st
of them were sick with the scurvy. No grain or vegetables were
grown along that northern coast, nor could they be supplied from
Asia. Rezanof conceived the idea of establishing trade relations
with the people of California. By this means furs might be exchanged
for the fresh provisions which were so sorely needed in the north.

Rezanof sailed south in 1806 and tried to enter the Columbia River,
where the company had planned to establish a settlement, for upon
the Russian maps of this time all of the coast as far south as the
Columbia was included under Russian jurisdiction. Rezanof was,
however, unable to enter the river, probably for the same reason that
Meares, the English navigator, had failed to enter. He then proceeded
down the coast and finally ran into the port of San Francisco, where
he was treated in a fairly polite manner by the Spanish.

After the return of the expedition to the north, definite plans
were made for the establishment of an agricultural and trading
station on the California coast, as a permanent supply depot for
the northern settlements. Rezanof hoped in time to secure a portion
of this fair southern land from Spain.

Several hunting expeditions, chiefly made up of Aleut Indians with
Russian officers, were sent south and told to keep a sharp lookout
for a suitable place to begin operations. In 1809 one expedition
entered Bodega Bay, an inlet of some size about sixty miles northwest
of San Francisco. This bay, which had been previously discovered and
named by the Spaniards, was thoroughly explored two years later.

No good spot for a settlement was found upon this inlet, but in
1812 a location was determined upon, ten miles north of the mouth
of the stream we now know as Russian River. There was no good harbor
here, simply a little cove, but back of this cove a broad grassy
tract formed a gently sloping terrace at the foot of a line of
hills. The soil was good and timber was near at hand.

The Russians first made friends with the Indians, who ceded to
them the territory in the neighborhood for three blankets, three
pair of breeches, three hoes, two axes, and some trinkets.

In order to protect themselves from possible Indian attacks as
well as to be able to hold their position against the Spanish,
the Russians constructed a strong stockade. It was made of upright
posts set in the ground and pierced with loopholes. At the corners,
and a little distance within, were erected two hexagonal