Welcome to the Oregon Encyclopedia.
Explore Oregon's history and culture — from Athapaskan Indians to Zigzag Ranger Station
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November: National Native American Heritage Month
Explore Native American People, Places, Institutions, and Events.
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![Athapaskan Indians]()
Athapaskan Indians
According to Tolowa oral histories, the Athapaskan people of southern Oregon and northern Californi…
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![Cayuse Indian War (1847–1850)]()
Cayuse Indian War (1847–1850)
The first major and ongoing conflict between Native groups and white resettlers in Oregon was a dir…
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![Chemawa Indian School]()
Chemawa Indian School
Chemawa Indian School, located in the mid-Willamette Valley north of Salem, is one of four remainin…
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![Chinook Jargon (Chinuk Wawa)]()
Chinook Jargon (Chinuk Wawa)
According to our best information, the name "Chinook" (pronounced with "ch" as in church) originate…
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![Fort Rock Sandals]()
Fort Rock Sandals
Fort Rock sandals are a distinctive type of ancient fiber footwear found in southeast Oregon and no…
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![Hanis Coos (Kowes)]()
Hanis Coos (Kowes)
The Hanis (hanıs) people lived in villages along Coos Bay, Coos River, and Tenmile Lake on the Oreg…
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![Indian Use of Fire in Early Oregon]()
Indian Use of Fire in Early Oregon
Anthropogenic (human-caused) fire was a major component of the Native system of land and resource m…
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![Kalapuyan peoples]()
Kalapuyan peoples
The name Kalapuya (kǎlə poo´ yu), also appearing in the modern geographic spellings Calapooia (for …
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![Miluk]()
Miluk
Miluk was one of two related languages spoken by people known collectively as Coos. Miluk speakers …
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![Modoc Tribe]()
Modoc Tribe
The Modoc are a thriving Indigenous people who live predominantly in northeastern California, south…
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![Molalla Peoples]()
Molalla Peoples
The name Molalla ([moˈlɑlə, ˈmolɑlə], usually spelled Molala by anthropologists; also Molale, Molel…
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![Portland Basin Chinookan Villages in the early 1800s]()
Portland Basin Chinookan Villages in the early 1800s
During the early nineteenth century, upwards of thirty Native American villages were documented in …
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![Rogue River War of 1855-1856]()
Rogue River War of 1855-1856
The final Rogue River War began early on the morning of October 8, 1855, when self-styled volunteer…
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![Spirit Mountain]()
Spirit Mountain
Spirit Mountain, whose Yamel (Yamhill) Kalapuya name is dji’ntu, is a sacred site to the Confederat…
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![Tualatin peoples]()
Tualatin peoples
Tualatin (properly pronounced 'twälə.tun in English) was the name of a collection of related but in…
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![Wapato (Wappato) Valley Indians]()
Wapato (Wappato) Valley Indians
Lewis and Clark called them the "Wappato Indians," the people who inhabited the villages that lined…
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![Western Oregon Klikatats (Klickitats)]()
Western Oregon Klikatats (Klickitats)
Between the 1810s and 1850s, a sizable segment of the Klikatat Tribe of present-day south-central W…
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![White Cloud Center]()
White Cloud Center
The White Cloud Center in Portland was created in 1975 by the University of Oregon Health Sciences …
Feeling adventurous? How Oregonian of you.
Or may we suggest…
Explore OHS Digital History Projects
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Wayfinder
An interactive map of notable places, people, and events in Oregon history.
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Oregon History Project
The Research Library at the Oregon Historical Society provides direct access to digitized and digital materials as well as narratives from Pacific Northwest historians.
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Oregon TimeWeb
An interactive timeline of archival materials and historical scholarship on the history of Oregon.
This Just In
New Entries
"We could see the top of one hill and think that was the last. But when we gained that, others kept rising before us. To look back, in retreat, seemed utterly out of the question. To look forward was to look directly upwards, as the ascent seemed almost perpendicular." Harriet Hitchcock, 13, 1865, Oregon Trail
No. 7
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![Buncom]()
Buncom
Buncom (also Bunkum, Buncombe or Buncomville) is situated at the conflu…
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![Bundy's Baths and Windemuth Portland Swimming Holes]()
Bundy's Baths and Windemuth Portland Swimming Holes
From 1898 to 1924, the Willamette River near Ross Island, south of down…
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![Butteville]()
Butteville
In its heyday, during the latter half of the nineteenth century, the to…
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![Butteville Store]()
Butteville Store
The Butteville Store was not the first trading post or mercantile in th…
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![Fort Rock (formation)]()
Fort Rock (formation)
Fort Rock is a volcanic citadel at the western end of the Fort Rock Val…
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![Gail Achterman (1949 - 2012)]()
Gail Achterman (1949 - 2012)
Gail Achterman, a fourth-generation Oregonian, was one of the state’s l…
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![Juan Redón (1857?-1934)]()
Juan Redón (1857?-1934)
Renowned for his exceptional riding and roping skills as well as his st…
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![LaFayette Grover (1823-1911)]()
LaFayette Grover (1823-1911)
LaFayette Grover was politically one of the most successful Democrats i…
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![Meier & Frank Co.]()
Meier & Frank Co.
Meier & Frank, which advertised itself as “One of America’s Great Store…
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![Oregon State Fair]()
Oregon State Fair
The call for an Oregon State Fair intensified in 1859 after California …
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![Paul De Muniz (1947-)]()
Paul De Muniz (1947-)
Paul Joseph De Muniz was the first Hispanic Chief Justice of the Oregon…
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![Richard C. Thompson (1945-2021)]()
Richard C. Thompson (1945-2021)
Richard Thompson was an artist and teacher (and amateur fisherman) who …
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![Tejanos in Oregon]()
Tejanos in Oregon
Tejanos (Tay-HAH-nohs)—Mexican Americans from south Texas—began moving …
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![Wilson River Highway (Oregon Route 6)]()
Wilson River Highway (Oregon Route 6)
The Wilson River Highway (Oregon Route 6) begins in Tillamook near the …
The OE is Green!
Our editorial process is completely paperless — authors and editors use a one-of-a-kind online workshop developed by Portland State University. We've published hundreds of authoritative entries on Oregon history and culture without hurting a single Douglas Fir. Donate your green to The OE and keep us — and the trees — growing.
Additional Funding
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This project has been funded in part by the Oregon Heritage Commission and the Oregon Cultural Trust
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This project has been funded in part by an American Rescue Plan Act Grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services through the Library Services and Technology Act, administered by the State Library of Oregon.
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Project Partners
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![https://oregoncouncilofteachersofenglish.wildapricot.org/]()
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![https://willamette.edu/]()
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