Though Astoria was officially considered in joint occupation by the British and American government, many Americans  began to consider Astoria as their primary symbol of American expansion westward, setting aside the accomplishments of Robert Gray and Lewis and Clark.

    Even more of an impact was the proposed legislation in the 1820s by two Congressmen who desired the American government to assert themselves more forcefully in the west. The leader of this movement was Thomas Hart Benton form Missouri. Along with John Floyd of Virgina, they lobbied for government action to pronounce sovereignty in the Columbia River region. Floyd, not surprisingly, had ties to the far west. He was kin to Charles Floyd of the Lewis and Clark expedition. Their collective goal became for Astoria to be colonized and developed into a permanant agricultural settlement.
 

Astoria in the 1840s.

Though the so - called "Benton - Floyd Plan" was defeated, another United State's official  proposed similar goals. John Quincy Adams, Secretary of State and later President,  saw American expansion to the west as "inevitable" based on the westward push already beginning at least in the Midwest. However, it wasn't until the 1840s that the Oregon Trail  became the increasingly popular option for those in search of new lands and untamed wilderness. Adams, along with Benton and Floyd, had three purposes for American assertion in the Astoria region: First, it would develop a platform in order to back up imperial rhetoric. Secondly, it would keep alive the vision of an extensive American empire. And thirdly, Astoria would serve as a dominating symbol to the nation of what lay to the west.
 

The fruitful Wilamette Valley. Northwest Oregon.

    Throughout all this new talk about Astoria, John Jacob Astor never fully gave up on his dream to develop his fur trading post once again. In 1826 - 1827 he had high hopes when the London Conference met to discuss Astoria. Much to his chagrine, however, the governments reaffirmed the joint occupation treaty. By 1834, Astoria had been abondoned by British traders. Their main fort at Vancouver, Washington was thriving and Astoria was somewhat forgotten. In the 1840s, though, pioneers travelling the Oregon Trail settled Astoria and it came to life once again. However, this time it was not a strategic ecomonic fur trading outpost. It was a modestly sized fishing and agricultural village.

    John Jacob Astor left his business ventures in 1834 and managed his estate for the remaining fourteen years of his life. Upon his death in 1848, he was the richest man in America with an estate worth twenty million dollars. Though Astoria remains a small coastal town even to this day, it's rich history was important to the  westward expansion of the United States. Astoria had became a symbol, a national expression, of  economic development, international competition, and most importantly, the  drive to forge the American West.
 

Pictures: Ronda, page 335. Franchere, page 137.

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