Robert Gray discovered and named the Columbia River in 1792. He piloted his ship, the Columbia, around the globe in 1790, making it the first United States ship to accomplish the task. Birthplace: Tiverton, Rhode Island.
Chief of the Nez Perce Indians, Chief Joseph is best known as the man who waged a brilliant war against the United States army, as he attempted to move his people northward into Canada. Today, there is a town named after him in northeastern Oregon. Birthplace: unknown.
Linus Pauling's work with the process of chemical bonding won for him a Nobel Prize in chemistry in 1954. He continued to contribute his scientific talents to promote world peace and was awarded the Nobel peace prize in 1962. Birthplace: Portland.
