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Jason Lee was born on June 28, 1803, in Stanstead, Quebec. After his ordination in 1834, Lee and his nephew, Daniel Lee, journeyed overland to Oregon with the intention to establish a mission to minister to the Flathead Indians. He instead established his mission in the Willamette Valley near present-Day Salem, Oregon, in territory that was home to bands of the Kalapuyan people. Lee returned east in 1838 to justify his decision and recruit reinforcements for the Willamette mission, as well as missions at The Dalles and Clatsop plains. In 1843, Jason Lee participated in the founding of Oregon's provisional government and Willamette University. Lee was relieved of his missionary post in 1844. Lee married Anna Maria Pittman, who died in 1838, and then Lucy Lee, who died in 1842. Jason Lee died on March 12, 1845.
Mary Packard reminiscences of Reverend Jason Lee, Mss 2240, Oregon Historical Society Research Library.
Manuscript reminiscences of Mary Packard (née Mary Leila Davis), 3 pages, circa 1900, describing her memories of Reverend Jason Lee when she met him in Stanstead, Canada, circa 1835. The reminiscences are written in the form of a letter to George H. Himes.
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