cases of "table mountains," as these old lava streams are called. The principal one is in Calaveras and Tuolumne counties, and is 100 miles long and averages perhaps 300 feet wide on top, nearly the width of the table rocks of which we speak. It is composed of lava of exactly the same aspect as the latter, and is about as high above the surrounding lands. It runs through a mountainous country of great mineral wealth and has itself been the scene of very great mining operations. The sides of Table Mountain are punctured with an aggregate length of tunnels far beyond those of all the quartz mines in Oregon united. They were constructed in drifting for the old river bed underlying the lava, which contains gold-bearing sands of astonishing richness. Fortunes have been made by those lucky enough to reach the pay gravel, but as much has been spent in useless work.
    Prof. LeConte, who is the most distinguished student of California geology, says of the Table Mountain that the molten stream, when it hardened, lay between banks of rock which resist wear and tear much less than lava, and so when the country was eroded by subsequent agencies, the lava stream suffered little in comparison with the surrounding rocks, and in the course of time, instead of occupying a depression, came to project above the adjoining rocks. At present the stream is for long distances entirely above the ground on each side, so that what was once the bed of the old river is now many feet above the general level of the ground and is accessible by tunneling horizontally under the overlying lava.
POINTS OF SIMILARITY.
    Such is the similarity between the table rocks of Jackson County and those of California, and so closely parallel are the surroundings, that there is the very best ground for conjecturing that the table rocks themselves overlie auriferous gravel deposits, left there by the ancient river upon whose bed they stand. The probability, or rather we should say possibility, that such may be the case is heightened by the strong likelihood that the ancient stream, like those mysterious rivers of a past eon in California, flowed over a country of metamorphic gold-bearing rocks. At the present day the upper course of all the streams which have their rise in the Cascades is over lava; but beneath this lava there doubtless are metamorphic rocks of character similar to those of the lower Rogue River, among which gold is so widely diffused. Here is a question of practical importance which, as well as others of equal importance, should be solved by a state geological survey. Research into such questions would repay well whatever time and money might be expended in the prosecution of scientific inquiries.
    It is wonderful to reflect that these massive hills were in old times moved bodily to their places, urged by the resistless forces of fire and heat. They mark the westernmost point reached by the lava flows in all that part of the country, as if he who guided had determined to spare one small nook as a refuge from the inconceivable destruction of that age. It is not at all unfitting that the old rocks which have been to savages a sanctuary and a fortress; to white men of a fast dying but immortal generation a loved landmark; and which have witnessed the romantic history of the country's occupation; should become the scene of active and important mining operations in the future.
Morning Oregonian, May 24, 1887, page 3


    While Table Rock is an historic landmark in Southern Oregon, and while a painting of it would serve better than one of any other object in the state as a memorial of the struggles and dangers of pioneer times heroically borne by the settlers of Oregon, it should not be placed on exhibition at Chicago or elsewhere with a fishy legend attached. The generation that fought the Indians of Southern Oregon has not yet passed away, nor are the original records and reports lost. While some of the veterans may become fictitiously reminiscent in their narratives, as veterans are wont to do, sufficient time has not yet elapsed for legendary tales to pass current as history. There are yet too many survivors and too much written record to permit the legend-makers to invest such striking objects at Table Rock with fictitious romances unquestioned. There were battles with the Indians near Table Rock in 1851-2 and 3, and it was the scene of a treaty made by General Lane in September, 1853, but nowhere is it recorded that defeated Indians "fled to the highest point of the rock and dashed madly over the precipice," nor is it probable that even the most reminiscent veteran will deliberately assert that such an incident ever occurred. Let us leave legend-making to our children, and confine ourselves to facts in narrating the incidents connected with the intercourse between the whites and Indians, at least to such of them as are creditable to us as putative representatives of a higher civilization.
Oregonian, Portland, March 20, 1892, page 4

Table Rock, July 1942
Table Rock, July 1942

TABLE ROCK LEGEND.
Not Much Foundation, in Fact, for the Picturesque Tale
of a Band of Indians Committing Suicide There.
    The editorial comment of the Oregonian of March 20 on the Table Rock legend has called out such varied and earnest discussion since among Southern Oregon pioneers, [that] an Oregonian reporter interviewed a number of the most prominent Southern Oregon pioneers on the subject, with the following result:
    Col. Wm. J. Martin said: "I first saw the Table Rocks in 1849, as I passed through this valley with a band of beef cattle, en route to Fort Hall to relieve the starving emigrants. I was under escort of Lieut. Hawkins of the United States Army. We camped at the Willow Springs, near the Table Rocks, and that night fifteen of our soldiers deserted us and fled to California. We did not take time to study the beauties of nature, for the Indians were thick all around us, and they stampeded our cattle during the night, and some of them were never found.
    "The legend of Table Rock has some foundation in fact, and the circumstance connected therewith happened in 1851. There was a little skirmish with the Indians, who were all hostile, and General Lane, who was then a candidate for Congress, came out. As I then heard it, one squaw was crippled in their fight from the rock. I was actively engaged in the Cayuse war and the Rogue River war of 1853-5-6. I am glad the war is over. They are all 'good Injuns' now."
GENERAL TOLMAN'S STORY.
    Gen. J. C. Tolman said: "I am not in a condition of health to give a satisfactory account of my pioneer experience; have been confined to my room for several days past, the result of an accidental fall. I came to this valley with a party of emigrants, men, women and children, September 1, 1852, the first arrival of emigrants that year. I was here during all of the Indian wars. I never enlisted, but spent my time guarding families and running an ambulance wagon. I heard of the fight with the Indians near the Table Rocks in 1851, but I never heard of the Indians jumping off the rock. I think that must have happened at 'Jump-off-Joe.' [The origin of the name of Jump-off Joe Creek is under dispute, but no accounts of its naming have anything to do with Indians committing suicide.] I have often heard the legend you speak of and have seen it in print, but I think it is a canard."
THERE WAS NO JUMPING.
    E. K. Anderson said: "I crossed the plains in 1849 to California, and came to Jackson County in 1852. I brought the first wheat to this valley, and raised the first crop of wheat and oats ever raised in Rogue River Valley. I sold one bushel of the wheat I brought here with me for $16 per bushel, and I sold all I raised the next year for $8 per bushel. There was lots of Indian fighting around the Table Rocks, but I don't think any Indians ever jumped off the rock. Were I to give in detail my pioneer experience I don't think you would find any paper that would publish it, unless it was a story paper, but I think it would make interesting reading for some."
DOUBTFUL LEGEND UNNECESSARY.
    Hon. C. C. Beekman said: "I came to Rogue River Valley in the year 1853. I was employed by Wells, Fargo & Co., and my business kept me closely confined in my office. I was not at any time engaged in Indian fighting. I do not remember hearing of the incident of which you speak of in early days; have often heard of it since, but never thought it authentic. Table Rock needs no such doubtful legend to make it preeminently the historic spot of Southern Oregon."
    Capt. A. D. Helman said: "I never was on the Table Rocks; have often heard the legend of which you speak, but know of the facts only from hearsay, and I presume you have plenty of that."
JUDGE PRIM'S TESTIMONY.
    Judge P. P. Prim said: "I came to Jackson County in March 1852. I came here to practice law, but got caught in the gold excitement and became an honest miner. We had an alcalde court in those days, and I helped to try one case. A miner had his leg broken, and while he was unable to work his claim was jumped by a newcomer. The case was decided [by the alcalde] against the miner. This so enraged the miners that a mass meeting was called; an appellate court was instituted, the decision of the lower court reversed and the case remanded back for trial. Of course it was decided in favor of the miner. I have often heard the legend of which you speak, but never supposed there was any foundation for the story."
PEACE PREFERABLE.
    James McDonough said: "I came to Jackson County in March 1852, and have lived here ever since. I was in the thickest of the pioneer settlers' struggles. Helped to build Fort Lane. I own a large stock farm just across Rogue River, opposite the Table Rocks. When the battle was fought between the Table Rocks, we could hear the guns firing. Major Lupton was killed in that fight. [The Lupton massacre took place at the mouth of Little Butte Creek, not at the Table Rocks.] I always tried to help and protect the women and children. I like stock farming much better than Indian fighting. I have always heard of the legend of Table Rock; the point where it is said to have happened can plainly be seen from my place. None suppose there was much foundation for the story.
ORIGIN OF THE LEGEND.
    Gen. T. G. Reames said: "I have been a resident of Jackson County, Oregon, since the spring of 1853, and I have heard the story of the skirmish between the early settlers of the valley and the Indians on the Table Rock and the retreat or flight of the latter in 1851, and to satisfy myself of the truthfulness of it I inquired of Gen. John E. Ross, who was one of the earliest pioneers of the county, and was engaged in nearly if not all of the battles and skirmishes between the whites and Indians, and was here at the time this should have taken place. His statement is as follows: During the fall of 1851 a small party of whites had some trouble with the Indians at or near the base of Table Rock, and three or four Indians, who were on the Rock at the time, became frightened and ran down on the west side of the Rock, and one of them, a squaw, he heard was crippled in this flight. He said the story about the battle fought on Table Rock and the jumping off same by the Indians in their flight was wholly without foundation."
A RENDEZVOUS OF THE RED MEN.
    Col. J. N. T. Miller, on being interviewed, said in regard to the early Indian wars and the battles around Table Rock: "I first saw the Rogue River Valley in June 1849, while on my way to the gold fields of California. While our party was passing Rock Point we were attacked by Indians in ambush, but no one was injured. Passed through the valley again in August 1850 on my way to Sauvies Island; we were not molested by the Rogue River Indians, but had trouble with the Pitt River and Cow Creek Indians; was in the fight which occurred at Big [Bar] under Table Rock in the year 1852, and acted as interpreter for Agent Skinner before the battle began. After the skirmish, in which several Indians were killed, I went with Lamerick's company and took part in the fight at Evans' place on Rogue River and at Chief Joe's place on Evans Creek. Returned with Capt. Lamerick's party, and was present when the  Indians surrendered at the base of Table Rock. I was in the fight which occurred at the mouth of Little Butte Creek, and the one at Hailey's ferry during the fall of 1855. Major Lupton was fatally wounded at the latter place. [Other sources place Hailey's ferry on the Rogue River at the Bybee place, site of today's TouVelle State Park. Lupton was killed at the former place.] The next day after these two battles were fought a reconnoitering party went up on Table Rock and ran some Indians off of the bluff near the south side of the rock, and it was reported that a squaw was killed, and several Indians were injured in trying to elude the party. I do not know as to the truth of this statement, but it was told me by one who said he was present when the Indians fell or jumped off of the rock. Gen Lane is usually credited with having made the Indians jump from Table Rock, but the statement is doubtless not in accordance with the facts.
    "But it is a fact that the Table Rocks were the principal rendezvous of the  Indians during the early wars, and is one of the most interesting historical features of Southern Oregon."
THE STORY OF THE SQUAW.
    Hon. W. J. Plymale said: "I came to Jackson County in the fall of 1852; have resided here ever since. Have often heard the story embraced in your question, and believe it to be simply an exaggerated historical fact. The truth seems to be that in 1851 a skirmish took place between the whites and Indians near Table Rock, and some squaws and children, stationed as sentinels on the rock, took flight and ran down a narrow crevice, formed by a pinnacle standing out from the southmost corner of the rock, and in the flight one squaw had a leg broken and several more were more or less hurt. This is all there ever really was of the 'mad rush' over the precipice. I have been on the rock several times, and a rush over the wall, which is from 75 to 100 feet, with half a mile tumbling, would result in instant death."
    Hon J. M. McCall said: "I am a Southern Oregon pioneer, and of the legend of which you speak, I never heard of it until recently, and there is no foundation for it."
    P. Dunn said: "I have lived in Southern Oregon for many years; have heard the legend of Table Rock but don't think there is any foundation for the story."
    J. H. Russell said: "I am a pioneer, but I have no recollection of the event of which you speak."
    Captain Thomas Smith said: "I heard the story in pioneer days and investigated it. I learned that there was a skirmish with the Indians near Table Rock in 1851, that the squaws and children who were stationed on the rocks took fright, and scrambled down the crevices at the south end of the rock, and one squaw was crippled by the fall. The legend as we usually hear it I think is a myth."
WILLIAM KAHLER'S OPINION.
    Hon. William Kahler said: "I came to Jackson County in 1852; took up a donation claim at the mouth of Bear Creek, opposite the Table Rocks, in 1855. I lived there with my family for thirty-two years; had grandchildren and great-grandchildren when I moved away in 1887. Old Fort Lane is on land adjoining the farm I owned. I know something of the dangers and privations of pioneer life, but the most of us old pioneers are nearing a better country. The trials and vicissitudes of other days have mellowed down by the hand of time until the lengthening shadows of eventide but herald for us the dawning of an endless day. I heard from Mr. Albert Bethel the story of the Indians jumping off the Table Rocks in 1851, and one squaw was crippled by the fall. My pioneer home was three-fourths of a mile from the Table Rocks."
STORY OF THE BATTLE.
    Mrs. J. M. McCully said: "I came to Jacksonville in the spring of 1852. In June of that year the Chiefs Sam and Joe congregated their braves on the top of Table Rock to pow-wow and hold councils of war. [All other accounts, along with Miller's, above, place their redoubt at the base of the escarpment, not on top.] The flashes of their signal fires could be seen all over the valley, and in a few hours not a straggling Indian was to be seen. Table Rock was not their battle ground, it was their undisturbed rendezvous. The Indians did not fight on the defensive then as they did later. The old war chief, Indian Sam, looked down from this grand old rock with hatred in his 'klose tum-tum' for the handful of whites scattered over the valley, and who were afraid to build cabins and sow their seed, not knowing how soon they would be cut off by the savages, who were so bold. The Indians came down from Table Rock to battle on Big Bar of Rogue River, near the base of Table Rock. Captain Lamerick enlisted a company of volunteers, principally miners and a few men from Jacksonville. One memorable morning they started off to protect the helpless settlers, and a braver company never went forth to battle in any cause. They fought and whipped the Indians, scattered them in all directions. That first fight on Big Bar taught the Indians a lesson they never forgot. As for the volunteers or soldiers driving the Indians off Table Rock to their death below--that was certainly only a legend."
FIRST WHITE WOMAN ON THE ROCK.
    Mrs. Elizabeth Kenney said: "I came to this valley with my father, Colonel W. G. T'Vault, in 1852. My parents took up a donation claim on Rogue River, opposite Table Rocks, now known as the Dardanelles, near Gold Hill. I was the first white woman ever on Table Rock. I went up with my parents in June, 1852. While we lived on the farm our lives were terrorized by the Indian fighting all around us. We heard the guns fired at the battle between General Lamerick and the Indians at Big Bar. One time, when my father was gone to Jacksonville, there were four of our neighbors' cabins burning at once in sight of us. We never expected to see another day alive. I have heard of the Indians jumping off Table Rock ever since I first came here. There are so many of the most important events of pioneer history that have come down to us by tradition that I think this story was never questioned, until the Oregonian commented upon it."
THE PAINTING.
    Mrs. P. P. Prim said: "I am president of the Jacksonville Woman's World's Fair Club. We have contracted with Mrs. Rowena Nichols to paint the Table Rocks for our exhibit at the world's fair. The lady is a native of this county, who has studied abroad, and although her home is now in Washington, she expects to exhibit a collection from historic landmarks in this valley with us. We never contemplated attaching any fishy legends to our picture when it is placed on exhibition; neither do we take it as a compliment that the brave men who defended our homes in pioneer days should be styled 'fictitiously reminiscent.'"
Ashland Tidings, April 22, 1892, page 1


The Table Rock Legend.
    Deputy Revenue Collector A. J. Barlow, a nephew of Gen. Joseph Lane, has been investigating the truth about the famous historical fight made by Gen. Lane and his troops against the Rogue River Indians at Table Rock and concludes that it is a myth. Mr. Barlow writes to the Grants Pass Courier as follows:
    Some years ago General Gibbon, so famous in our civil war, and a great admirer of General Joseph Lane, stopped at my place in Gold Hill, and requested me to ascertain and furnish him all the facts about General Lane in one of his famous raids against the Rogue River Indians, having driven the Indians, after a hard and stubborn resistance on their part, over the frowning precipice of Table Rock. General Gibbon furnished me his address and promised that when he got all the data that it should be written up and go into the literature of the nation. I myself, always proud of the achievements, the daredevil bravery and lightning-like movements of General Lane, had come to believe that it was a fact, though I never heard General Lane, with whom I lived for several years, ever mention having a fight on Table Rock with the Indians. I remember he used to relate his experience when ratifying the treaty of peace, after he had surprised and chastised the Indians on Evans Creek. The treaty took place under the precipice on the south side of the table, overlooking Rogue River. It was at that place that General Lane and his party of friends, who accompanied the General to act as witnesses to the treaty, came so near being massacred by the Indians, the facts of which are familiar to most of your readers. In compliance with General Gibbon's request, I set about in quest of information, and after diligent research I found that the Table Rock fight was a myth. It existed only in the fevered imagination of sensational minds.
Ashland Tidings, November 18, 1895


    Miss Mae McIntyre spent Saturday with Medford relatives and was accompanied home by her sister. On Sunday Clarence Meeker came out and with Mr. Sandals and Miss Grace Dickison made a party to climb the lower Table Rock. They ate lunch by a blazing bonfire and report a good time in spite of fog and clouds.

"Table Rock Items," Medford Mail, November 22, 1901, page 3


    We are informed that the wagon road from the valley to the top of Lower Table Rock, being made by Messrs. Pankey and Strickland, is about completed, which will be good news to the many people who would like to view this lovely little valley from those rugged cliffs, but who have been prevented from doing so by the arduous ascent.
"Table Rock Items," Medford Mail, March 14, 1902, page 3


    Mr. Meeker and family, of Medford, the Misses McIntire, of Colorado, Mr. Sandles, of Ohio, and the Dickison family, of this place, made the trip to Lower Table Rock Sunday afternoon and enjoyed it and the view very much. Several other parties from different parts of the valley were also there and found many wildflowers on top, also about twenty acres of plowed ground, which looked strange to old visitors.
"Table Rock Items," Medford Mail, April 18, 1902, page 3


    Sunday being a very pleasant day, people from all parts of the valley came to enjoy the sights from the top of Table Rock. One wagon loaded with eighteen people and drawn by four horses was piloted to the top of the rock, which proves that the builders of the road have worked wonders for sightseers.
"Table Rock Items," Medford Mail, May 16, 1902, page 3


    L. B. Brown and family, E. E. Morrison and family, of Medford, and J. J. Brown and children, of Central Point, spent last Sunday at Table Rock. They relate that someone has planted beans and corn on the top of Table Rock and that the crop is a fairly good one.

"Purely Personal," Medford Mail, July 11, 1902, page 6


    "Every once in a while I run across a graphic account of the fight with Indians at Table Rock, in Southern Oregon," said Judge William M. Colvig of Medford. "All of the accounts, while more or less interesting, have one fatal defect, and that is they are lies. There wasn't any fight at Table Rock.
    "There are not many people now alive who have first-hand knowledge of the fact, though. C. C. Beekman of Jacksonville, myself and one or two others are the only ones I know of who possess personal knowledge of the matter."
Fred Lockley, "In Earlier Days," Oregon Journal, Portland, August 25, 1913, page 6


SIXTY GRIZZLIES ON TABLE ROCK
    Sixty Grizzlies, under the guidance of Cole Holmes, explored Table Rock, top, sides and bottom, yesterday. Discarding jitneys at a point near Gold Ray, the west side of the mountain was scaled. In order to prepare for future climbs of Mts. Ashland, Wagner and McLoughlin, a steep part of the bluff was chosen for the final spurt. Some difficulty was experienced by a few of the heavier members at this point, but all reached the top in fair condition.
    Sandwiches, coffee and frankfurters were served by the committee at high noon. Dependable coffee was donated. The dogs were roasted by George Treichler. No [dog] licenses were reported found.
    All points of interest around the rock were visited and several Indian graves discovered. Near one of these a monument of rocks was erected, topped by a placard designed with a grizzly, the work of Blaine Klum.
    The descent was made by easy stages down the east slopes. Awaiting jitneys carried the crew to Medford. Pedometers registered eleven miles of steps.
Medford Mail Tribune, April 12, 1915, page 1


    . . . permit me to state, for the benefit of the younger generation, that there never was a battle on Table Rock, nor an Indian fight of any kind there. I do not want to appear as an iconoclast, but such mistakes, no matter how romantic, should not be allowed to go down in history as facts. My mother-in-law, Mrs. Clara Birdseye, who died a few weeks ago, was living in Rogue River Valley at the time this battle was supposed to have taken place; she had a remarkable memory for pioneer events, and I have heard her discredit this myth many times.
William M. Colvig, "Colvig Explains Origin of Name of Mount Pitt," Medford Mail Tribune, May 17, 1915, page 5


    I have lived in Jackson County ever since 1852, four miles of Fort Lane, and never heard of a battle on Table Rock.
C. C. Gall, "Injun Girls Were Not Peaches," Gold Hill News, July 3, 1915, page 1


Sketch of Old Nancy Who Died in Jacksonville Last Week
    "Old Nancy," as the well-known old Indian woman was known to hundreds of Jackson County people for many years, died at her home in Jacksonville last week. She had an interesting history, associated with the very earliest pioneer days of the Rogue River Valley, concerning which the Jacksonville Post says:
    "After suffering for several months with complaints common to old age, the death of Mrs. Nancy Arrasmith, a full-blood Rogue River Indian, occurred at her home here Monday evening. The burial took place Wednesday afternoon in the Jacksonville cemetery beside the grave of her husband, Ira Arrasmith, a white man, whose death occurred many years ago. Rev. Millard of Medford conducted the funeral services.
    "A history of this Indian woman's life would make an interesting and thrilling story. She was unusually bright and intelligent and was nearly 100 years old at the time of her death. She was born in the Rogue River Valley and when only a girl of 15 years was abducted and carried off to Canada by an Indian chief. After a terrific knife fight with the chief and a wild ride for her life she escaped and after many hardships finally made her way back to this valley.
    "Pursuing redskins followed and shot at her frequently, one bullet lodging in her leg and which she carried with her to the grave. The other Indians formed a dislike for Nancy, claiming she was too much in sympathy with the white settlers of this valley. This jealousy and bitter feeling resulted in numerous knife fights, and many scars marked her body as a result.
    "It is said that at one time the Indians--hundreds of them--gathered on Table Rock, at the north end of this valley, and decided to go on the warpath and kill all the whites in the valley. Nancy made her escape the night the massacre was to occur, to notify the whites of their danger, but in getting away she fell over a bluff and broke one of her legs. She managed to get onto a pony and warned the settlers, who quickly got ready for action and drove the savages out of the valley for all time.
    "Of course Nancy knew better than to return to her people, and for this brave act the whites persuaded her to remain with them, which she did to the end and was always held in the greatest respect by them. For many years Nancy lived alone in a little cottage near the courthouse and was always looked after kindly by our citizens, who saw to it that she never wanted for anything that would assist in making life as pleasant for her as possible in her declining years.
    ‘Several years ago Nancy sold her allotment claim on the Klamath Indian reservation, and from the proceeds she was enabled to live as comfortably as she desired.
    "She had no children and leaves no relatives."
Medford Mail Tribune, July 3, 1922, page 4


No Battle of Table Rock.
To the Editor:
    History is filled with errors. George Washington, in a letter to John Marshall, in speaking of Weems' Life of Washington, says: "I do not know the source of his statement in relation to the hatchet and cherry tree, for I never had any such experience, etc., etc." [Washington's letter to Marshall seems to be as apocryphal as the cherry tree story.] It is now known that the story of William Tell and the tyrant Gessler is a pure fabrication and that no men of those names ever appeared on the pages of authentic history.
    The battle of Table Rock never took place, either in Captain Jack's time (1872) or during the Rogue River Indian war of 1855, or at any other time, or at all. It is almost a pity to wreck such a thrilling story. I came to Southern Oregon in 1852. The incidents of the war of 1855 are fresh in my mind. I was about 11 years old at the time. In 1876 [sic], a history of Jackson County and its Indian troubles was published. It is a voluminous work. The man who wrote it spent three months' time in Jacksonville gathering up the facts. He was aided by Henry Klippel, Judge Silas Day, C. C. Beekman, Col. John E. Ross and many other participants of the war. Every little fight with Indians is described--but no mention is made of any battle on Table Rock. A copy of his history is in the Medford library. Another pretty little fiction is that Grants Pass took its name from the fact that U. S. Grant camped there while commanding a company of regular soldiers engaged in the Indian war. Absolutely false--Grant was not in the Rogue River war. His autobiography tells his whole history on this coast, and he does not mention the Rogue River country. He was at Vancouver, and also at Humboldt Bay. While at the latter place he sent in his resignation from the army. I understand that in one of the fraternal halls of Medford a picture of U. S. Grant is hung on the walls entitled "U. S. Grant's Hd. Qrs. at Grants Pass, Oregon." I know how it came to be named Grants Pass--and who named it--but I will not go into that at this time.
WM. M. COLVIG.
"Communications," Medford Mail Tribune, January 19, 1925, page 4


The True Battle of Table Rock.
To the Editor:
    "Truth is mighty and must prevail."
    No circumstance of the [1851] Rogue River war is better authenticated than the report submitted by Major Phil Kearny--afterwards General Phil Kearny--who commanded the forces here in the valley.
    The Indian stronghold was near the base of Table Rock. There the stones had fallen down for centuries among the trees and brush and they had also reinforced the natural fortification with log breastworks.
    The fight on the river, in which Captain Stuart was mortally wounded and in which eleven Indians were killed, took place on the 17th of June, 1851. The Indians retreated to their stronghold, but Major Kearny awaited reinforcements, since he had only 28 men under his immediate command at that time. He made the attack on the stronghold on the 23rd and again on the morning of the 24th of June, and in the afternoon the engagement lasted about four hours. This was a determined fight--and it is said the Indians suffered severely.
    Major Kearny had altogether approximately a hundred men, mostly volunteers, in this engagement, and it is stated that Chief John's force numbered several hundred warriors, though they only had a few guns. It was at this time that Chief John boasted that his warriors "could keep a thousand arrows in the air continually."
    At the close of the battle in the afternoon Major Kearny made an effort to treat with the Indians, but they scorned his offer and he made preparations to attack again as early as possible on the morning of the 25th, but the Indians had retreated down the river. It is claimed that the Indians crossed the river about seven miles below the stronghold, and although they were pursued vigorously, most of them had scattered into the timbered hills and only thirty women with their children fell into the hands of the pursuers.
    The treaty of Sept. 10, 1853--Gen. Joseph Lane's second treaty--took place at the base of Table Rock at the old stronghold on the western side of the great cliff.
    Table Rock was used for signal and lookout purposes. The Indians were too wise to make a serious stand for fighting on the top of the rock.
    I believe traces can still be seen of the Indian stronghold at the western base of the rock. And as the years roll on people will become more and more interested in the history of the Rogue River Valley, and it behooves us to get the truth.
ALICE APPLEGATE SARGENT.
    Jacksonville, Ore., Feb. 3, 1925.
"Communications," Medford Mail Tribune, February 5, 1925, page 4


ESSEX FIRST UP STEEP SLOPE TO TOP TABLE ROCK
    Blazing the trail up through high brush and over solid boulders on a 32- to 38-percent grade, a 1929 Essex Challenger, driven by Hugo F. Lange, vice-president and service manager of the Armstrong Motors, Inc., today claims honor as the first car ever to reach the summit of Table Rock mountain. Using Associated Ethyl gasoline and Cyclol motor oil, the car made the trip on its own power in 35 minutes running time.
    Leaving Medford at 7:30, the Challenger, escorted by a number of other cars from the Armstrong Motor Company, started its long and difficult ascent up the hazardous grade at 8:15, stopping at intervals for pictures taken by Horace Bromley, of the Copco company, and B. R. Harwood, local photographer.
    What is said to be the greatest test on motor stamina ever accomplished in Southern Oregon was achieved by this car with the radiator temperature at no time exceeding the 108 mark.
    When the car reached the top of Table Rock, it was driven by Mr. Lange over a solid bed of boulders for a hundred yards, while the Copco movie camera ground out foot after foot of hair-raising action pictures.
    The other cars parked at the foot of the mountain and the party of spectators accompanied the "pioneer bus" not only up the steep grade on foot, but on the long trek across the top of Table Rock, where the Essex was parked overlooking the edge of the cliff, while the camera men did their stuff.
    Those who accompanied the Essex to the top were: Herb Alford of the Associated Oil Company; E. F. White, shop foreman of the Armstrong Motor Company; Jack Wirth, Bill Brockman, B. R. Harwood, Horace Bromley, Luke Lange, son of Hugo Lange, Elane Crawford and members of the press.
Medford Mail Tribune, June 25, 1929, page 3


HORSES BEAT CAR TO TOP OF TABLE ROCK YEARS AGO
    TABLE ROCK, Ore., July 6.--(Special.)--An automobile was driven to the top of Table Rock Tuesday, June 25, without mishap, but the return trip was very difficult and dangerous. This reminds oldtimers that many years ago parties living here put into crops a portion of the open land on the summit of the lower Table Rock, and the farm horses hitched to the wagon made daily trips up and down the steep sides of the mountain. So at least in this accomplishment the car has nothing on the patient horse.
Medford Mail Tribune, July 6, 1929, page 6


Hugo Lange of Table Rock Fame Says Top of Plateau Admirably Suited for Emergency Air Field
    A more ideal emergency landing field in Southern Oregon could not be found than on top of Table Rock is the contention of Hugo Lange of this city, who has been inspired by the idea for several months, ever since he made a record auto run to the summit of the famous bluff. Mr. Lange has studied the situation from various angles and yesterday declared he could see no reason why the plan was not feasible.
    The top of the rock, covering acres and acres of perfectly level ground, is several hundred feet above the floor of the valley and is always in sunshine when heavy winter fogs arrive, making flying difficult. The broad expanse of the rock can be easily found, said Mr. Lange, and would do much to add to the safety of winter flying. While there is no auto road to the top, one could be built at a comparatively small amount in comparison to the good that would be derived from its construction. Though the present road is hardly anything but a trail, having once been used by teams of a farmer who had a small ranch on top, Mr. Lange found but little trouble in driving a stock model machine of the Essex type its entire length.
    Mr. Lange relates further that water can be found on top by digging less than 20 feet in the seemingly arid soil. With water easy to obtain and an automobile road constructed, Table Rock could also be made one of Rogue River Valley's scenic spots, as the view from the top is unsurpassed in seeing the wide expanse of the valley, with Medford, Central Point, Phoenix, Talent and Ashland easy to discern in the distance on a clear day. The Rogue River, threading its way, a shimmering silver ribbon, hundreds of feet below, adds to the beauty of the scene.
    Although at the present time to gain the top of the rock requires a long walk over a mountain trail, there are many visitors to the top during favorable weather, and it is often the attraction of hikers in wintertime. The popularity of the trip is shown by the well-worn trail, showing evidences of hundreds of feet annually.
    Residents of the Table Rock section are interested in the project, and it is probable some definite move may be taken in the near future to take advantage of the benefits offered by the historic bluff, which played an important part in the early history of Jackson County and Southern Oregon. Indian battles were fought on its sides and at its base nearly a century ago, and not far from its base now stands the monument where the Indian peace treaty was signed September 10, 1853, with General Joseph Lane, Colonel John E. Ross, Colonel William Martin and other well-known Southern Oregon pioneers present. [The monument is not on the site of the signing.]
Medford Mail Tribune, October 10, 1929, page B3


TINY AUTOMOBILE NEGOTIATES ROAD TO TABLE ROCK
    What is believed to be one of the most difficult hill climbing feats ever performed by an automobile was successfully accomplished yesterday when H. F. Lange of the Armstrong Motor Company drove a new Austin Bantam to the summit of Table Rock over a wagon trail that has not been used for years. The car making the climb was a standard model coupe with no special gear reductions.
    In the ascent of the trail, grades as steep as 40 percent were encountered, with loose rock and large boulders adding additional handicaps. After reaching the top the bantam machine was driven to the front of the rock facing Medford and was photographed by Bert Peasley, local photographer, taking still pictures. Jack Swem of Swem Studios took several reels of motion pictures of the climb with a new Eastman camera.
    Mr. Lange gave credit to Associated Ethyl gasoline for a share of the success of the demonstration. Motion pictures of the climb will be shown at the Armstrong garage next week, revealing skill gaining good "shots." Most of them were taken while the car was in action.
    E. F. White, Jack Worth and Carl Williams were official boulder movers. The first two named sustained slight injuries when stones were hurled at them from the car while in motion. They plan to use shin protectors and baseball masks the next time the climb is made.
    In regard to the climb, Mr. Lange made the following statement: "I believe that an automobile cannot be put to any harder test than driving up to the top of Table Rock. Every part of the car is subject to the most terrific strain, and the body twist and wrack is sufficient to break any but the best material and construction."
    A representative of the Mail Tribune was an official observer of the demonstration.
    A year ago last June, Mr. Lange made an ascent of the rock in an Essex car that attracted considerable attention.
Medford Mail Tribune, September 20, 1930, page 8


Table Rock Battle Myth
Based on Old Newspaper Story, Says Mrs. Sargent
By Alice Applegate Sargent
    We feel that the time has come when truth should triumph over fiction, and right here we state most positively and emphatically that no battle was ever fought ON THE TOP of Table Rock.
    Long years ago, when Jacksonville had a splendid paper of its own, a Mrs. Plymale wrote a thrilling and interesting tale of a battle on the top of Table Rock. This article was simply a romance, but it has been handed down to the present day, and accepted by the mass of the people as authentic history. We give here the true story of the battle and the circumstances which led up to it:
    On the 17th of June, 1851, a fight took place between a small body of soldiers and the Rogue River Indians on the banks of the stream, which is now known as Bear Creek, near where it flows into Rogue River. In this fight Captain James Stuart of the regular army was shot through the body with a poisoned arrow and died of the wound.
    Major Phil Kearny was in command of this small detachment of soldiers.
    After the fight which resulted in the death of Captain Stuart, the Indians fled into their stronghold at the base of Table Rock, and Major Kearny had to wait for reinforcements before making an attack on the savages.
    The attack was made on the 23rd of June, 1851. The Indians, who fought behind stone fortifications, were under the command of Chief John, the great war chief of the Rogue Rivers.
    The attack was renewed on the 24th. This fight was a desperate one, and the Indians suffered severely. Major Kearny offered to treat with them, but they scorned his offer. He prepared to attack early on the morning of the 25th, but the Indians fled from their stronghold during the night. Although they were pursued, they escaped to the timbered mountains, and only 30 women with their children were captured. These were held as hostages.
    The battle was fought at the base of Table Rock where, for ages, fragments of rock had rolled down the slope, forming stone breastworks. These the Indians had reinforced by placing logs on top of the boulders. A famous soldier of the Civil War, then-Gen. George B. McClellan, tells us in his memoirs of being in this fight with the Indians when Captain Stuart was killed; he, a young subaltern, was a devoted friend and comrade of Captain Stuart. The body of the brave young soldier was buried at the foot of a large oak tree, and the initials of Stuart's name were cut deeply into the bark.
    The stream we now know as Ber Creek was named Stuart River in memory of this young soldier, and should be so called.
    Captain Stuart's last words were an expression of regret that his life had been sacrificed for a land that would never be anything but a wilderness.
    Dwellers in the Rogue River Valley today, and thousands of tourists from all parts of the United States, will realize that Captain Stuart did not give his life in vain, for the wilderness in which he died has developed into one of the most beautiful and fruitful valleys of the world.
Medford Mail Tribune, July 22, 1931, page 5


    The Battle of Table Rock, which was not fought on the top of the rock, according to Mrs. Alice Applegate Sargent, is reviewed in this chapter of her history of Southern Oregon and the Indian war. Establishment of the first pack train through the valley by Poole and Clugage, who in 1851 discovered gold at Jacksonville is also told, followed by a thrilling story of the gold rush of 1000 men, the selecting of Jacksonville, Ashland and surrounding communities.
    This attack was made on the 23rd of June. The Indians, who fought behind stone fortifications, were under the command of Chief John, the great war chief of the Rogue Rivers. [No participant mentions any fortifications, much less stone ones.] The attack was renewed on the 24th. This fight was a desperate one and the Indians suffered severely. Major Kearny offered to treat with them but they scorned his offer. He prepared to attack early on the morning of the 25th, but the Indians fled from their stronghold during the night. Although they were pursued they escaped to the timbered hills and only thirty women with their children were captured. These were held as hostages. Indian war veterans have told a thrilling tale of an Indian woman, who during this fight stood high on a ledge of rock and gave commands to the Indian warriors in clarion tones which could be heard above the din of battle. This woman was known to the whites as Princess Mary. [She is only known to have generaled the battle at Hungry Hill.] She was the wife of "Tyee Jim," a brother of Chief John. Unfortunately the Indian names of the savages prominent in the war in this valley have been lost to history.
    Right here let me stress the fact that no battle was ever fought on the top of Table Rock. The Indians were too cautious and understood strategy too well to be caught on the top of the rock from which escape would have been impossible.
Alice Applegate Sargent, "Battle of Table Rock Told by Mrs. Sargent," Medford Mail Tribune, January 3, 1932, page 3


    There is an old story about the whites driving a band of Indians over the high cliffs on Table Rock. This story was originated in the 1880 period when Ashland was the southern terminus of the O&C railroad and was the brain child of an enterprising peanut butcher who sold pictures of the rock.
Tom Bradley, "Historic Lava Cave Battle," Medford Mail Tribune, December 7, 1937, page 4


VALLEY FOLKS TO VIEW LAUNCHING S.S. "TABLE ROCK"
Mrs. Atlanta P. Naffziger, John Ross, A. E. Powell to Represent County.

    A delegation of three Jackson County residents, Atlanta Parker Naffziger, John E. Ross and Arthur Powell, left yesterday afternoon for Portland and today are attending the launching ceremonies of the S.S. Table Rock at the Kaiser Swan Island shipyards as representatives of Jackson County. The S.S. Table Rock is the first of two ships which are being named after historic Southern Oregon spots and is the 41st tanker to be launched at the Swan Island yard.
    Mrs. Naffziger's father, William Parker, gave Table Rock its name. Parker, with Lindsay and Jesse Applegate, blazed a trail through the Rogue River Valley in 1846 in an effort to find a better route from Fort Hall to the Willamette Valley, and Table Rock was named at that time, the pioneers using it as a landmark. Mr. Parker and Jesse Applegate were brothers-in-law. Mrs. Naffziger is the only living first-generation descendant of these three men.
    Mr. Ross is the son of Col. John Ross, who took part in the Indian wars in this locality. Col. John Ross was present when the treaty of peace was signed with Chief Sam on the plain below Table Rock in [1853], and took an active part in the fighting with the Indians following the massacre of [1855].
    Mr. Powell, county commissioner, is attending the ceremonies as representative of the Jackson County Court.
    The launching of the Table Rock is being used to stimulate interest in the Red Cross blood bank, a release from the shipyard states. Capt. William Willoughby, U.S. army, will speak. The captain was wounded during the battle of Attu and has been the recipient of blood plasma transfusions. He is recuperating at the Barnes General Hospital in Vancouver.
    Sponsor of the Table Rock is Mrs. Paul B. McKee, wife of the president of the Portland Gas and Coke Company. She will be attended by Mrs. Roy Matson, matron of honor; her daughter, Miss Joan McKee, maid of honor; and Miss Betty Swigert as flower girl.
    The launching will serve as a "kickoff" for a blood donors drive at the Swan Island yard, and arrangements are being made to enlist all of the Kaiser Company employees on the blood donor roll.
Medford Mail Tribune, November 28, 1943, page 10



Table Rock

Table Rock, the landmark of the valley,
    Stands majestic where the river flows.
A strong formation of splendid beauty,
    The passing of time it never knows.

The sentinel that directs the voyager,
    In silent wonder the passerby
Gazed upon the rock with thoughts sublime,
    As the gorgeous beauty meets the eye.

It told them a story of adventure,
    And made them know they were going right,
That they were nearing their journey's end,
    The Sentinel guards by day and night.

The Rock has seen cruel and awful deeds,
    But a long and silent faith has kept,
While many passing generations grieved,
    Fought and died, and sadly wept.

But today Table Rock has been honored,
    Her namesake will sail the deep blue sea,
With America's stars and stripes unfurled,
    Waving gently on the evening breeze.

May good luck and justice be ever there,
    May God direct the hand at the mast,
May Table Rock help win this awful war,
    Bringing to this world a peace at last.
                                --Atlanta Parker Naffziger

Central Point American, January 20, 1944, page 6
Written on the launching of the T2 tanker Liberty Ship Table Rock.



Jacksonville Leper Left Legend of Gold Discovery
in Vicinity of Table Rock
By Dale Vincent

Mail Tribune Feature Writer
    Lost gold and buried treasure has ever been an interesting subject. Half the people have always believed in these stories. The other half have been skeptical, but all have been wishful--for no adventure can have more charm than the finding of a ready-made fortune.
    One fact stands out: Many lost mines and buried treasures actually have been found. Many of them had no more fact than pure "legend."
Many Rich Finds
    The Mine with the Iron Door (a legend) was found, after a five-year search. The Lost Wheelbarrow Mine (another legend) was found by accident, and the ore ran $8,000 to the ton and is still in production.
    There are many, many more. The current newspapers and magazines often carry an account of someone bringing to light a so-called "legendary" lost treasure.
    Experience has proved that wherever there is a little smoke, there was at one time some fire. It is remarkable how, in following the faintest wisp of smoke, you often come upon the ashes of a fire, with a few still-glowing coals in the form of some old diary, yellowed newspaper or forgotten document.
    Lost gold mines are still sought after, but no "treasure" hunter is willing to invest his time, and often large sums of money, in restoring to the world lost treasure that a greedy government claims. Thus "treasure hunting" is not indulged in anymore to the extent it once was.
Government Reasonable
    But the government is still reasonable about lost mines, and every gold country has its stories and legends--and Southern Oregon is particularly rich in the lore of lost mines.
    In the gold rush days of the '50s, Jacksonville was a booming gold town. People had gathered here from every part of the world. There were few countries that were not represented by at least a few of that nationality. There were Swedes, French, Spanish, Irish, English and, of course, the Indian, and ever-present John Chinaman.
    Most of these were rugged, strong characters, but one day there appeared among them--a leper.
    When this was discovered by a few of the good citizens, they were filled with horror and alarm. What should they do with this scourge that had come among them?
    They desired, of course, to be rid of the leper, but the victim was still a human being, and therefore must be dealt with in a sympathetic and humane manner.
    So these few good citizens held a secret meeting--not wanting to spread any alarm--yet determined to safeguard their community.
Taken to Cabin
    At last they hit upon a plan. Appropriations were made for expenses, and a committee of three was elected to escort the leper out of town, across Rogue River, and to the inside bend of the horseshoe that was formed by the Table Rocks. [Both Table Rocks are horseshoe-shaped.]
    At the base of one of the cliffs they built a cabin and stocked it with groceries. The grateful leper promised to live there in isolation.
    The purpose of the committee from then on was to purchase food and clothing and take it to the leper once a month.
    These supplies were delivered in an odd manner. The committee of three, riding horseback and leading a pack mule, would ascend to the top of the Table Rock cliffs, just above the cabin. From that point they would lower down to the waiting leper a wooden bucket filled with supplies on the end of a rope. [A pack mule could easily carry 200 pounds of freight. It would have been onerous to lower that volume one bucket at a time. It would have made much more sense to leave the supplies 50 feet from his door and shout for him to pick them up.]
    This unique grocery delivery service was kept up regularly every month for a period of more than two years.
Leper Acts Queer
    Then one day in the spring of the third year the bucket was let down laden with groceries as usual, and the committee of three could see the small figure of a man far below come feebly out of his cabin and make his way slowly to the base of the cliff where the bucket rested.
    The leper acted as though he might be unusually sick. But finally the bucket was unloaded of its food and a feeble tug on the rope was given as a signal to raise the bucket.
    But the men at the top found the bucket very heavy and, thinking it was still loaded with food, they waited. The signal came again for them to raise the bucket. The men pulled on the rope once more. It was still heavy.
    What could be wrong?
    Had the leper climbed into the bucket, the men wondered, in hope they would pull him to the top?
    They snubbed the rope to a tree, and one of them peeked over the edge of the cliff.  The leper was going back to his cabin, and the bucket looked as empty as ever.
    The committee could not imagine what made the bucket so heavy, but they struggled and lifted and sweat until they got it to the top.
Gold in Bucket
    Their amazement was profound. The bottom of the bucket was filled four inches deep with gold nuggets and dust.
    This then was their reward from the grateful leper, for all the years they had carried him food. But where had he got the gold?
    The men hurried back to Jacksonville and shared the reward with the rest of the few citizens who knew about the leper and who had been contributing to his welfare. All wondered if the leper had discovered a rich mine near his cabin--but no one was willing to go near the leper to look. [It was commonly understood at the time that leprosy was transmitted by contact. If this story were true, eager miners would have beaten a path to the leper's door, looking for the trail he'd worn to his mine. The three benefactors could also have spoken to the leper from the top of Table Rock.]
    On their next trip the committee lowered their provisions as usual, but this time no one came to receive them. The cabin was silent and there was no movement anywhere. Apparently the leper had died.
    To this day no explanation has ever been found as to where that gold came from.
    Did the old man have a rich mine at the base of the Table Rocks? Or had he just cleaned out a pocket?
Old River Channel
    It has been said that no gold to speak of has ever been found around the lava formations of the Table Rocks. [Not true. Sams Creek--running between the Table Rocks--was mined for gold from the 1860s well into the twentieth century.] But one mining engineer, now living in the valley, thinks it possible that one of the old, prehistoric river channels (that are noted for their heavy gold content) runs quite close to the base of these cliffs and has been covered over by the more recent flow of lava that formed the Table Rocks.
    It could be possible that the old leper somehow tapped this old river channel. We do not know. The above lost mine story cannot be authenticated in any way. [The presence of a leper could have been kept secret in the 1850s (but why?), but his support would have been paid by the Jackson County commissioners from county funds and recorded in the Commissioners' Journals--transcribed here. There are no indigent accounts in the journals resembling this story.] It is a legend that has been handed down by word of mouth from one oldtimer to another. [And not finding its way into print until 1947.] But we do know that "legends" are wisps of smoke that have drifted down through the ages, from some fire that burned long ago.
Medford Mail Tribune, December 7, 1947, page 8


Hollywood
BY BOB THOMAS

    Medford, Ore., Nov. 8--(AP)--How would you like a summer place in one of the best fishing and hunting countries in the U.S.? The price: a mere $50,000.
    Or, if you get here early--only $42,500. And that includes use of the private landing strip.
    A unique millionaires' paradise was unveiled over the weekend with a covey of Hollywood personalities as window dressing. They came to be entertained and photographed, invited by Ginger Rogers, a sometimes Oregonian who is associated in the scheme.
Dividing His Property
    The brains behind the plan is John Day, soft-spoken, sandy-haired millionaire rancher and sportsman. He conceived of dividing 3,000 acres of his Rogue River property into "package estates"--roomy $23,000 houses plus two or three acres and right to fish and game thereon. He hopes to sell $12,000,000 worth.
    As an added feature, Day has built an amazing air strip. It is atop Table Mountain, which stands like a great pool table 1,000 feet above the Rogue River Valley. This strange formation, upon which the Indians are said to have made a last stand against the white man in Oregon, will now receive the planes of tired businessmen seeking rest and sport. The first landing was made Saturday.
    The first two of the Table Mountain estates were shown to the Hollywood party over the weekend. One overlooks Hardy Riffle, a famous (to anglers) spot on the river where Herbert Hoover, the late Zane Grey and Clark Gable have cast many a fly.
Created Artificial Lake
    The other house overlooks an artificial lake. Big enough to boat upon, the lake. Big enough to boat upon, the lake was created to provide a view from the living room window.
    Although some of them seem slightly miscast in real outdoor roles, the film crowd had a rousing time. They acted just like a boy scout troop as they sang around the camp fire. Among the choristers were Ann Miller, Lee Bowman, Gale Storm, Theresa Wright, Robert Preston, John Howard, Ward Bond and John Carroll.
    Highlights of the entertainment were solos by John Howard and imitations of Nelson Eddy and Jeanette MacDonald by John Carroll and Ginger. Carroll was the life of the party, singing at any provocation. His roommate even reported he snored "Chloe" in his sleep.
Register-Republic, Rockford, Illinois, November 8, 1948, page 28


    A man and woman who had read in "Tablets" about the mining venture currently being carried on on Lower Table Rock were here one day last week asking how they could get to where the work is being done. During the talk about the Table Rocks they told us something we had forgotten. Oldtimers, they said, told of a Chinaman living in Jacksonville who was found to be afflicted with leprosy, so was taken to Table Rock and placed in a cave. His food was taken to him in a bucket lowered by a rope from the cliff above. Guy Nelson, one of our good neighbors, says he had heard about the Chinaman, but was told they built him a cabin to live in, and that when he died he left some raw gold in the cabin. Guy thinks if he can locate the site where the cabin stood, he just might find the gold.
R. E. Nealon, "Tablets," Medford Mail Tribune, March 23, 1962, page 10





Last revised October 9, 2023