Welcome to the Oregon Encyclopedia.
Explore Oregon's history and culture — from Athapaskan Indians to Zigzag Ranger Station
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July: Things that cool you off in the summer.
Beer and Lakes.
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![Brewing industry in Oregon]()
Brewing industry in Oregon
High-quality water and ideal conditions for growing hops set the stage for Oregon’s vibrant beer in…
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![Crater Lake National Park]()
Crater Lake National Park
Crater Lake National Park, which the U.S. Congress set aside in 1902, is a focal point in the Casca…
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![Diamond Lake]()
Diamond Lake
“Gem of the Cascades” is how Diamond Lake is heralded by those who trout fish, camp, swim, hike, sa…
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![Full Sail Brewing Company]()
Full Sail Brewing Company
Founded in 1987 in Hood River, the Full Sail Brewing Company is one of the earliest craft breweries…
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![Henry Hagg Lake]()
Henry Hagg Lake
Henry Hagg Lake is a manmade reservoir located in Scoggins Valley, just a few miles southwest of th…
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![Lower Klamath Lake]()
Lower Klamath Lake
Before human engineering altered the upper Klamath Basin, water flowed from Upper Klamath Lake into…
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![McMenamins]()
McMenamins
McMenamins was founded by Mike and Brian McMenamin, brothers who grew up in northeast Portland. As …
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![Salem Brewery Association]()
Salem Brewery Association
The Salem Brewery Association, incorporated in 1903, was at one time the second largest brewery in …
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![Waldo Lake]()
Waldo Lake
Located astride the backbone of the Cascade Mountains in the Willamette National Forest, Waldo Lake…
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
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![Carol Menken-Schaudt (1957–)]()
Carol Menken-Schaudt (1957–)
Carol Menken came to Oregon State University to study broadcasting, gra…
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![Charles Cutter, aka Chief Eagle Horse (1878–1938)]()
Charles Cutter, aka Chief Eagle Horse (1878–1938)
Charles Cutter, whose Tlingit name was Dockh-hoh-kharckh, was an actor …
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![Christmas Valley (community)]()
Christmas Valley (community)
The unincorporated town of Christmas Valley (population approximately 1…
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![Cleveland Rockwell (1837-1907)]()
Cleveland Rockwell (1837-1907)
Cleveland Rockwell was a topographical engineer, cartographer, and arti…
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![Jim Hibbard (1936–2022)]()
Jim Hibbard (1936–2022)
Jim Hibbard was a principal founder of Blackfish Gallery, the first coo…
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![Joaquin "Chino" Berdugo (1850-1931)]()
Joaquin "Chino" Berdugo (1850-1931)
Joaquin “Chino” Berdugo was a prominent vaquero leader and stockman in …
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![Linnton Plywood Mill]()
Linnton Plywood Mill
The Linnton Plywood Association (LPA) was a cooperative worker-owned mi…
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![Lisa Malinowski Steinman (1950–)]()
Lisa Malinowski Steinman (1950–)
Lisa M. Steinman writes “to make sense of myself and the world,” she to…
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![Margaret Comstock Snell (1843–1923)]()
Margaret Comstock Snell (1843–1923)
Margaret Comstock Snell was a pioneering domestic scientist who in 1889…
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![Marion Sayle Taylor (1889–1942)]()
Marion Sayle Taylor (1889–1942)
Marion Sayle Taylor was the Voice of Experience, a radio personality wh…
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![Modoc Tribe]()
Modoc Tribe
The Modoc are a thriving Indigenous people who live predominantly in no…
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![Obukan Judo Dojo]()
Obukan Judo Dojo
Obukan Judo, the oldest dōjō in Oregon, has had a presence in Portland …
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![Richard Steiner (1901–1975)]()
Richard Steiner (1901–1975)
Richard Steiner was the senior minister of the First Unitarian Church i…
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![Rocky Butte]()
Rocky Butte
Rocky Butte is a 612-foot-high extinct cinder cone volcano in Portland,…
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![Santiago Ventura Morales Exoneration Case]()
Santiago Ventura Morales Exoneration Case
In 1986, Mixtec farmworker Santiago Ventura Morales was wrongfully conv…
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![Seneca]()
Seneca
Seneca is a small town in Bear Valley near the Blue Mountains and the M…
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![Skidmore Fountain]()
Skidmore Fountain
The Skidmore Fountain, dedicated on September 22, 1888, is the oldest p…
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![Sterlingville]()
Sterlingville
Sterlingville was a mining boomtown at the headwaters of Sterling Creek…
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![Walter Alan Curtis (1941–2023)]()
Walter Alan Curtis (1941–2023)
Walt Curtis was an Oregon writer, painter, and literary activist and—in…
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![William "Bill" Bradbury (1949-2023)]()
William "Bill" Bradbury (1949-2023)
William “Bill” Chapman Bradbury III served in Oregon politics and publi…
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.
Project Partners
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![https://oregoncouncilofteachersofenglish.wildapricot.org/]()
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![https://willamette.edu/]()
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