Battle of Woody Point The Battle of Woody Point was an incident involving the Tla - o - qui - aht natives of the Pacific Northwest and a United States - registered merchant ship . After trading in the region for furs in June 1811 , the American vessel was massacred by the natives and scuttle d by her crew off Vancouver Island , in Clayoquot Sound . Background . On March 22 , 1811 , the " Tonquin " , a 290 ton bark , reached the Columbia River with the intention of trading with the natives of the northern Pacific coast . To do this a trading post was necessary , after sailing around the Columbia River ' s mouth for a while , the traders established Fort Astoria , the first American claim on the Pacific . Now after establishing a base of operations , the traders were free to explore the region in pursuit of fine furs . The " Tonquin " was crewed by twenty - three men during the time of battle , she also carried ten cannon s . Though the vessel was American - flagged and commanded by a United States Navy officer , most of her crew were British subjects . On June 5 , 1811 the " Tonquin " left Fort Astoria and sailed north to trade with the Nuu - chah - nulth around Nootka Sound . About two weeks later , off Vancouver Island , at a place named Woody Point , the " Tonquin " began trading with the Tla - o - qui - aht Nuu - chah - nulth . Battle . On June 14 , 1811 , a chief came aboard the " Tonquin " . Lieutenant Thorn hoped to purchase sea otter pelts which were offered by the natives . Unsatisfied with price of the pelts , the lieutenant tossed the pelt he was inspecting back at the chief . Apparently insulted , the chief left the vessel and later that night , a native woman came aboard the ship and warned the lieutenant that the Nuu - chah - nulth were planning to attack the ship the following day . Thorn failed to believe the woman until the next day when large numbers of native warriors were spotted on the coast . Still Thorn was unconvinced the Nuu - chah - nulth were hostile , a large canoe with over twenty native men was allowed to come to the ship and another canoe of some twenty men followed behind . The first twenty boarded with their weapons concealed under their clothing . Somehow Lieutenant Thorn realized the danger his ship was in and gave the orders to hoist the anchor and sails . At this moment the Nuu - chah - nulth revealed their weapons , killed Thorn , and began to attack the crewmen . The Nuu - chah - nulth were armed with knives and some pistols and immediately the " Tonquin " s crew armed themselves and began to resist the boarders . Eventually the second canoe arrived and another wave of warriors came pouring onto the deck . The crew fell back into the cabins . Close quarters combat ensued until the Nuu - chah - nulth were defeated , though all but five of the crewmen died in the engagement . Four of the remaining men attempted to escape in their own canoe the following day but three of whom were killed by the Nuu - chah - nulth after a gale blew them onto the coastline . Only one man , a half Chinook pilot named George Ramsay , or Lemazee , survived . One wounded man stayed aboard the " Tonquin " , James Lewis . After destroying the majority of " Tonquin " s crew , the Nuu - chah - nulth returned to the " Tonquin " to plunder her . James Lewis was capable of reaching the powder magazine , once there he lit some of the powder and the resulting explosion sunk the ship , killed Lewis , and dozens of natives . The Nuu - chah - nulth acknowledged at least 100 dead and many more wounded , although other accounts say sixty - one to 200 natives were killed .