An interesting story relating to this territory is that of Roger's Rangers, hunters and trappers who explored the region. They told others of the warmer weather, large meadows and fine hunting and fishing. They even found where Native Americans had panned for gold in Annance Gulch. People were slow to move because of the boundary question.
The Coos Indians, led by King Philip, were friendly, especially to a Thomas Eames who they made a member of their tribe. Eames and four of his friends bought all this land from Philip and his wife, Molly, in 1796. Philip died the next year and the land was sold three or four times thereafter. Proprietors could not get settlers to go into the territory. However, a dozen families had settled by 1811 and there was established a sawmill and a gristmill.
The War of 1812 kept any more people from moving so near Canada. After the
Treaty of Ghent in 1814, a few more families earned their one hundred acres
by doing settler's duty. A settler had to clear five acres, build a home, and
work on the town roads before he could claim clear title to his property.