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OREGON - USA
Oregon is a state located in the western United
States bordering the Pacific Ocean, California, Washington, Idaho, and
Nevada. Its northern border lies along the Columbia River and the east along
the Snake River. Two north-south mountain ranges - the Coastal Range and the
Cascade Mountain Range - form the two boundaries of the Willamette Valley,
one of the most fertile and agriculturally productive regions in the world.
Oregon is known for its rain, but only the western half of the state is
notably rainy; east of the Cascades the climate is much more arid.
A 1977 article in U.S. News and World Report
described Oregon as a state of scenic grandeur and easygoing individualism [that]
is writing the preface to what may be the future for all Americans: simple
living, conservation, and limited growth.
That description still applies over a quarter-century later. Oregonians are
proud of their state's beautiful forests and streams, and place great
importance on proper use of their natural resources. They struggle to
balance this with the desire to support the development needed to support
its increasing population without losing what attracts people to Oregon in
the first place. The state has pioneered some innovative solutions to the
nation's environmental problems, such as the Oregon Bottle Bill, but has
also suffered under the rapid pace of logging its forests.
Its population in 2000 was 3,421,399, a 20.4% increase over 1990; as of July
2003, the population had grown to an estimated 3,559,596.
History
Oregon's earliest residents were several Native American tribes, including
the Bannock, Chinook, Klamath, and Nez Perce. James Cook explored the coast
in 1778 in search of the Northwest Passage. The Lewis and Clark Expedition
travelled through the region during their expedition to explore the
Louisiana Purchase. They built their winter fort at Fort Clatsop, near the
mouth of the Columbia River. Exploration by Lewis and Clark (1805-1806) and
Britain's David Thompson (1811) publicized the abundance of fur in the area.
In 1811, New York financier John Jacob Astor established Fort Astoria at the
mouth of the Columbia River with the intention of starting a chain of
Pacific Fur Company trading posts along the river. Fort Astoria was the
first permanent white settlement in Oregon. In the War of 1812 the British
gained control of all of the Pacific Fur Company posts.
By the 1820s and 1830s the British Hudson's Bay Company dominated the
Pacific Northwest. John McLoughlin, who was appointed the Company's Chief
Factor of the Columbia District, built Fort Vancouver in 1825.
The Oregon Trail infused the region with new settlers, starting in 1842-43,
after the U.S. wrested control of the Oregon Country from the United Kingdom.
A popular slogan among the Democrats who wanted the Pacific territory as far
north as latitude 54°40′ was "Fifty-Four Forty or Fight." This confrontation
was resolved in 1846 after a period where it seemed that the United States
and the United Kingdom would go to war a third time in 75 years. Cooler
heads prevailed, and the boundary between the United States and British
North America was set at the 49th parallel. The Oregon Territory was
officially organized in 1848.
Settlement increased due to the Donation Land Claim Act of 1850, in
conjunction with the forced relocation of the native population to Indian
Reservations in Oregon. The state was admitted to the Union on February 14,
1859.
In the 1880s, railroads enabled marketing of the state's lumber and wheat,
and the more rapid growth of its cities.
Industrial expansion began in earnest following the construction of the
Bonneville Dam in 1943 on the Columbia River. The power, food, and lumber
provided by Oregon have helped fuel the development of the west, and the
periodic fluctuations in the nation's building industry has severely
impacted the state's economy on multiple occasions.
The state has a long history of polarizing conflicts: Native Americans vs.
British fur trappers, British vs. settlers from the U.S., ranchers vs.
farmers, wealthy growing cities vs. established but poor rural areas,
loggers vs. environmentalists, white supremacists vs. anti-racists,
supporters of social spending vs. anti-tax activists, and native Oregonians
vs. Californians (or outsiders in general). State ballots frequently
illustrate the extremes of the political spectrum - anti-gay, pro-religious
measures on the same ballot as liberal drug decriminalization measures.
Origin of Oregon
The origin of the state's name is something of a mystery.
The earliest known use of this proper noun was in a 1765 petition by Major
Robert Rogers to the English Crown. The petition referred to Ouragon and
asked for money to finance an expedition in search of the Northwest Passage.
Why Rogers used the name has led to many theories, which include:
George R. Stewart argued in a 1944 article in American Speech that the name
came from an engraver's error in a French map published in the early 1700s,
naming the Ouisiconsink (Wisconsin River). This theory was endorsed in
Oregon Geographic Names as "the most plausible explanation."
In 2001, Scott Byram, (currently the archaeologist for the Coquille Indian
Tribe), and David G. Lewis published an article in the Oregon Historical
Quarterly argued that the name Oregon came from the word oolighan, referring
to grease made from fish, which the Native Americans of the region traded
in. Those trade routes brought the term eastward. [1] (http://www.registerguard.com/news/2004/06/06/f1.ed.col.byram.0606.html)
In a 2004 article for the Oregon Historical Quarterly, professor Thomas Love
and Smithsonian linguist Ives Goddard argue that Rogers chose the word based
on exposure to either of the Algonquian words wauregan and olighin, both
meaning "good and beautiful". Olighin was one of the early names for the
Ohio River, shown on a 1680s map of the explorations of René Robert Cavelier,
Sieur de La Salle. Rogers is likely to have heard the terms because of his
frequent encounters with Mohegans in the late 1750s.
Less supported theories are based on it having a Spanish etymology. The
theory that it comes from oregano, was dismissed years ago by Henry W. Scott,
an early editor of Oregonian. He wrote that it was "a mere conjecture
absolutely without support. More than this, it is completely disproved by
all that is known of the name." Others have speculated that the name is
related to the kingdom of Aragon.
In 1778, Jonathan Carver used Oregon to label the Great River of the West in
his book Travels Through the Interior Parts of North America. The poet
William Cullen Bryant took the name from Carver's book and used it in his
poem "Thanatopsis" to refer to the recent discoveries of the Lewis and Clark
Expedition; this use helped establish it in modern use.
Geography
Oregon's geography may be split roughly into six areas:
the Coast Range,
the Willamette Valley,
the Cascade Mountains
the Klamath Mountains,
the Columbia Plateau, and
the Basin and Range Region.
The state varies from rain forest in the Columbia Gorge to barren desert in
the southeast, which still meets the technical definition of frontier.
The state is about 580 km (360 miles) long and 420 km (261 miles) wide.
Oregon is the ninth largest state, covering 254,819 km˛ (98,386 square
miles).
Its highest point is the summit of Mount Hood, at 3,428 m (11,239 ft). As a
West Coast state, its lowest point is sea level. Its mean elevation is 1 km
(3,300 ft).
Crater Lake National Park is Oregon's only national park.
Law and government
State government
Governors in Oregon serve four-year terms. The Oregon Legislature consists
of a thirty-member Senate and sixty-member House. Senators serve four-year
terms, and Representatives two.
Oregon adopted many electorial reforms proposed during the Progressive Era,
due to the efforts of William S. U'Ren and his Direct Legislation League.
Under his leadership, the state overwhelmingly approved a ballot measure in
1902 that created the initiative and referendum processes for citizens to
directly introduce or approve proposed laws or amendments to the state
constitution. In following years, the primary election to select party
candidates was adopted in 1904, and in 1908 the Oregon Constitution was
amended to include recall of public officials.
Of the measures placed on the ballot since 1902, the people have passed 99
of the 288 initiatives and 25 of the 61 referenda on the ballot, though not
all of them survived challenges in courts (see Pierce v. Society of Sisters,
for example). During the same period, the legislature has referred 363
measures to the people, of which 206 have passed.
Oregon has been a pioneer in the use of vote-by-mail:
1981 The Oregon Legislature approves experimentation with vote-by-mail for
local elections.
1987 Vote-by-mail becomes permanent, with the majority of Oregon's counties
making use of it.
1995 Oregon becomes the first state to conduct a federal primary election
totally by mail.
1996 Ron Wyden, Bob Packwood's replacement, is elected by mail with a 66%
turnout.
1998 Through a voter initiative, Oregonians confirm their overwhelming
support for vote-by-mail.
2000 Oregon becomes the first state in the nation to conduct a presidential
election entirely by mail. About 80% of registered voters participated.
Federal government
Oregon is represented at the federal level by two senators and five
representatives, which translates into seven electoral votes.
Economy
The Willamette Valley is very fertile, and coupled with Oregon's famous
rains, gives the state a wealth of agricultural products. Apples and other
fruits, cattle, dairy products, potatoes, and peppermint are all valuable
products. Oregon is also one of four major world hazelnut growing regions.
While the history of the wine production in Oregon can be traced to before
Prohibition, it became a significant industry beginning in the 1970s, and
Oregon is home to at least four wine appellations.
Her forests have historically made Oregon one of the nation's major timber
production or logging states, but forest fires (such as the Tillamook Burn),
over-harvesting, and law suits over the proper management of the extensive
federal forest holdings have reduced the amount of timber produced.
According to the Oregon Forest Resources Institute, timber harvested from
federal lands dropped some 96% from 1989 (when 4,333 million board feet was
harvested) to 173 million board feet in 2001. While the 1980s saw an
unsustainable amount of timber harvested, the drop in timber harvested is
still significant, as the total amount of timber harvested in 2001 is less
than half of that in the late 1970s. Even the shift in recent years towards
finished goods such as paper and building materials have not slowed the
decline of the timber industry. Examples include the Weyerhaeuser's
acquisition of Willamette Industries in January, 2002, the announcement by
Louisiana Pacific in September, 2003 that they will relocate their corporate
headquarters from Portland to Nashville, and the experiences of small lumber
towns like Gilchrist. Despite these changes, Oregon still leads the United
States in softwood lumber production: in 2001, according to the Oregon
Forest Resources Institute, 6,056 million board feet was produced in Oregon,
against 4,5257 mbf. in Washington, 2,731 in California, 2,413 in Georgia and
2,327 in Mississippi.
High technology industries and services have been a major employer since the
1970s. Tektronix was the largest private employer in Oregon until the late
1980s. Intel's creation and expansion of several plants in eastern
Washington County continued the growth that Tektronix had started. The
spinoffs and startups that were produced by these two companies led to the
establishment of the Portland metropolitan area as the Silicon Forest. The
recession and dotcom bust of 2001 in the Silicon Valley has led to similar
results in the Silicon Forest; many high technology employers have either
reduced the number of their employees or gone out of business.
Oregon had one of the largest salmon-fishing industries in the world,
although ocean fisheries have reduced the river fisheries in recent years.
Tourism is also strong in the state; Oregon's evergreen mountain forests,
waterfalls, pristine lakes (including Crater Lake National Park), and scenic
beaches draw visitors year round. The Oregon Shakespeare Festival is a
tourist draw near its Californian border which complements the area's scenic
beauty and opportunity for outdoor activities.
Oregon is home to a number of smaller breweries.
Demographics
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, as of 2003, Oregon's population was
estimated at 3,559,596 people.
The racial makeup of the state is:
86.6% White
8% Hispanic or Latino
1.6% Black
3% Asian
1.3% American Indian or Alaska Native
0.2% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander
4.2% from other races
3.1% belong to two or more races.
The top 5 ancestry groups in Oregon are German (20.5%), English (13.2%),
Irish (11.9%), American (6.4%), Mexican (6.3%).
The 5 largest religions in Oregon are Roman Catholic (14%), Christian (13%),
Lutheran (5%), Methodist (5%), Mormon (4%). 21% of the population is
nonreligious.
6.5% of Oregon's population were reported as under 5, 24.7% under 18, and
12.8% were 65 or older. Females made up approximately 50.4% of the
population.
2000-2003 trends
Estimates released September 2004 show double-digit growth in Latino and
Asian American populations. About 60% of the 138,197 new residents come from
ethnic and racial minorities. Asian growth is located mostly in the
metropolitan areas of Portland, Salem, and Eugene; Hispanic population
growth is across the state.
Major cities and towns
The capital is Salem and the largest city is Portland.
Oregon City was the first incorporated city west of the Mississippi River
and later, the first capital of the Oregon Territory, from 1848 to 1852,
when the territory capitol was moved to Salem, Oregon. It was also the end
of the Oregon Trail and the site of the first public library established
west of the Rocky Mountains, stocked with only 300 volumes.
Colleges and universities
Concordia University, Portland
Eastern Oregon University
Eugene Bible College
George Fox University
Gutenberg College
Lewis & Clark College
Linfield College
Marylhurst University
Mount Angel Seminary
Mount Hood Community College
Multnomah Bible College and Seminary
Northwest Christian College
Oregon Health and Science University
Oregon Institute of Technology
Oregon State University
Pacific Northwest College of Art
Pacific University
Portland Community College
Portland State University
Reed College
Southern Oregon University
University of Oregon
University of Portland
Warner Pacific College
Western Baptist College
Western Oregon University
Western States Chiropractic College
Willamette University
Professional sports teams
Portland Trail Blazers of the NBA
Portland Winter Hawks of the Western Hockey League
Farm clubs of Major League Baseball
Eugene Emeralds, a single-A club in the Northwest League
Portland Beavers, a triple-A club in the Pacific Coast League
Salem-Keizer Volcanoes, a single-A club in the Northwest League
Portland is under consideration to be the home of a major league baseball
team.
Broadcasting
List of television stations in Oregon
List of radio stations in Oregon
Oregon Public Broadcasting
Jefferson Public Radio
State symbols
State flower: Oregon grape (since 1899)
State song: Oregon, My Oregon (written in 1920 and adopted in 1927)
State bird: Western meadowlark (chosen by the state's children in 1927)
State tree: Douglas-fir (since 1939)
State fish: Chinook salmon (since 1961)
State rock: Thunderegg (like a geode but formed in a rhyolitic lava flow;
since 1965)
State animal: Beaver (since 1969)
State dance: Square dance (since 1977)
State insect: Oregon Swallowtail Butterfly (Papilio oregonius; since 1979)
State gemstone: Oregon sunstone, a type of feldspar (since 1987)
State nut: Hazelnut (since 1989)
State seashell: Oregon hairy triton (Fusitriton oregonensis, a gastropod in
the cymatiidae family; since 1991)
Trivia
Oregon has the smallest park in the world: Mill Ends Park in Portland,
Oregon.
Oregon has no sales tax.
Abbreviations for the state include OR (postal), Ore., and Oreg.
Oregon is one of two states that prohibit drivers from pumping their own
gasoline. The other is New Jersey.
Oregon claims the D River is the shortest river in the world, while the
American state of Montana makes the same claim of the Roe River.
The Kingsmen, who made the song Louie Louie famous are from Portland. There
was once a failed effort to make Louie Louie Oregon's official state
song.[2] (http://www.louielouie.net/05-louie-faq.htm)
In 1970 the Oregon Highway Division (now Oregon Department of Transporation)
exploded a dead beached whale on a beach just outside Lane County. The
results were not as expected and KATU Channel 2 news reporter Paul Linnman
captured the results on film of the exploding whale.
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