Canemah , built almost at the river 's level , was wiped out by the flood of December 1861 . Afterwards , the wharves and some buildings were reconstructed , and prosperity seemed certain . More steamboats were built and a portage railway was built along the east back to replace the lumbering ox carts . The People 's Transportation Company was organized , and the company built an improved boat basin above the falls . A canal was cleared below the falls which lessened the portage distance . New steamboats were built above the falls to serve customers upriver . These included a second '' Yamhill '' ( 1860 ) , '' Unio '' / '' Union '' ( 1861 ) , a second '' Enterprise '' ( 1863 ) , '' Reliance '' ( 1865 ) , '' Active '' ( 1865 ) , '' Fannie Patton '' ( 1865 ) , '' Echo '' ( 1865 ) , '' Albany '' ( 1868 ) , '' Success '' , and '' Dayton '' ( 1868 )
the flood of December 1861
Great Flood of 1862
Canemah, Oregon