Comcomly - A famous chief of the Chinook Indians. He was a friend of the whites and welcomed the Lewis and Clark expedition when it reached the mouth of the Columbia River on the pacific Coast in 1805. Later, when the Astor expedition arrived to take over the country for the United States, Comcomly gave his daughter as wife to Duncan M'Dougal, who was at the head of the expedition.
Although it was charged that Comcomly was connected with a plot to massacre the garrison and seize the stores, the chief redeemed himself by offering to fight on the side of the Americans in 1812 when the British arrived to capture the fort. A peaceful transfer of the fort was made, however.
Comcomly was a regal chief and always traveled in style. usually 300 slaves or more went ahead of him and carpeted the ground with beaver and otter skins for him to walk upon. he died in 1830, and his flattened skull was sent to England as a medical curiosity. It was on exhibition at the Royal Navel Hospital from 1835 to 1852 when it was presented to the Clatsop County (Oregon) Historical Society