Additional information, including a timeline is currently being compiled and will be added as soon as it is completed. In the meantime:

Salem is the capital of Oregon and the state's third largest city. The city was founded in 1841 by Methodist missionary Jason Lee, whose goal was to gather the Indians together and "teach them to cultivate the ground and live more comfortably than they could by hunting, and as they do this, teach them religion."

After limited success, Lee became discouraged. He decided to lay out a town and sell lots to finance the Oregon Institute, which developed into the present-day Willamette University, the oldest institution of higher learning west of Missouri.

Salem had only one house when it was plotted, and the Calapooya Indian name Chemeketa, or "place of rest" was proposed for the town's name. Missionaries, however, preferred the Biblical word "Salem" which means peace.

The city is home to a complex that includes the Mission Mill Village, a 5-acre park complex of historic buildings that feature crafts and antiques. On the outskirst of the property can be found The Jason Lee House, the Parsonage and the John D. Boon House, all of which have been restored and furnished. The Thomas Kay Textile Museum, which is situated on the Mill stream that meanders through the property, features a restored, operating water-powered turbine. Established during the height of the Civil War in 1863, the mill demonstrates the process of converting fleece into woolen material. And last, but not least, is the Marion County Historical Society Museum that presents displays from the early days of the Calapooyan Indian.

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