Clark County history: John Ball taught at Oregon’s first academy after a rough trek west

The family of Sgt. John Ordway lived near John Ball’s parents in Hebron, N.H. Ordway had crossed the country with Lewis and Clark, returning in 1806. Young Ball was an eager listener about the journey’s adventures, people, wildlife and geography. Imagining the far corner of the continent appealed to him, and he planned a western journey. Ball signed on with the Nathaniel Wyeth expedition to travel to Fort Vancouver in the Oregon Territory from March-October 1832.

Ball, a Dartmouth College graduate and lawyer, wrote the expedition didn’t go well. Wyeth wouldn’t take advice. He also reported the loss of critical equipment, men deserting and facing thirst and hunger. Ball and other expedition members were stranded at the fort, dependent on the good graces of John McLoughlin, the Hudson’s Bay Company’s chief factor.

Luckily, Ball parleyed his previous teaching experience into a tutoring position. The chief factor hired Ball to teach his son, David, and other boys at the fort, including William McKay, Ranald MacDonald and Andrew Pambrun. McLoughlin told Ball he’d be teaching at Oregon’s first academy. Ball found his students to be docile, attentive and able to make satisfactory educational progress.

In 1833, with seeds and tools McLoughlin provided, Ball started a farm in the Willamette Valley at French Prairie. He joined with some retired Bay employees, perhaps making the group the first Oregon farmers outside the Hudson’s Bay Company farm. Disappointed by his agricultural effort, lonely and suffering from “auge” (malaria-like symptoms, fever, chills and sweats), Ball returned east in 1833, traveling on a Bay ship to San Francisco, then to Hawaii and finally to Norfolk, Va. Like Ordway, he returned east with tales of interest to young easterners’ ears.

Four years later, Ball was in Grand Rapids, Mich., setting up a law practice with two former justices and serving in the state legislature. When Congress granted Michigan a half-million acres, Ball’s land management skill led to the quick development of the Grand River Valley. Throughout his life, he promoted local enterprises, maintained an interest in geology and helped establish the Michigan public school system. Ball produced the first written account of Oregon’s geology.

When he died in Grand Rapids, Ball left 40 acres for a park. During the 1890s, the land became a sort of “Central Park” for the town. The city extended the park by purchasing land surrounding Ball’s acreage. Thoughts of a zoo arose. The city showed no interest, but some civic leaders contributed money for animals. Until the Great Depression, when it fell into disrepair, the park offered entertainment with a zoo, dance hall, swimming pool and formal gardens. Refurbished, today it’s called the John Ball Zoo.

Two locations in Vancouver pay tribute to Ball. A six-sided granite historical marker at the intersection of East Evergreen Way and Officers Row confirms Ball’s teaching here in 1833 on its second side. Along Kauffman Avenue, between 21st and 23rd streets, lies a park named after the educator who only spent about two years in the area, yet left a lasting impression.