In 1845, Oregon Trail pioneer James B. Stephens laid claim to 640 acres (260 ha) across the Willamette River from the then-newly established Portland townsite.[2] The land had been controlled by John McLoughlin of the Hudson's Bay Company,[3][4]: 2 and its location along the east bank of the river—with its marshes, creeks, and sloughs—made development challenging.[5]: 3 Stephens established the Stark Street Ferry, whose paddle wheel was powered by a mule on a treadmill, to link the east and west sides of the river in 1848.[6] On April16, 1868, the Oregon Central Railroad broke ground at the settlement, which by then was being referred to as East Portland.[7] Its railroad extended to Salem the following year and helped to start the development of an economy based on the shipment of agricultural products across the Willamette Valley.[8] The railroad led Stephens to incorporate the City of East Portland in 1870 with its population of 8,293.[4]: 6 [9]
^"Portland Central Eastside"(PDF). City of Portland Bureau of Planning and Sustainability. January 2020. p. 2. Archived from the original(PDF) on April 15, 2020. Retrieved April 15, 2020.