"Virginia" whose given name is not known, was of the Nimiipuu, or Nez Perce Tribe, whose people occupied the area now known as Idaho, northeast Oregon, and parts of Washington, Montana and Wyoming in the Rocky Mountain states. She was probably born in about 1820. In 1838, Anglo-American Rocky Mountain fur trapper Joseph Meek negotiated with her father for her marriage. Joe named her "Virginia" after his home state.

Frances Fuller Victor, in her book "River of the West" published in 1870, writes that Virginia's father was Kowesote based upon the author's interview with Virginia's husband Joseph . However, Virginia's son and daughter referred to their grandfather as Tau-you-le-nim or Tau-you-len-en.

On Dec 7, 1838, Virginia Meek bore the couple's first child, a son named Courtney Walker Meek, near Fort Davy Crockett (South Pass, Wyoming today).

Joseph and Virginia, their newborn son, and Helen Mar Meek, Joe's 2-year-old daughter by a previous Nez Perce wife whose name is not known, departed for Ft. Hall, arriving eventually at Whitman Mission, where Helen was left in the care of missionaries Rev. Marcus and Narcissa Whitman.

Virginia and Joseph Meek went to the Willamette Valley of Oregon by wagon, arriving at the Tualatin Plains with the Newell family party on December 15, 1840 after swimming their animals several times across the Columbia and Willamette rivers and surviving for weeks on dried salmon.

Their wagons were the first to reach the Columbia River by overland route, and they opened the final leg of what became known as the Oregon Trail to wagon traffic. They took up subsistence farming on their donation land claim less than a mile from here.

Virginia bore at least 11 additional children. They were: Hiram Craig (b 1843, died age 17); Olive Louise Meek (b 1844); Josephine Meek (b 1845, died age 15); Atchinson Dallas Meek (b 1847, died age 10); Mary Lane (Meek) Shinn (b 1850); Jennie Jane (Meek) Newell; Joseph Lane Meek; Stephen Arnold Douglas Meek; William Henry Harrison Meek (died in infancy); Elizabeth 'Lizzie' Wilkins Meek (died age 14), and an infant (name not known, died 1854).

The names of four of the named children who died prior to establishment of this church and cemetery appear on a cenotaph erected later in this family plot. They are: Atchinson Dallas Meek, Hiram Craig Meek, William Henry Harrison Meek, and Josephine Meek who were interred at the site of a Methodist Meeting House, no longer in existence, near here. Typhoid, tuberculosis, and a farm injury claimed their lives, each prior to 1860.

Her husband Joe preceded her in death in June 1875 at the age of 65 at their farm. Virginia survived her husband by almost 25 years, passing away on March 5, 1900 at the home of her son, Stephen Arnold Douglas Meek. She was survived by her children Olive (Meek) Riley, Stephen, Joseph Meek and Jennie (Meek) Newhard.

Her husband was originally interred on their donation land claim, but was later moved to the Old Scotch Church Cemetery after the church was built (circa 1873-1878). Virginia is interred next to her husband, some of their children, and is next to the cenotaph in memory of the four children not interred here.

Surviving children, daughter Jennie Meek Newhard and son Joseph Lane Meek had moved to land on or near the Nez Perce Indian Reservation near Lewiston, Idaho where they settled. Virginia's sister, "Kitty" Newell preceded her in death at Champoeg, Oregon.

________
Note: Virginia's sister (given Nez Perce name not known) had married trapper Robert "Doc" Newell, about four years prior to Virginia's marriage to Joe Meek. Doc Newell called her "Kitty." A third Nez Perce woman, given name unknown, married fur trapper Caleb Wilkins. He called her "Catherine" A fourth Nez Perce woman married trapper George Ebbert. He called her "Fanny." There is some evidence that all four women were sisters or kinfolk. All of the men were fur-trapping colleagues of Joe Meek and all of these families came to the Tualatin Plains in the early 1840s after the Rocky Mountain fur trapping trade declined. They became farmers. Their wives' survival skills were invaluable to the their families and also to the early white settlers in this area. The Nez Perce women taught the early settlers, who were often starving upon arrival here, how to subsist by foraging, preparing local plants, animals and fibers.