John McNeil Eddings (c. 1830–1896) was the military storekeeper at Fort Vancouver, and a prominent civic leader of Clark County in what was then the Washington Territory.
On that journey were also Ulysses S. Grant, Benjamin Bonneville, Henry C. Hodges, and Louis Sohns[1] From 1855 to 1856, Eddings fought in the Rogue River Wars in Southern Oregon Territory.
[2] Mrs. Mary Nicholas, a daughter of John Eddings, gave this account to Clark Brown in his Columbian newspaper column Visiting Around: I told you my father was a man who loved adventure, and he found plenty in the Indian wars.
[5] In September, 1866, a volunteer fire company was organized in Vancouver, its first, and Eddings was among the officers and founders, along with other leaders in the community.
[7] In July, 1875, Eddings also took on the job of Postmaster for Vancouver, serving for the next eleven years in addition to his other military and civic duties.
Edding’s daughter, Mrs. Mary Nichols, has provided an insight into living in this period in Vancouver, Washington: The incoming mail came by carriers.
[2] In 1866 the Vancouver Hibernian Benevolent Society, an Irish social organization, elected John Eddings President for the ensuing year.
The 14th Infantry Band led a procession stretching nearly a half mile in addition to a large contingent of carriages with relatives and friends.