The Times - Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley

LOWDEN - The annual Frenchtown Rendezvous will take place Saturday, from 1-5 p.m. at Frenchtown HallinLowden.Thebenefit,whichincludesa4p.m. dinner, wine, beer, entertainment, historical displays and a silent auction and raffle, is a fundraiser for the Frenchtown Historic Site.

The site is currently raising capital to complete the restoration and interpretation of "The Prince's Cabin" which was moved to the site in the fall of 2013. According to the Frenchtown website, it is oldest cabin of French-Canadian design in the Walla Walla Valley, and probably the oldest existing cabin in the State of Washington.

Sarah Hurlburt, a Whitman College associate professor, will give a historical presentation titled "Frenchtown Family Ties: the Bergevin Letters" at 2:30 p.m. and dinner will be served at 4 p.m. Wine and beer by the glass will be available throughout the afternoon. Raffle prizes include dining packages at Walla Walla area restaurants and a Pendleton Round-Up and Happy Canyon Package.

All proceeds will support Frenchtown Historic Site, located eight miles west of Walla Walla and three miles east of Lowden, which opened in 2010. The site recognizes the French Canadian and Native American cultural heritage of the Walla Walla and eastern Oregon valleys. It honors the grounds of the 1855 Battle of Walla Walla as well as the Saint Rose of Lima Mission Church & Cemetery.

The site includes 27 acres surrounding the cemetery which is open to the public with trails and interpretive signage. Another 30 acres along the Walla Walla River, that was the site of the St. Rose of Lima Mission church was deeded to the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR) in 2013. The interpretation of this area will be completed jointly by the CTUIR and Frenchtown Historical Foundation.

The Frenchtown Cabin Project will restore an 1836 cabin, previously owned by Rev. Robin and Kriss Peterson who farmed just east of the Whitman Mission.

Rev. Peterson had performed extensive research on the cabin prior to his death in 2011 and hoped it would be moved to a more prominent location following his death.

Left: The Prince's Cabin was recently moved from the farm of Robin and Kriss Peterson and reconstructed at the Frenchtown Historic Site near Lowden. The cabin is believed to be the oldest cabin in the state and will be dedicated Oct. 4. Above: The cabin enjoys a sunset in its new home.

The cabin, which now resides in Frenchtown, appears to have been constructed in 1837 as a peace offering by the Hudson's Bay Company to a Cayuse Indian leader known as The Prince. Narcissa Whitman mentions the cabin in an 1844 letter, noting that a family of eight had moved into "the Prince's house up the river."

A tribal blessing of the cabin will take place at 11 a.m. on October 4 with various members of the CTUIR in attendance. The ceremony is free and open to the public.

The Frenchtown site is open daily from sunrise to sunset with no admission charge. For more detailed information visit www.frenchtownpartners.org or find Frenchtown Historical Foundation on Facebook. Rendevous tickets are $30 and raffle tickets are $5 (winners need not be present to win). Tickets may be purchased from Karen Zohner at (541) 969-7841 or Matt Ozuna at (509) 527-5177 or from any board or committee member.