Willamina (city)

Willamina, located in the northwestern Willamette Valley, is in both Yamhill and Polk Counties. The town was named for the river that flows through it. The river was named in honor of pioneer Willamina Craig Maley Williams, who, in 1846, was reportedly the first white woman to cross the river.

In 1878, a gristmill was built on the river, and soon Hezekiah Bailey was using its power to run a sawmill that provided lumber for the growing settlement. In 1879, Wisdom Millsap platted a ten-block townsite near the mill.

By 1903, the village was incorporated and boasted 200 residents, with local storekeeper Paul Fundman serving as mayor. The first economic boom occurred in 1907, when O.K. Edwards established the Pacific Face Brick Company. The brick plant brought the railroad to town, and for over sixty years the unusual clay from Willamina was used to construct buildings up and down the West Coast.

By 1939, logging companies and sawmills were harvesting and processing nearly 350,000 board feet of lumber a day from nearby forests, and the Pacific Plywood Corporation opened a new plant in Willamina. The population of the town tripled, and the quiet little community soon became known as The Little Town with the Big Payroll. In the town’s heyday, over 250 log trucks a day crossed the bridge through town over the Willamina River.

The timber industry continues to be the mainstay of the community, which is often called Timber Town. In 2020, the population of Willamina was about 2,239 people.

Willamina, public school at, bb007164.

Public school, Willamina. Oreg. Hist. Soc. Research Lib., bb007164
Willamina, 1929, bb007114.

Willamina, 1929. Oreg. Hist. Soc. Research Lib., bb007114
Willamina, bank and hotel at, bb007111.

Bank and hotel at Willamina (unknown date). Oreg. Hist. Soc. Research Lib., bb007111
Willamina, view up river at, bb007160.

Looking up the Willamina River at Willamina (unknown date). Oreg. Hist. Soc. Research Lib., bb007160
Willamina, panorama of, bb007176.

Willamina (unknown date). Oreg. Hist. Soc. Research Lib., bb007176
Willamina, RR bridge, Dec 1963.
Replacing P.L. and N. railroad bridge at Willamina Creek. Courtesy Salem Public Library Historic Photograph Collections, Salem Public Library, Salem, Oregon
Fendall school house north of Willamina, Feb. 1959.
Courtesy Salem Public Library Historic Photograph Collections, Salem Public Library, Salem, Oregon
Willamina, downtown, 1961.
Courtesy Salem Public Library Historic Photograph Collections, Salem Public Library, Salem, Oregon
Willamina, bell tower, 1961.
Courtesy Salem Public Library Historic Photograph Collections, Salem Public Library, Salem, Oregon
Willamina, Pacific Face Brick plant, bb007159.

Pacific Face Brick Company, Willamina. Oreg. Hist. Soc. Research Lib., bb007159
Willamina, Pacific Face Brick plant, bb007157.

Pacific Face Brick Company, Willamina. Oreg. Hist. Soc. Research Lib., bb007157
Willamina, Pacific Face Brick plant, bb007118.

Pacific Face Brick Company, Willamina. Oreg. Hist. Soc. Research Lib., bb007118
Willamina, Rex Valley Junction cafe, exterior, bb007158.

Rex Valley Junction Cafe, Willamina (unknown date). Oreg. Hist. Soc. Research Lib., bb007158
Willamina, Rex Valley Junction cafe, exterior, bb007158.

Rex Valley Junction Cafe, Willamina. Oreg. Hist. Soc. Research Lib., bb007158
Willamina, SPRR depot at, bb007174.

Southern Pacific Railroad depot, Willamina. Oreg. Hist. Soc. Research Lib., bb007174
Willamina, Glenn Wilbur cafe, exterior, bb007155.

Glenn Wilbur Cafe, Valley Junction, Willamina. Oreg. Hist. Soc. Research Lib., bb007155