Alley, B. F. and Munro-Fraser, J. P. "History of Clarke County, Washington Territory : compiled from the most authentic sources ; also biographical sketches of its pioneers and prominent citizens." Portland, Or. : Washington Publishing Co., 1885. VICTOR M. WALLACE - The subject of this brief memoir was born in Newberry, Vermont, August 22, 1807. When quite young he apprenticed himself to the cabinet-maker's trade at Haverhill, Grafton county, New Hampshire, and at the age of twenty-one years went to Windsor and during a residence there of a twelve-month, schooled himself in the manufacture of brass and copper ware. We next find Mr. Wallace in the city of New York where he lived for a year, on the expiry of which, imbued with a spirit of adventure, coupled with a desire to see the western world, he commenced a series of journeys through the Southern and Western States, covering a lapse of seven years, which completed, we see him located in St. Louis, Missouri. Here he married May 21, 1841, Isabella Roy, a native of Maybole, Ayrshire, Scotland, and born March 15, 1819. Together they moved to Pettis county, Missouri, in the year 1842 and, May 10, 1847, left there to cross to the Pacific Coast with ox-teams. After enduring the fatigues of crossing the plains, they arrived at Dr. Whitman's in the month of November, and proceeded on their journey on the fifteenth of that month - two weeks before the massacre of families at the station. From The Dalles they moved on to Oregon City, where they arrived December 11, 1847. In September, 1848, Mr. Wallace proceeded to the gold mines of California, crossing the mountains with the first teams that took the route by way of the Rogue River valley. Locating on the Yuba river he engaged in mining until the spring of 1849, when he returned to Oregon City. There is in some men - only a very few - an innate quality which for want of a better term is called inventive genius. It is not extrinsically derived, but it is bred in the bone, so to speak. In no one is this inherence more marked than in the subject of this short notice. As long ago as August 17, 1835, he invented a central-fire pistol for which obtained a patent; while it is to his capability that the Oregon City Mint obtained the die with which to stamp the ten-dollar gold coin minted there; and last, though by no means least, his skill as an inventor and knowledge as a mechanician, called forth the highest encomiums, as will be found in Vol. 1, No. 1, of the "Oregon Free Press," dated April 8, 1848. We quote - "Our Press:--The most important means of our weekly communication with the public -our press- is entirely of Oregon manufacture. Mr. Victor M. Wallace, of this city, is the ingenious machinist who constructed it, and he is entitled to great credit for the excellence of his work, and the admirable manner in which it operates. Although it is made of wood, Mr. Wallace thinks it will be able to tell the truth quite as well as an iron one." Mr. Wallace and family came to and settled on the east bank of the Cowlitz river, October 1, 1850, where he took up a Donation claim of six hundred and forty acres of rich land, and where he has since continuously resided. Here in the very heart of the Cowlitz valley this trustworthy and honorable pioneer, with his devoted wife, have surrounded themselves with comfort both of home and station, where they enjoy the blessings of true happiness, the reward of long years of action and energy. The family of Mr. and Mrs. Wallace consists of: Sally, born in St. Louis, April 11, 1842; Agnes (deceased), born in Pettis county, Missouri, May 16, 1845; Rosetta, born in Pettis county, Missouri, September 29, 1846; Leander, born in Oregon City, April 18, 1849; Hon. James (who served one term in the Washington Territory Legislature), born on the Cowlitz, August 6, 1851; Victor, born January 8, 1854, died at the Naval Academy, Annapolis, Maryland; Carshena (deceased), born May 31, 1856; John, born March 30, 1859. Three grand children now reside with Mr. and Mrs. Wallace, viz: Rosie, Francis and Isabella Brooks, children of their eldest daughter. Submitted by: Jenny Tenlen * * * * Notice: These biographies were transcribed for the Washington Biographies Project. Unless otherwise stated, no further information is available on the individual featured in the biographies.