Oregon Trail Mapping Project

The Dalles, Oregon is a significant historical area, as it was the final stop for many pioneers traveling along the Oregon Trail. The town was founded in 1851 and quickly became a major trading post and supply center for pioneers heading west. Today, The Dalles is home to a number of historical landmarks, including the Fort Dalles Museum, the Columbia Gorge Discovery Center, and several pioneer cemeteries.

I find the cemeteries particularly important as the final resting places for pioneers who died while traveling along the Oregon Trail. Many are in disrepair, and we’re currently field checking and updating records of the graves so that the pioneers who are buried there will never be forgotten.

There are a number of ways we are updating these records. One way is to create current maps of the cemeteries and note the locations of each grave. We are also researching and listing the names, birth and death dates of the people who are buried there. This is an ongoing project entailing researching historical records, such as census records and death certificates.