Welcome to the Oregon Encyclopedia.
Explore Oregon's history and culture — from Athapaskan Indians to Zigzag Ranger Station
Feeling adventurous? How Oregonian of you.
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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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Applegate Partnership & Watershed Council
Since its founding in 1992, the Applegate Partnership & Watershed Counc…
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Battle of Hungry Hill
The Battle of Hungry Hill—also known as the Battle of Grave Creek—was t…
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Cascade-Siskiyou National Monument
“With towering fir forests, sunlit oak groves, wildflower-strewn meadow…
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Charles Alexander Moose (1953–2021)
Charles Moose was the first African American to hold the position of Ch…
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City Girl (film)
In the summer of 1928, German Expressionist filmmaker F. W. Murnau rent…
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Columbia River Quarantine Station
The Columbia River Quarantine Station was opened in 1899 by the U.S Mar…
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Dogbane (hemp)
Dogbane (Apocynum sp.) is a short herbaceous plant whose name refers to…
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Dorothea Marie Lensch (1907–2000)
In 1937, Dorothea Marie Lensch was named the first Director of Recreati…
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Dorothy Hadley (1942–) and Hurtis Hadley (1942–)
On April 19, 1977, when Hurtis and Dorothy Bishop Butler Hadley opened …
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Edith Henry Kilbuck (1931–2008)
Edith Kilbuck was a noted harpsichordist, pianist, and professor of mus…
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Flora Cushinway Thompson (1898–1978)
Flora Cushinway Thompson (enrolled Warm Springs) was a spiritual and co…
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Francis Marion Stokes (1883–1975)
Portland architect Marion Stokes designed residential and government bu…
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Harmful Algae Blooms in Oregon
The term “algae” is a generic description of a diverse group of single …
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Hillcrest Youth Correctional Facility
The Hillcrest Youth Correctional Facility in Salem was a prison for Ore…
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John Mathews (c. 1816–1885)
Born into slavery in North Carolina in 1818, John Dudley Mathews (née J…
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MacDonald F. (Donald or Don) Mayer (1884–1966)
MacDonald F. Mayer worked as an architect in Portland from early 1911 t…
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Matthew Abram Groening (1954–)
Matt Groening, who grew up in Portland, created The Simpsons, the longe…
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Redlining and Climate-Related Heat
The legacy of redlining—the spatial distribution of poverty, housing, g…
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Rex Amos (1935–)
Rex Amos is an Oregon artist and writer best known for his assemblage a…
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Siskiyou Mountains in Oregon
Southwestern Oregon’s Siskiyou Mountains, which comprise the largest su…
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Tater Tots and Ore-Ida Foods, Co.
Tater Tots, one of America’s most beloved frozen foods, was invented in…
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The Blob: Impacts of the 2013-2016 Marine Heatwave on Oregon
From December 2013 to August 2016, the northeast Pacific Ocean experien…
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.