Harrison B Oatman Genealogy 1554

1554 HARRISON B. OATMAN

1554 HARRISON B.⁷ (Harry B.⁶, Lyman⁵, George⁴, George³, John², Johannes¹), son of Harry B. and Matilda (Knapp) Oatman, was born 26 February 1826 in Cortland, Cortland County, New York, and died 19 May 1893 in Oregon, probably in the Portland area. He married Lucena K. Ross on 26 December 1847 at Kill Rock, Ogle County, Illinois; she was born 24 August 1831, the daughter of Lucy Breyman Ross, and died 3 August 1899.

Harrison lived with his parents in Cortland, New York, until 1828 or after, then in Bellevue, Ohio, until 1838, and in Rockland, Illinois, from 1838 to 1842. His whereabouts are unknown until 1853 when he crossed the plains in a covered wagon and arrived in September in Jackson County, Oregon, where he lived until his move to Portland in 1867. In Oregon he engaged successfully in both gold mining and land speculation and was a lieutenant during the war with the Rogue Indians. Indications are that his cousin Olive Oatman spent time with the family, together with her brother Lorenzo, after her release from Indian captivity; they also were cared for by Harrison's brother, Harvey, for a year.

H. B. was a Rogue River correspondent for the Statesman. The Oregon Historical Quarterly (June 1963, p. 145) states:

"Jacksonville, Sept. 28, 1855. Dear Bush: We have farther Indian outrages to record... ... Last Tuesday evening, Sept. 25, about 4 o'clock, Messrs. H. B. Oatman, [Daniel Britton], [Calvin] Fields, and a boy by the name of Cunningham, whose first name I do not know [later identified as John Cunningham] . . . were fired upon by Indians, and Mr. Fields and young Cunningham were killed..." (See also Bancroft, History of Oregon, vol. 2, p. 371, note 6.)

In addition, Harrison was a cavalry lieutenant and Post Adjutant at Fort Klamath in 1865 (per Oregon Historical Quarterly, Mar 1959, p. 103-4).

Children of Harrison B. and Lucena K. (Ross) Oatman:

3760 James Harvey, b. 28 Jan 1849, possibly in Rockford, Winnebago Co., IL; d. 8 Aug 1926, Portland, Multnomah Co., OR; m. Priscilla Lucille Dollarhide, 31 Dec 1874

3761 Charles T., b. 18 Aug 1858, Phoenix, Jackson Co., OR; d. 28 Oct 1926, Portland, OR; bur. Riverview Cem., Portland, OR; m. Clarice M. Ramsey, 14 Sep 1878. The Portland City Directories reveal "Chas. T." worked as an "expmn", a barnman, and a foreman with Anderson Brothers in Portland. His wife, from 1914 through 1918, was listed as Helen, who possibly was a second wife. By 1918 he had entered into a business known as Chappel & Oatman. In the 1920 soundex, Charles was divorced and living as a lodger with John Santry in Portland.

3762 John R., b. 25 Sep 1869, Portland, Multnomah Co., OR; d. 2 Jul 1948, Portland; m. Mame T. Keller, 8 Nov 1897. Mame was b. 17 Jul 1877, OR, and d. Mar 1972, OR. They had no children. He was an attorney, also an oboist with the Portland Symphony Orchestra.

3763 Lucena, b. 22 Feb 1872, Portland, Multnomah Co., OR; m. Clinton William Kern, 24 Dec 1889

Photo of Harrison Oatman

Photo of Harrison and Lucena (Ross) Oatman

Sources: Research by Barbara Hawthorne

Records of Hancock Co., IL

Hines, H. K. (Rev.) Illustrated History of the State of Oregon, 1893

Hodgkin, Frank and Galvin, J. J., Pen Pictures of Representative Men of

Oregon, 1882

The Oregonian, 8 Jul 1948, Sec. 1, p. 17, Portland, OR

The Oregon & Applegate Trail Diary of Welborn Beeson in 1853 (Reprint

1987)

1860 census, Jackson Co., OR