Ats - Sister, Fort Vancouver national historic site

"Ats" is the Chinuk Wawa word for “sister.” It is pronounced with a long “a” sound, like “ahts.”

This photo from our museum collection shows the three granddaughters of Marguerite and Dr. John McLoughlin, Fort Vancouver’s Chief Factor. On the far left is Margaret Glen, who was born in 1841 aboard the steamship “Beaver” during a voyage from Fort Stikine in present-day Alaska to Fort Vancouver. In the middle is Louisa, born in San Francisco (then called Yerba Buena) in 1843. Their half-sister, Mary Angelique, born in 1854 in Oregon City, Oregon, sits on the right. The three girls lived in the McLoughlin House in Oregon City with their parents, brothers, and grandparents. This house is now a part of Fort Vancouver National Historic Site.

Mary Angelique later moved to California, but Margaret Glen and Louisa remained in the Northwest, where they were active in Portland society, and worked to preserve the memory of their family's contributions to the region's history.