Oregon City, the county
seat of Clackamas County, is located southeast
of Portland on the east side of the Willamette
River, just below the falls. Its unique topography
includes three terraces, which rise above the river,
creating an elevation range from about 50 feet
above sea level at the riverbank to more than 250
feet above sea level on the upper terrace. The
lowest terrace, on which the earliest development
occurred, is only two blocks or three streets wide,
but stretches northward from the falls for several
blocks.
Originally, industry was
located primarily at the south end of Main Street
nearest the falls, which provided power. Commercial,
governmental and social/fraternal entities developed
along Main Street north of the industrial area. Religious
and educational structures also appeared along
Main Street, but tended to be grouped north of
the commercial core. Residential structures
filled in along Main Street, as well as along the
side and cross streets. As the city grew,
the commercial, governmental and social/fraternal
structures expanded northward first, and with time
eastward and westward to the side and cross streets. Before
the turn of the century, residential neighborhoods
and schools were developing on the bluff. Some
commercial development also occurred on this middle
terrace, but the business center of the city continued
to be situated on the lower terrace. Between
the 1930s and 1950s, many of the downtown churches
relocated to the bluff as well. The industrial
area remained at the south end of the downtown
area throughout the 20th century. As
the city continued to grow, development eventually
expanded to the upper terrace and spread eastward.
The small community of
Canemah, located just south of Oregon City (and
now included within its city limits) developed
just above the falls on the river. Canemah
is a National Register historic district.
Much of Oregon City’s
importance lies in its early history as the first
permanent Euro-American settlement in the Willamette
Valley and the first incorporated city west of
the Rocky Mountains. Founded in 1829 and
incorporated in 1844, it first became the home
to fur traders and missionaries. As “the
end of the Oregon Trail,” it soon became the final
destination for many early immigrants.
Prior to Euro-American
settlement, the area where Oregon City is located
was a focal point for fishing and trade among the
Native Americans and home to the Clowwewalla (also
known as the Charcowah) and the Cashhooks Indians
(of the Upper Chinookan Linguistic group) and the
Mollala Indians (of the Waiilatpuan Linguistic
family). The nearby Clackamas Indians, also
of the Upper Chinookan Linguistic group, located
their villages along the Clackamas River. Smallpox,
cholera and other Euro-American diseases introduced
by early explorers decimated the tribes. By
the time Euro-American settlement in the area began,
only about 650 Clowwewalla and Cashhooks remained. Their
numbers steadily declined into the mid-19th century. After
the remnants of the tribes were relocated to the
Grand Ronde reservation, they became extinct.
In the
1810s, fur traders explored the Willamette Valley
and surrounding areas. Donald
McKenzie, a partner in the Pacific Fur Company
located at Fort Astoria, is believed to be the
first white man to visit the area of the Willamette
Falls when he ascended the river in 1812. The
company and the fort were sold to the North West
Company, a British enterprise in 1813. By
1814, both the North West Company and the Hudson’s
Bay Company regularly trapped the lower Columbia
and Willamette Rivers. In 1821 the two fur
companies merged under the Hudson’s Bay name and
four years later built Fort Vancouver.
In
1823, Dr. John McLoughlin was appointed Chief Factor
of the Hudson’s Bay Company at Fort Vancouver. In
1829, McLoughlin laid out a two-square mile claim
at the Willamette Falls and began construction
of three houses to shelter employees working at
the site. The houses were burned by the natives,
but rebuilt by McLoughlin. A small fur trading
center was also established and work was begun
on a millrace. These buildings became the first
permanent white settlement in the Willamette Valley. By
1839, the settlement had grown to a collection
of small houses clustered around the millrace populated
primarily by employees of the Hudson’s Bay Company. The
settlement, which would become Oregon City, was
originally known as Willamette Falls.
In 1833, Reverend Jason
Lee and his nephew, Reverend Daniel Lee, were approved
by the Mission Society of the Methodist Episcopal
Church to establish a mission in the west. When
the Lees arrived at Fort Vancouver, McLoughlin
encouraged them to start their work south of the
Columbia River in the Willamette Valley. The
Willamette Mission was established in 1834 in present-day
Marion County.
During the winter of 1839-1840,
Reverend Jason Lee gave a series of lectures in
Peoria, Illinois in an effort to recruit reinforcements
for the Methodist Mission and to encourage American
settlement in the Oregon Territory. Following
these lectures, the first overland American immigrant
party was organized. Led by Thomas J. Farnham,
the Peoria Party arrived at the Willamette Falls
settlement in late 1839 and early 1840. Others
arrived via ship, including George Abernethy and
Alvin F. Waller, both part of the “Great Reinforcement” for
the Methodist Mission, in June 1840. Reverend
Waller was dispatched to establish a church and
store at Willamette Falls later that year. Abernethy
was appointed manager of the store. McLoughlin
donated land and materials for the church and a
parsonage. In 1841, Waller established the
Island Milling Company and by 1842 was operating
a small sawmill and was making plans for a flour
mill on a portion of McLoughlin’s claim in what
appears to have been an effort to secure an American
claim to the land near the falls. McLoughlin,
in a further effort to stake his claim, platted
and named the growing village “Oregon City” in
1842.
The Methodist
Church, the first Protestant church west of the
Rocky Mountains,
was completed in 1843, the same year that a Provisional
Government, under the jurisdiction of the United
States, was established. Oregon City was
incorporated in 1844, the first incorporated city
west of the Rocky Mountains, as the number of immigrants
was growing and Oregon City boasted 75 buildings. In
1845, Oregon City became the seat of the Provisional
Government and George Abernethy was appointed governor. Oregon
City continued to grow and by 1846, had a population
of more than 500 and a growing number of businesses. The
first Masonic Lodge in Oregon, Multnomah Lodge
No. 1, was granted a charter that year.
Oregon Territory was officially
created in 1848 and Oregon City was designated
as the Territory’s first capital, an honor it held
until the capital was moved to Salem in 1852. Oregon
was granted statehood in 1859.
The city continued to
grow rapidly with the increase in overland migration. Industry
continued to develop as a number of mills were
established to support the need for lumber and
flour. Although the discovery of gold in
California in 1847 initially reduced the territory’s
population as a number of settlers left for the
gold fields, it also opened the market for supplying
provisions to miners, stimulating industry and
commerce. A number of miners returned to
the area after the gold rush passed. By 1849,
the population of Oregon City was over 900.
A new industry developed
in 1850 when the first steamboat on the Willamette
River, the “Lot Whitcomb,” was built. An
increase in agricultural production in the mid-Willamette
Valley required improved methods of shipping goods
and river transport became common between the upper
valley and Oregon City. Because the falls
initially required the movement of freight from
one ship to another, shipbuilding enterprises developed
at both Canemah (above the falls) and Oregon City
(below the falls). Shipbuilding was more
prolific at Canemah, but at least eight steamboats
were built in Oregon City in the 1850s and 1860s.
Oregon City’s position
as the hub of the Territory declined in the 1850s
as the capital was moved to Salem and Portland
surpassed it as a population and shipping center. Its
position as the center for trade, politics and
urban activity in the county, however, was secure.
In the 1860s, Oregon City’s
growth continued, but at a slower, steady pace. The
economy shifted from a service and shipping-based
economy to one firmly rooted in manufacturing. The
Imperial Flour Mills were built in 1863-1864 and
the Oregon Manufacturing Company (Oregon Woolen
Mills) was established in 1864.
Industrial growth and
diversification mark the first years of this period. The
first paper mill in Oregon was established in Oregon
City in 1866 as the Pioneer Paper Manufacturing
Company (also known as the Oregon City Paper Mill
and the Oregon City Paper Manufacturing Company)
began operations. Although financial difficulties
resulted in closure of the mill the following year,
it introduced an industry that perhaps has had
the greatest impact on Oregon City over the years.
The Oregon and California
Railroad Company began laying tracks in Portland
in 1868, and heading south on the east side of
the Willamette River, crossed the Clackamas River
and arrived in Oregon City in 1869. The line
was completed as far as Roseburg before being stalled
by financial difficulties. As the first rail
transport in the state, it opened the Willamette
Valley to shipping ports to the north. High
rail freight costs, however, resulted in the construction
of the Willamette Locks to improve river transport
by the Willamette Falls Company in 1873. Not
only did the opening of the locks serve to drop
the freight rates, but it further stimulated shipbuilding
as crops could then be shipped directly to Astoria
for transfer to European ships. The railroad,
which helped extend the life of steamboat transportation
for awhile, was eventually its undoing as rail
lines – and freight rates – became more accessible
throughout the valley.
Oregon
City continued to grow throughout this time period. By 1880, the
population was nearing 1400. Commercial businesses
developed to accommodate the growing number of
residents, as did educational, religious and social
organizations. Most of the development continued
in the area of the original townsite on the first
terrace, although the congestion was moving people
to look at development on the bluff above the city
center.
The Progressive Era saw
continued growth. A new Clackamas County
Courthouse was constructed in Oregon City in 1884. The
original courthouse had burned in 1849 and government
business had been conducted in rented offices and
halls during the intervening years. In
1888, the West Linn and Oregon City suspension
bridge was constructed across the Willamette River.
The timber and wood products
industries developed into major contenders and
the end of this time period were the largest employers
in Oregon City and the county. Although the
H.L. Pittock and Company Paper Mill, located just
north of Oregon City at Park Place, relocated to
Camus, Washington in 1885, other mills soon opened
in Oregon City. The Willamette Falls Pulp
and Paper Company was organized in 1889 and the
Crown Mill in 1890. The Hawley Paper Company
was established in 1908.
In 1889, the Willamette
Falls Electric Company made history when it transmitted
the first electricity over long distance power
lines to Portland. The growing use of electricity
made possible the construction of the first interurban
electric railroad in the county, the East Side
Railway, which made its first run between Portland
and Oregon City in 1893. The establishment
of the railway made the concept of commuting a
reality for the first time and paved the way for
further growth by persons wishing to live in Oregon
City and work in Portland.
A number
of new subdivisions and additions were platted
between 1888 and the
mid-1910s and growth began in earnest on the bluff. Residential
neighborhoods shifted from the city center to the
second terrace before the turn of the century,
as did the location of the schools. A small
number of commercial enterprises located on the
upper level, but the commercial core remained in
the downtown business center. The bluff was
accessed by wooden stairs and unimproved roads.
Several
civic improvements took place during the Progressive
Era. The city
water system and fire department was expanded and
improved. Electric lights and sidewalks were
installed and street improvements began. The
Carnegie Library was completed in 1913. Interestingly,
the city’s first major effort at historic preservation
occurred in 1909, when Dr. McLoughlin’s house was
relocated from downtown to the bluff where it has
been restored and designated as a landmark.
The
arrival of the automobile brought significantly
changed life in America. The first automobile
arrived in Oregon City in 1903 when C.G. Miller
established his automobile dealership. His
business became known as the Miller-Parker auto
dealership in 1913 and the C.G. Miller Company
in 1922. Several other dealerships followed
and a number of auto-related businesses, including
garages and service stations, were established. The
State Highway Commission was created in 1913 and
legislation in 1917 created the State Highway Fund. Soon
after, construction on a modern highway system
began. Highway 99E, referred to in 1923 as
the “Super Highway,” was constructed through downtown
Oregon City. In addition to construction
of the highway, street paving improved. A
new bridge across the Willamette River replaced
the Oregon City-West Linn suspension bridge in
1922.
Transport of another sort
developed in 1913, when the first municipal elevator
in Oregon City was constructed. The water-powered
elevator made the trip between the downtown and
bluff easier for residents and supported a continuing
trend to locate the residential neighborhoods on
the upper terraces, while the downtown remained
the focal point for commercial and governmental
business. After the construction of a new
fire station on the bluff, a new city hall office
building was built downtown in c.1925. Commercial
development was strong following World War I and
a number of new store and office buildings in the
downtown were constructed and existing buildings
remodeled. Growth continued through the Great
Depression, but at a slightly slower rate.
Although
the Great Depression was not as devastating in
Oregon as it was in other parts of the country,
its affects were felt locally. Oregon City
was the recipient of a variety of funds from federal
programs, many of which results in new improvements
in the downtown area. A new Clackamas County
Courthouse was constructed in 1936-1937 with assistance
from the Public Works Administration. The
highway underpass was also constructed in 1936-1937
with PWA funding. The Singer Creek Falls
and Steps were constructed in 1936 with funding
from the Works Projects Administration (WPA). Other
federally funded projects in Oregon City included
a new high school, a new grade school, a new swimming
pool, and street and highway improvements.
With improved roads and
new trucking technology, the timber and wood products
industry experienced great expansion. The
Willamette and Crown mills merged in 1914 to become
The Crown Willamette Pulp and Paper Company. The
Great Depression, however, brought a slowing to
the industry and several smaller mills closed. In
1937, Anthony Zellerbach took control of several
mills, including Crown Willamette, which became
Crown Zellerbach.
World War II brought an
end to the Great Depression and ushered in a fully
modern period. Although growth and development
was slowed during the war, the period following
the war was one of substantial expansion in Oregon
City, as it was in most communities around the
country.
The timber and wood industry
recovered from the Great Depression slump and was
restored to its position as the state’s leading
industry with the building boom that followed the
war. New residential neighborhoods expanded
eastward to the third terrace above the river as
newfound prosperity allowed many to buy their own
homes. Schools followed and churches that
had been located downtown for years migrated to
the bluff as well.
Commercial growth in the
downtown area continued, although only a handful
of new buildings were constructed. Much of
the development involved the creation of new “modern” businesses,
which opened their doors in existing buildings.
Barry , J. Neilson . “The
Indians of Oregon—Geographic Distribution of Linguistic
Families,” Oregon Historical Quarterly.
Volume 28, 1927:57-60.
Bowen, William A.
, The Willamette Valley, Migration and Settlement
on the Oregon Frontier. Seattle: University of
Washington Press, 1978: 7-8.
Koler/Morrison
Planning Consultants, Oregon City,
Oregon: Historic Context Statement for the Park
Place Vicin ity. August
1990, 3.
Miller,
C.G. , Oregon
City Enterprise article for Anniversary Edition,
October 27, 1926.
Miller,
Tom ,Oregon
City Enterprise article for Anniversary Edition,
October 27, 1926.
Oregon City Enterprise,
January 1, 1937.
Webber, Bert and Margie Oregon
City (By Way of the Barlow Road) at the end of
the National Historic OregonTrail. Medford,
Oregon: Webb Research Group, 1993: 37-38.
In
1823, Dr. John McLoughlin was appointed Chief Factor
of the Hudson’s Bay Company at Fort Vancouver. In
1829, McLoughlin laid out a two-square mile claim
at the Willamette Falls and began construction
of three houses to shelter employees working at
the site. The houses were burned by the natives,
but rebuilt by McLoughlin. A small fur trading
center was also established and work was begun
on a millrace. These buildings became the first
permanent white settlement in the Willamette Valley. By
1839, the settlement had grown to a collection
of small houses clustered around the millrace populated
primarily by employees of the Hudson’s Bay Company. The
settlement, which would become Oregon City, was
originally known as Willamette Falls. 
The
arrival of the automobile brought significantly
changed life in America. The first automobile
arrived in Oregon City in 1903 when C.G. Miller
established his automobile dealership. His
business became known as the Miller-Parker auto
dealership in 1913 and the C.G. Miller Company
in 1922. Several other dealerships followed
and a number of auto-related businesses, including
garages and service stations, were established. The
State Highway Commission was created in 1913 and
legislation in 1917 created the State Highway Fund. Soon
after, construction on a modern highway system
began. Highway 99E, referred to in 1923 as
the “Super Highway,” was constructed through downtown
Oregon City. In addition to construction
of the highway, street paving improved. A
new bridge across the Willamette River replaced
the Oregon City-West Linn suspension bridge in
1922.
Although
the Great Depression was not as devastating in
Oregon as it was in other parts of the country,
its affects were felt locally. Oregon City
was the recipient of a variety of funds from federal
programs, many of which results in new improvements
in the downtown area. A new Clackamas County
Courthouse was constructed in 1936-1937 with assistance
from the Public Works Administration. The
highway underpass was also constructed in 1936-1937
with PWA funding. The Singer Creek Falls
and Steps were constructed in 1936 with funding
from the Works Projects Administration (WPA). Other
federally funded projects in Oregon City included
a new high school, a new grade school, a new swimming
pool, and street and highway improvements.