Biography, John H. Porter (1837 - 1920)
John Hughes Porter, 1874 (Canada)
"Two travellers leading their pack horses around the bend in the (Payette) river early in April of '63 differed from the majority in that they were not hunting mines, but rathr were looking for a little farm - a garden patch with rich ground. John Porter, a Canadian, and his 23-year old companion, W. J. (Bill) McConnell from near Lafayette, in the Willamette Valley, Oregon, had decided to throw in their luck togethr and raise produce for the miners. While outfitting in Portland, their landlady gave Bill a wash ban full of onion sets, which they planted first in the garden they located on Porter Creek, a mile from the Payette, and four miles from Horseshoe Bend. in six weeks the onions, tied in bunches at $1.00 per dozen, brought $100 in Placerville. These were the first green vegetables sold in the Basin and later that year, watermelons grown by McConnell and Porter sold in Idaho City for as much as $8.00 each at 25 cents per pound." - Nellie Ireton Mills -- "All Along the River/Territorial and Pioneer Days on the Payette." Privately printed for Payette Radio Limited, 1963.
W. J. McConnell tells the story . .
John H. Porter's homestead patent, December 20, 1872: Lot 5, Section 23; Lot 1 & the N 1/2 of the NE 1/4 of Section 26, all in T7N, R2E, Boise Meridian.
1872 - John Porter Leaves for Canada
1873 - John H. Porter marries Sarah Randall Nason - Sarah's photo
Life in Hagersville, Ontario, Canada
1907 Visit from W. J. McConnell
family group sheet - William Porter, John H. Porter's Ancestors
A big thank you to Debbie McDowell, Porter family historian, and to David Humpherys, Boise County historian, for sharing their research!
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