Lockley, Fred. "History of the Columbia River Valley, From The Dalles to the Sea." Vol. 3. S. J. Clarke Publishing Co., 1928. p. 180. DAVID W. FREEMAN For fifty-four years David W. Freeman has been a resident of Columbia county and during the greater part of this period has been actively engaged in the operation of his well improved farm in the Nehalem valley, but is now retired and lives in Clatskanie. He was born in Warren county, Indiana, on the 27th of June, 1846, a son of George W. and Rebecca (Hooker) Freeman, and a descendant of one of America's oldest families, his progenitors having come from England to this country about 1607. His father was born in Chatham county, North Carolina, in 1818 and when eleven years of age accompanied his parents on their removal to Ross county, Ohio, in which county his wife was born in 1816. In 1836 they moved to Warren county, Indiana, where Mr. Freeman engaged in farming until 1876, when he came to Oregon. After living here for some time, he went back to Indiana, but subsequently returned to Oregon, where he lived until his death, which occurred in 1893. His wife died one year previously. Of their seven children, three are living: David W.; George, of Iroquois county, Illinois; and Mrs. Melinda A. Lane, who resides in Toledo, Washington. David W. Freeman was reared on his father's farm in the Hoosier state and received his education in the public schools. In 1874 he started for Oregon with the usual emigrant outfit of oxen and covered wagons, but when he reached North Platte, Nebraska, he sold his outfit and traveled by rail to San Francisco, California, thence by the steamship "Ajax" to Portland, Oregon. Soon afterwards he took up a homestead of one hundred and sixty acres in the Nehalem valley, Columbia county, to which he later added one hundred and forty acres by purchase. His first house was built of logs and had a puncheon floor. His land was covered with a heavy growth of timber and he at once began the task of clearing and cultivating it. In the course of time he cleared nearly all of the land and for many years gave his attention chiefly to raising fruit and vegetables, later growing grain and raising sheep and cattle. Through his industry and good management he prospered and soon gained recognition as one of the leading farmers in his section of the county. In 1880 he built the first gristmill in the Nehalem valley for his father-in-law, who operated it for some years, when Mr. Freeman bought it, installed modern machinery and operated it for many years. He made a high grade flour and sold it in successful competition with the Portland mills. He continued his farming activities until 1919, when he leased his place and moved to Portland, where he bought a home. After living in that city three years he sold his home there and moved to Clatskanie, October 1, 1923, bought a home and has here resided to the present time, enjoying well earned leisure. In the year that he located here he was appointed justice of the peace, in which capacity he is still serving. On January 31, 1869, Mr. Freeman was united in marriage to Miss Margaret J. Van Volkinburg, who was born in Kankakee county, Illinois, a daughter of William and Caroline (Sowers) Van Volkinburg, the latter born in Indiana in 1825. The father, who was born in New York state in 1815, came to Oregon in 1874 and took up a homestead in the lower part of the Nehalem valley, in Columbia county, where he developed a good farm and lived until his death, in 1893. His widow passed away in 1903. They became the parents of twelve children, of whom three are living: Mrs. Freeman; Frank, of Warrenton, Oregon; and Mrs. Elizabeth Lonkey, of Hood River, Oregon. To Mr. and Mrs. Freeman were born six children: Mrs. Annie Harvey, who died leaving a daughter, Mrs. Jessie Latham, of Portland; Mrs. Jane Harvey, who was born in Arkansas and has a son, Robert H., living in Clatskanie; George, deceased, who was born in Arkansas, and was married and left a daughter, Mrs. Edna Bradley, of Portland; Joseph, who was born in this state and is deceased; Lewis, deceased; and Warren, who is married and has a daughter, Betty M. There are also three great-grandchildren. Mr. Freeman, as one of the pioneer settlers of the lower Nehalem valley, took an active part in the development of that locality and the establishment of permanent prosperity. The building of his grist mill was a godsend to the early settlers, who previously had been compelled to bring their flour many miles over the mountain trail from the Columbia river. He assisted in building the first schoolhouse in his district, served as a member of the school board for many years, and was also a justice of the peace for a long period. He was one of the organizers of the water district in East Portland and was president of the company for several years. Everything calculated to better local conditions and promote the public welfare enlisted his hearty support and he stood consistently, as he still does, for the best things in community life. His has been a career of continuous industry, crowned with well merited success, and he stands today among the influential and respected citizens of his section of the county. ******************* Submitted to the Oregon Bios. Project in July 2013 by Diana Smith. Submitter has no additional information about the person(s) or family mentioned above.