Economy
The city's focus is primarily governmental, but it serves as a hub for the
farming communities and is one of the largest centers of food processing in
the nation. It lies along the I-5 corridor and is within an hour's drive of
Portland.
In a bid to diversify its economic base, Salem attracted a number of
computer-related manufacturing plants in the 1990s. In November, 2003, the
Sumitomo Mitsubishi Silicon Group, one of these arrivals, announced that
they will close their two silicon wafer plants at the end of 2004,
eliminating 620 jobs, and moving the production to other plants.
History
The Native American name for the area was Chemeketa, which means "meeting or
resting place." The name "Chemeketa" is preserved as the name of the local
community college, Chemeketa Community College.
The first white settlement in the area was the Jason Lee mission in 1840. In
1842, the missionaries established the Oregon Institute (the forerunner of
Willamette University) in the area that was to become the first townsite of
Salem. In 1844 the mission was dissolved and the townsite established. It is
uncertain who chose the name for the town, but it is believed to be one of
two people: Trustee David Leslie from Salem, Massachusetts, or W. H. Willson
who in 1850 - 1851 filed the plans for the main part of the city.
In 1851, Salem became the state capital after it was move from Oregon City.
The capital was moved briefly to Corvallis in 1855, but was permanently
moved back to Salem that same year. Salem was incorporated as a city in
1857.
The first cherry festival in Salem was held in 1903. In the following
decades, the event briefly became an annual event, with parades and the
election of a cherry queen, but was disbanded after World War I. It was
revived briefly as the Salem Cherryland Festival for several years in the
late 1940's.
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of
120.1 km˛ (46.4 mi˛). 118.4 km˛ (45.7 mi˛) of it is land and 1.6 km˛ (0.6
mi˛) of it is water. The total area is 1.36% water.
Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there are 136,924 people, 50,676 households, and
32,331 families residing in the city. The population density is 1,156.1/km˛
(2,994.0/mi˛). There are 53,817 housing units at an average density of
454.4/km˛ (1,176.8/mi˛). The racial makeup of the city is 83.07% White,
1.28% African American, 1.51% Native American, 2.41% Asian, 0.47% Pacific
Islander, 7.90% from other races, and 3.36% from two or more races. 14.59%
of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There are 50,676 households out of which 32.4% have children under the age
of 18 living with them, 47.7% are married couples living together, 11.6%
have a female householder with no husband present, and 36.2% are non-families.
28.3% of all households are made up of individuals and 10.5% have someone
living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is
2.53 and the average family size is 3.10.
In the city the population is spread out with 25.4% under the age of 18,
11.4% from 18 to 24, 30.1% from 25 to 44, 20.6% from 45 to 64, and 12.4% who
are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 34 years. For every 100
females there are 100.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there
are 99.5 males.
The median income for a household in the city is $38,881, and the median
income for a family is $46,409. Males have a median income of $34,746 versus
$26,789 for females. The per capita income for the city is $19,141. 15.0% of
the population and 10.5% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the
total people living in poverty, 20.2% are under the age of 18 and 7.1% are
65 or older.
Points of Interest
Salem is the home of the Salem-Keizer Volcanoes minor league baseball team
and Willamette University. The BIA operates Chemawa High School, a Native
American boarding school near Salem.
Although the Willamette River flows along the western side of Salem, the
Santiam River is the major source of water for this city.
