James McAuliff, Beloved Mayor and the Sheriff Who Tamed the Vigilantes
Clark Colahan (left) portrays James McAuliff
In the middle 1800s Walla Walla was a robust community of gold miners, soldiers and townspeople who were desperate to have a safe town to live in. Many of the troublemakers were rather cantankerous individuals such as Cherokee Bob who paid little attention to authority. James McAuliff was called upon to help solve the problem, and he rose to the occasion quite well.
McAuliff was an Irish-American veteran of the war with Mexico in the late 1840s who came to the Walla Walla valley at the end of the war. For valor shown in the 1855 Battle of Walla Walla, he was promoted to the rank of captain in the Oregon Volunteers. A successful merchant, farmer, and sawmill owner, he was elected mayor eleven times and became known as the town's most beloved citizen. He often led parades in Walla Walla playing his fife. In the years surrounding the vigilante activity in Walla Walla, he served as sheriff and member of the territorial legislature. McAuliff is portrayed by retired Whitman College Professor of Spanish Clark Colahan.
Performances begin at 2:00 p.m. in the pioneer settlement at Fort Walla Walla Museum. Visitors are encouraged to question the Living History re-enactors about their lives and times. The Museum is open daily, 10 am - 5 pm, April through October; 10 am - 4 pm, November1 through December 23; and weekdays, 10 am - 4 pm, January through March.
Admission is free to Fort Walla Walla Museum members,
eligible service personnel & their familes through
the Blue Star Museums program, Tamástslikt Cultural Institute's
Inwai Circle cardholders,
enrolled members of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation, and all children under 6;
$3/children
6-12; $6/seniors (62+) and students; $7/adults.
Your admission fee today may be applied to a membership,
priced beginning at $27. For more information, contact Fort Walla Walla Museum at 509-525-7703, or email: info@fortwallawallamuseum.org. |
