Cornelius Gilliam

Cornelius Gilliam (April 13, 1798 – March 24, 1848) was a pioneer of the U.S. state of Oregon who was best known as the commander of the volunteer forces against the Cayuse in the Cayuse War. A native of North Carolina, he served in the Black Hawk War and Seminole Wars before settling in Missouri. There he served in the militia against the Mormons, was a county sheriff, and a member of the Missouri State Senate before immigrating to the Oregon Country.

Early life Cornelius Gilliam was born in North Carolina on April 13, 1798. According to one of Gilliam's daughters, Martha Collins, he began working as a slave catcher while in his teens. Collins said that her father was highly successful at forcing slaves back into captivity and was elected sheriff on the strength of this reputation.

In North Carolina he married Mary Crawford in 1820, and they had eight children, six of those daughters. During the Seminole War he served as a captain. In Missouri, Gilliam was also the sheriff of Clay County.

Oregon In 1844, he headed west over the Oregon Trail to the unorganized Oregon Country. After the Whitman massacre in 1847, the Provisional Government of Oregon organized a force of about 600 and made Gilliam colonel to prosecute the Cayuse. His forces pressed on to the Whitman Mission, arriving in March. The ship Cornelius Gilliam was also named for him; it was used in World War II in the U.S. Merchant Service.