Astoria, Part 2

Same set as part 1 (which is good, seeing how they're intermingling the two this month) and the same cast, with the mostly the same characters (them as is still alive), still swapping costumes and accents to play all of the parts.  This half was concerned with building the fort and establishing trading posts (with Hunt straggling in from the overland journey, eventually).  Even more went wrong in this half than in the first part, and in the end the remaining partners gave up and sold Astoria to the British Northwest Company.  The final straw was the War of 1812, which left Fort Astoria isolated and undefended.  And, incidentally, almost entirely manned by British subjects.

Astor counted the enterprise as an utter failure.  And in one sense it was, with his trade empire collapsing, and dozens of men, a large percentage of those sent out, dead from accidents or murder.  But.   The company that had been sent east to contact Astor stumbled across an easy passage over the Rockies.  That paved the way for the Oregon Trail.  That filled this region with Americans, and pushed the Russians and British out.