 Chapman purchased land in Portland from Stephen Coffin and Daniel H. Lownsdale in 1850 , which he then cleared and built a home . This is now the site of the Multnomah County Courthouse . In Portland , he was a promoter of the city and helped to get Canyon Road built to ensure the city would become the commercial center of Oregon . Chapman practiced law , and in October 1851 he was held in contempt of court by Oregon Supreme Court justice Orville C. Pratt . Chapman was ordered to be sent to jail in the county seat of Hillsboro for 20 days and disbarred , but never went to jail and the order was revoked when Pratt was replaced on the court by justice Thomas Nelson . Chapman had accused Pratt of mistreating lawyers in an affidavit . 
