Provisional Government of Oregon

Provisional Government of Oregon
1841/1843–1849
Salmon Seal of the Provisional Government of Oregon Country
Salmon Seal of the Provisional Government
Original districts of the government with the eventual U.S. borders and states superimposed
Original districts of the government with the eventual U.S. borders and states superimposed
StatusPart of the United States (1846–1849)
CapitalOregon City
Common languages
  • English
  • French
GovernmentRepublic
Executive 
• 1841–1843
Supreme Judge Ira Babcock
• 1842–1843
Chairman of the Committee at Champoeg Meetings Ira Babcock
• 1843–1845
Executive Committee
• 1845–1849
Governor George Abernethy
LegislatureUnicameral
History 
• Appointment of constitutional committee and election of Supreme Judge at Champoeg
February 18, 1841
• First Wolf Meeting at Champoeg
February 1, 1843
• Second Wolf Meeting at Champoeg
March 6, 1843
• Creation of the Provisional Government at Champoeg
May 2, 1843
March 3, 1849
Currency
Preceded by
Succeeded by
Oregon Country
Oregon Territory

The Provisional Government of Oregon was a popularly elected settler government created in the Oregon Country, in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. Its formation had been advanced at the Champoeg Meetings since February 17, 1841, and it existed from May 2, 1843 until March 3, 1849, and provided a legal system and a common defense amongst the mostly American pioneers settling an area then inhabited by the many Indigenous Nations. Much of the region's geography and many of the Natives were not known by people of European descent until several exploratory tours were authorized at the turn of the 18th and 19th centuries. The Organic Laws of Oregon were adopted in 1843 with its preamble stating that settlers only agreed to the laws "until such time as the United States of America extend their jurisdiction over us".[3] According to a message from the government in 1844, the rising settler population was beginning to flourish among the "savages", who were "the chief obstruction to the entrance of civilization" in a land of "ignorance and idolatry".[3]

The government had three branches that included a legislature, judiciary, and executive branch. The executive branch was first the Executive Committee, consisting of three members, in effect from 1843 to 1845; in 1845, a governor replaced the committee. The judicial branch had a single Supreme Judge along with several lower courts, and a legislative committee of nine served as a legislature until 1845 when the Oregon House of Representatives was established.

  1. ^ a b c Cite error: The named reference Scott was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference Strevey was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ a b Brown, J. Henry (1892). Brown's Political History of Oregon: Provisional Government. Portland: Wiley B. Allen. LCCN rc01000356. OCLC 422191413.

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