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The Willamette, Oregon, Meteorite in History *
Author(s) -
Pruett J. Hugh
Publication year - 1939
Publication title -
contributions of the society for research on meteorites
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 1945-5100
pISSN - 0096-2813
DOI - 10.1111/j.1945-5100.1939.tb00213.x
Subject(s) - meteorite , estate , archaeology , supreme court , law , history , art history , art , political science , physics , astronomy
In 1902, Ellis Hughes found the Willamette, Oregon, meteorite on a hillside near Oregon City. It was on property belonging to the Oregon Iron & Steel Company. Unable to buy the land, Hughes constructed a crude truck, loaded the 16‐ton object onto it, and, by means of a windless and horse, secretly moved it three‐quarters of a mile to his own house, after three months of work. There he exhibited it to the public for a fee of 25 cents. The company from whose land the meteorite was moved soon brought suit to recover it. The lower court awarded it to the company. Hughes appealed to the State Supreme Court, and, on July 17, 1905, the high court decided that such objects are real estate and belong to the land where they are found. The company then moved the already famous object to Portland, where it was exhibited at the Lewis and Clark Exposition. On February 15, 1906, Mrs. William Dodge II of New York bought the meteorite from the owners and presented it to the American Museum of Natural History in New York City. There it has since remained.