The Oregon Encyclopedia

An Authoritative and Free Resource on All Things Oregon

January: Winter in Oregon

Camp Abbot

Camp Abbot, located on the Deschutes River several miles south of Bend, was a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers training center where combat engineers trained during World War II. Established as an …

Chris Klug (1972-)

January: Winter in Oregon

Chris Klug (1972-)

Of the many Winter Olympics success stories from the Pacific Northwest, one of the most compelling is that of Chris Klug from Bend. In 2002, he won the bronze medal in Giant …

Glaciers in Oregon (essay)

January: Winter in Oregon

Glaciers in Oregon (essay)

Glaciers and permanent snowfields—found in many western states, including Washington, California, Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, and Nevada—are common in the high alpine environments of Oregon. There are about 463 glaciers or perennial snowfields …

Hjalmar Hvam (1902-1996)

January: Winter in Oregon

Hjalmar Hvam (1902-1996)

Skiing enthusiasts in Portland just before World War II knew the name Hjalmar Hvam as readily as most people recognize the names of professional athletes. Inducted into the National Ski Hall of …

Mount Hood (essay)

January: Winter in Oregon

Mount Hood (essay)

Mount Hood is a stratovolcano in northwest Oregon located about fifty miles east of Portland and thirty-five miles south of the Columbia River. At 11,244 feet, it is the highest point in …

Portland Rosebuds

January: Winter in Oregon

Portland Rosebuds

The Rosebuds, Portland’s first professional ice hockey team, was the first United States-based franchise to compete for the Stanley Cup. A member of the Pacific Coast Hockey Association (PCHA), the Rosebuds began as …

Richard L. Kohnstamm (1926-2006)

January: Winter in Oregon

Richard L. Kohnstamm (1926-2006)

Richard L. Kohnstamm was the president and area operator of Timberline Lodge and Ski Area from 1955 until 1992, when he turned the operation over to his son Jeff. Upon Kohnstamm's death …

Starvation Creek

January: Winter in Oregon

Starvation Creek

Starvation Creek, with its spectacular 186-foot waterfall, flows north a few miles from Viento Ridge into the Columbia River, about eight miles west of Hood River in the Columbia River Gorge. The …

Steens Mountain

January: Winter in Oregon

Steens Mountain

Rising to an elevation of 9,733 feet, Steens Mountain is the highest point in southeastern Oregon. It looms like a massive basalt island, with its summit over 5,000 feet above the Alvord …

Tucker Sno-Cat®

January: Winter in Oregon

Tucker Sno-Cat®

When Emmitt Tucker was a young boy in northwest Jackson County, he walked to school in the deep snow, just like his schoolmates. What was different about Tucker is that he did …

Research Categories

The downtown Research Library is closed for renovation, but Oregon history is ALWAYS OPEN on The OE

Researchers WILL HAVE ACCESS to reference services during the renovation; please contact [email protected] with your reference inquiries. Construction is underway to transform the OHS Research Library into a welcoming and fully accessible twenty-first-century space for research, learning, and collaboration. Our library is the heart of everything we do at the Oregon Historical Society. Our exhibits, the scholarship in the Oregon Historical Quarterly, our online Digital History Projects, and the free public programs we offer would not be possible without the invaluable librarians and archivists who safeguard and make accessible the largest collection of Oregon history available anywhere in the world.

To learn more about library services during the renovation, click here

Protest against Emanuel Hospital expansion, 1973

Oregon Protests

With the Portland and state-wide protests in the national news, it is well worth the time to learn about other protest movements in Oregon's history. This page features information on activists and movements for the environment, civil rights, religious freedom, anti-war, and labor reform.

Click here to learn about Oregon protest movements.

Looking for history in All The Places?

The Oregon History Wayfinder is an interactive map that identifies significant places, people, and events in Oregon history. Each point on the map connects to the historical records and scholarship on the Oregon History Project and The Oregon Encyclopedia, two of the digital history sites created by the Oregon Historical Society. The Oregon History Wayfinder is supported in part by the Oregon Heritage Commission.

Click here to get out the map

Welcome to the award-winning Oregon Encyclopedia

Western History Association, Gene Autry Public History Award, 2012.

AASLH American Association of State and Local History, Leadership in History Award, 2011.

NCTE logo National Council of Teachers of English, Multicultural Program Award, 2009.

OHS Digital History Projects

In addition to The Oregon Encyclopedia, the OHS Digital History Projects include the Oregon History Project and Oregon History Wayfinder.

Oregon History Project

Oregon History Wayfinder

The OE is Green!

The Encyclopedia's editorial process is completely paperless. Our 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

This project has been funded in part by the Oregon Heritage Commission and the Oregon Cultural Trust.

Project Partners

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