Scientist. He was a Scottish botanist who is the namesake of the David Douglas Fir tree. His career started in Scotland where he was affiliated with the University of Glasgow and served as botanical collector for the Horticultural Society of London. He was hired by the Hudson's Bay Company to do a botanical survey of the Oregon region, and traveled there in 1824. For four years, he traveled approximately 8,000 miles of the Northwest, cataloging and collecting samples. He returned to England in 1827. He achieved fame in Europe for his collection, and has been referred to as "one of the founding fathers of the British forestry industry as it exists today" by one biographer. He returned to the Northwest in 1829 hoping to convince the Hudson's Bay Company to finance a trip to Alaska and beyond. They refused, so David Douglas sailed to Hawaii in 1833. In July of 1833, he was exploring the Island when he either fell, while other theories claim that he was pushed, into a large pit that had been dug to trap wild bulls. His body was found apparently trampled by an animal. A plaque on the wall of Kawaiahao Church, and a stone marker at Kaluakauka, which is near where the pit was located, commemorate David Douglas's death. His body was buried at the Church Cemetery, but the location is lost to history.
Scientist. He was a Scottish botanist who is the namesake of the David Douglas Fir tree. His career started in Scotland where he was affiliated with the University of Glasgow and served as botanical collector for the Horticultural Society of London. He was hired by the Hudson's Bay Company to do a botanical survey of the Oregon region, and traveled there in 1824. For four years, he traveled approximately 8,000 miles of the Northwest, cataloging and collecting samples. He returned to England in 1827. He achieved fame in Europe for his collection, and has been referred to as "one of the founding fathers of the British forestry industry as it exists today" by one biographer. He returned to the Northwest in 1829 hoping to convince the Hudson's Bay Company to finance a trip to Alaska and beyond. They refused, so David Douglas sailed to Hawaii in 1833. In July of 1833, he was exploring the Island when he either fell, while other theories claim that he was pushed, into a large pit that had been dug to trap wild bulls. His body was found apparently trampled by an animal. A plaque on the wall of Kawaiahao Church, and a stone marker at Kaluakauka, which is near where the pit was located, commemorate David Douglas's death. His body was buried at the Church Cemetery, but the location is lost to history.
Bio by: Oregonian
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Records on Ancestry
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