Samuel Galbreath, his wife Sarah and two kids George and Joseph arrived in the area from Pennsylvaniea in 1852. In 1853, Samuel Galbreath began a ferry service crossing the Tualatin River from a village he called “Galbreath”. The town’s name was changed to “Bridgeport” when Galbreath built the first bridge across the Tualatin River in 1856. Located along one of the first “improved” roads, Boone’s Ferry Road, Bridgeport thrived by attracting business from Portland throughout the Willamette Valley. The community’s accommodations were simple: a blacksmith shop, boarding house, general store, and saloon.
In 1886, the Portland & Willamette Railway Company purchased a right-of-way through John Sweek’s land on the Tualatin River’s west bank opposite Bridgeport. Profiting from the sale, Sweek took advantage of the railroad’s location and platted a town around the depot – he called the new town Tualatin.
