Vancouver, Washington: Fort Vancouver & Pearson Air Museum

Fort Vancouver. It's a gem in the middle of a bunch of city chaos. 

If you've read the first few entries of our blog you probably know that we have spent our time in the Pacific Northwest doing a pretty in depth study of the Oregon Trail and Westward Expansion.We've been able to visit a few places on the Historic Oregon Trail and Fort Vancouver fit wonderfully into our study by providing a ton of new (to G&P) information on Westward Expansion and our beloved Pacific Northwest.

So, a few quick facts about Fort Vancouver, in case you're unfamiliar, and then we'll get on with the pictures. 

1. Fort Vancouver was established and run by Hudson's Bay Trading Company. It was most populated and prosperous during the 1840's, but operated for a few decades.

2. It was the site of the PNW's first hospital, school, dairy, orchard, grist mill, library, shipyard, and saw mill.

3. Sometime in the 1860's the U.S. Army commandeered Fort Vancouver. Hudson's Bay Trading was furious that they were being forced out, so they left the fort in horrible shape and, though several buildings remained in use, the original fort was left in ruins. It's since been completely reconstructed.

4. Ulysses S. Grant was stationed here as a captain and one of the houses on Officers Row was named for him, though it was not the one he lived in.

5. We were also able to work some family history into this field trip. The original John Henry McBean was a French Canadian who worked as a guide for Hudson's Bay Trading Co. It stands to reason that he likely visited Fort Vancouver.

6. The Army used the barracks at Fort Vancouver until two years ago, so there's still a Shoppette and an AAFES barbershop. When the Fire Team spotted the familiar Shoppette you would have thought they had been marooned on a deserted island for the last few months.  

Okay. On with the pictures...

The obligatory in front of the sign photo. Ignore my Monica-in-Barbados hair. Washington hates my hair.

The Bastion from outside the fort perimeter.

The garden. The existing garden is only a fraction of the size it was during the 1800's, but NPS continues to grow a variety of vegetables, cotton, and other things that are used in demonstrations.

 

Checking out the fort's diorama. We always use these to work on our map orientation skills.

The stables with the HBC flag flying over.

On the left is the blacksmith shop. On the right is the hospital/surgeons living quarters/pharmacy/library.

The Big House. Really, that's what it's called. The highest ranking official(s) on the fort at any given time lived in the Big House. Of course, this was the most interesting part for the Fire Team because of the cannons. 

The Big House is beautifully decorated in period furniture and decor.

Only two buildings on the fort are painted. Reasonably, The Big House is one of them. 

 

This kid earned a sucker for being such a trooper.

The sun dial on the porch is engraved 'I Only Mark Sunny Hours'. Can you imagine, Alaska friends?

P thought the Indian corn was incredibly interesting.

The well is the only original structure on the fort. 

 

The Bake House

 

The Privy. Our kids knew what this was immediately. Thanks again, Alaska. 

The Blacksmith Shop was the highlight for Patton. These two gentlemen were wonderful, and because it was a Monday we had them all to ourselves. They gave an excellent demonstration, answered a slew of questions from the kids (and John), and gave us lots of information about the reconstruction of the fort.

 

RS took a break from the blacksmithing demonstration to watch worms. 

Inside the surgeons house. This is where he would take in and examine patients.

Hospital beds

The Pharmacy. Looking at antique medical tools always makes me really, really grateful to live in the current era.

Interestingly, these DaVinci anatomy sketches were hanging on the wall in the surgical area. It was a bonus (after our DaVinci study) to be able to give the kids a more versatile example of DaVinci's contributions to medical world.

The Bastion

She finally convinced her dad to let her out of the stroller.

From the top of the Bastion you can see the Interstate Bridge, which crosses the Columbia River, connecting Vancouver, WA and Portland, OR. This location was incredibly advantageous for Hudson's Bay.

More cannons.

The fort from the top of the Bastion.

Hudson's Bay Logo

The Counting House. You guessed it, this is where they kept track of the money.

It's the only other building on the fort that was painted. Again, it was because of the visitors and high ranking officials that would visit.

The Counting House was really the gem of the fort. It's full of hands-on learning exhibits for the younger crowd. Here, Gunnar and Patton are acting the part of counting clerks.

A majority of the exhibits are dedicated to learning about the young people who grew up on and around Fort Vancouver. The exhibit explains well the definitions and differences of historical and archaeological record and then uses both to provide information about three children, from diverse backgrounds, who grew up here.

RS and I loved this! They took several pieces of glass, bricks, and metals found during the excavation of the fort and placed it in this cylinder of sand. I definitely see this method of preservation and display in our future.

There were reproductions of documents and contracts in the Counting House. John is enlisting Patton for military service using English from the KJV. 

Also on the Fort Vancouver is the Pearson Air Museum. Because we were only in Vancouver for the afternoon and we took several hours wandering the fort, we just did a quick walk through of the Air Museum. (We also weren't able to make it over to the barracks or Officers Row, so a repeat visit will definitely be in our future).

This kid fits under the ropes. It's going to be an interesting year.

G thought this display was the coolest part of the day.

 

The Air Museum is housing the Fort Museum while it's building is being renovated, so after we checked out the airplanes we were able to watch the Fort Vancouver video and check out more of the photographs and museum artifacts from the fort. John and the kids checked out a bunch of animal hides and the kids colored aviation pictures while I browsed the gift shop. 

The thing that really stood out about visiting the Fort Vancouver Historical Site was how knowledgeable and friendly the rangers (all ex-military and/or NG) were. The ranger from the Air Museum was especially kind, answering tons of kid questions about the fort and the airplanes, giving some great advice about visiting other National Historic sites, and even giving the kids Fort Vancouver coloring books and trivia cards. 

Historical sites like Fort Vancouver are easy to overlook, but I promise you, my quick facts and photos do not do this place justice. Visit! And if you can't visit, at least check out the website...

http://www.nps.gov/fova/index.htm