Clark, Robert Carlton, Ph.D. "History of the Willamette Valley Oregon."  Vol. 3.
Chicago: Chapman Publishing Company, 1927. p. 333.

JOHNSON MULKEY

     The name of Johnson Mulkey merits an enduring place on the pages of
Oregon's history, for he was one of the earliest settlers of Benton county and
aided in planting the seeds of civilization in this region, marching in the
front rank with those strong, courageous men who were the actual winners of the
Pacific northwest. He was a native of Pennsylvania and in 1845 made the long and
hazardous journey to Oregon, traveling in a covered wagon drawn by ox teams. He
spent the winter of 1845-46 at the foot of "Old Baldy" and was the first white
settler to winter in what is now Benton county. Mr. Mulkey was one of the first
white settlers to establish a permanent home near Corvallis. He built a cabin
and corrals on his land and in the spring of 1846 returned to the east. In 1847
he again started for Oregon, bringing a wagon train composed of relatives and
friends, and owing to his foresight the family found a new home awaiting them in
the wilderness. While in the east he had married Miss Susan Brown, who was a
native of South Carolina. Mr. Mulkey took up a donation land claim about a mile
west of the site now occupied by the Oregon Agricultural College and later
accumulated several thousand acres of land in Benton county. He engaged in stock
raising on a large scale and drove cattle to the mines in Idaho, where he
operated a butcher shop. While returning from one of these trips during the
winter of 1861-62 he encountered a blizzard and was frozen to death. Endowed
with clear vision and keen sagacity, he glimpsed the future of the Puget Sound
country and in the early days acquired large holdings in that region. He was a
power in constructive development and evolution and a man of exceptional worth,
esteemed and respected by all with whom he was associated. Mrs. Mulkey long
survived her husband, passing away in 1885.

    Their son, Marion Mulkey, attended Yale University and among his classmates
was John Johnson, who became the first president of the University of Oregon.
Marion Mulkey was an attorney of high standing and his youngest son, the late
Senator Fred W. Mulkey, was a graduate of the University of Oregon. The other
son, Frank W. Mulkey, also completed a course in me State University and entered
the legal profession. He was classed with the foremost attorneys of Portland,
Oregon, and passed away July 24, 1927.

     Johnson Mulkey was also the father of a daughter, Missouri M., who was born
in the state of Missouri and married J. A. Porter. He was a native of Ohio and
came to Oregon in 1850. He achieved success as a merchant and his demise
occurred in 1870. His son, Johnson Mulkey Porter, was born near Corvallis in
1859 and is the only one of the twenty-two grandchildren of Johnson Mulkey now
living in this locality. He attended the Oregon Agricultural College and at one
time was mayor of Corvallis, to which he gave a progressive, businesslike
administration, productive of much good. He installed the machinery in the
electric lighting plant, which, he operated successfully for about twenty years,
and for some time has lived retired.

     In 1885 Mr. Porter married Miss Florence Rumbaugh, who was born in Ohio and
has lived in Oregon since 1873. They have become the parents of a son, Fred J.
Porter, who is now city engineer for Corvallis. He is married and has two sons,
Walter Johnson and Robert Henry Porter.
 

     
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Submitted to the Oregon Bios. Project in June 2016 by Diana Smith.  Submitter
has no additional information about the person(s) or family mentioned above.