Huntington, Oregon
Encyclopedia
Huntington is a city in Baker County
, on the eastern border of Oregon
, United States
. It is located on the Snake River
and along Interstate 84 and U.S. Route 30. The population was 515 at the 2000 census.
ted in 1885 or 1886. It soon became the primary shipping point for the cattle country to the south. Miller built the Stage Tavern, known for many years as "Miller Station". It was on the overland route that had been established in the valley, and had become well known to all who traveled in pioneer days. According to Oregon Geographic Names
, Huntington was named for J.B. and J.M. Huntington, brothers who purchased Miller's holdings in 1882.
The Huntingtons maintained a small trading post on their land. In 1884, the rails of the Oregon Short Line and the Oregon Railroad and Navigation Company
line were joined in Huntington. Since that time, Huntington has been an important railway division point. With the advent of the railroad came J.T. Fifer, who had been selling general merchandise to the construction crews moving his goods from town to town as the work progressed. Shortly after Fifer arrived, the Huntingtons closed up, leaving him alone in the general merchandise business. The Oregon Construction Company followed soon, with a stock of general merchandise, a blacksmith shop, the Pacific Hotel, several boarding houses and restaurants and a number of saloons.
In 1898, the Northwest Railroad Company began extending a short line down the Snake River
. It reached Homestead about 1910. This increased transportation at Huntington and gave an outlet for Eagle and Pine Valley fruits, cattle, lumber and ore. This line was flooded by water from Brownlee Dam
.
Huntington became the only incorporated city in Baker County on the Oregon Trail
in 1891 with Home Rule
Law.
Remnants of the Old Oregon Trail can still be seen today when one is traveling north from Farewell Bend State Recreation Area
toward the town of Huntington on U.S. Route 30
.
Evidence of the hardships and tragedies of the pioneer movement still exists: a small iron cross, visible from Route 30, marks the location where Snake River Shoshone
Indians killed a number of emigrants in 1860.
At the turn of the 19th century, Huntington developed a reputation as "Sin City", a rugged frontier town having its share of saloons, Chinese opium dens, and gunslingers.
Governor Oswald West
was motivated to clean up the city, along with the community of Copperfield
, in 1912-1914.
The first ransom bill from the 1935 George Weyerhaeuser Kidnapping
turned up in Huntington.
, the city has a total area of 0.7 square miles (1.8 km²), all land.
Huntington is across the Snake River
from the westernmost point
of Idaho
.
of 2000, there were 515 people, 232 households, and 150 families residing in the city. The population density
was 700.8 people per square mile (272.4/km²). There were 301 housing units at an average density of 409.6 per square mile (159.2/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 97.67% White, 0.39% African American, 0.97% Native American, and 0.97% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.14% of the population.
There were 232 households out of which 21.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.9% were married couples
living together, 6.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.3% were non-families. 31.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.22 and the average family size was 2.73.
In the city the population was spread out with 22.3% under the age of 18, 5.4% from 18 to 24, 21.6% from 25 to 44, 27.2% from 45 to 64, and 23.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 46 years. For every 100 females there were 113.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 105.1 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $25,132, and the median income for a family was $30,781. Males had a median income of $27,500 versus $22,083 for females. The per capita income
for the city was $13,396. About 10.7% of families and 17.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 30.8% of those under age 18 and 9.8% of those age 65 or over.
Baker County, Oregon
Baker County is a county located in the U.S. state of Oregon. It is included in the 8 county definition of Eastern Oregon. It is named for Edward Dickinson Baker, a senator from Oregon who was killed at Ball's Bluff, a battle of the Civil War in Virginia in 1861. It was split from the eastern part...
, on the eastern border of Oregon
Oregon
Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It is located on the Snake River
Snake River
The Snake is a major river of the greater Pacific Northwest in the United States. At long, it is the largest tributary of the Columbia River, the largest North American river that empties into the Pacific Ocean...
and along Interstate 84 and U.S. Route 30. The population was 515 at the 2000 census.
History
Henry Miller settled in the area in August 1862. In 1870, Miller's Stagecoach Station was established before the coming of the Oregon Railway and Navigation Company rail line in 1884, and was platPlat
A plat in the U.S. is a map, drawn to scale, showing the divisions of a piece of land. Other English-speaking countries generally call such documents a cadastral map or plan....
ted in 1885 or 1886. It soon became the primary shipping point for the cattle country to the south. Miller built the Stage Tavern, known for many years as "Miller Station". It was on the overland route that had been established in the valley, and had become well known to all who traveled in pioneer days. According to Oregon Geographic Names
Oregon Geographic Names
Oregon Geographic Names is an authoritative compilation of the origin and meaning of place names in the U.S. state of Oregon. , the book is in its seventh edition and is compiled and edited by Lewis L. McArthur, who took over from his father, Lewis A. McArthur, as of the fourth edition...
, Huntington was named for J.B. and J.M. Huntington, brothers who purchased Miller's holdings in 1882.
The Huntingtons maintained a small trading post on their land. In 1884, the rails of the Oregon Short Line and the Oregon Railroad and Navigation Company
Oregon Railroad and Navigation Company
The Oregon Railroad and Navigation Company was a railroad that operated a rail network of of track running east from Portland, Oregon, United States to northeastern Oregon, northeastern Washington, and northern Idaho...
line were joined in Huntington. Since that time, Huntington has been an important railway division point. With the advent of the railroad came J.T. Fifer, who had been selling general merchandise to the construction crews moving his goods from town to town as the work progressed. Shortly after Fifer arrived, the Huntingtons closed up, leaving him alone in the general merchandise business. The Oregon Construction Company followed soon, with a stock of general merchandise, a blacksmith shop, the Pacific Hotel, several boarding houses and restaurants and a number of saloons.
In 1898, the Northwest Railroad Company began extending a short line down the Snake River
Snake River
The Snake is a major river of the greater Pacific Northwest in the United States. At long, it is the largest tributary of the Columbia River, the largest North American river that empties into the Pacific Ocean...
. It reached Homestead about 1910. This increased transportation at Huntington and gave an outlet for Eagle and Pine Valley fruits, cattle, lumber and ore. This line was flooded by water from Brownlee Dam
Brownlee Dam
Brownlee Dam is a hydroelectric earth fill embankment dam on the Snake River on the Idaho-Oregon border, in Hells Canyon . It impounds the Snake River in the long Brownlee Reservoir...
.
Huntington became the only incorporated city in Baker County on the Oregon Trail
Oregon Trail
The Oregon Trail is a historic east-west wagon route that connected the Missouri River to valleys in Oregon and locations in between.After 1840 steam-powered riverboats and steamboats traversing up and down the Ohio, Mississippi and Missouri rivers sped settlement and development in the flat...
in 1891 with Home Rule
Home rule
Home rule is the power of a constituent part of a state to exercise such of the state's powers of governance within its own administrative area that have been devolved to it by the central government....
Law.
Remnants of the Old Oregon Trail can still be seen today when one is traveling north from Farewell Bend State Recreation Area
Farewell Bend State Recreation Area
Farewell Bend State Recreation Area is a state park in Baker County, Oregon, United States, about northwest of Ontario. Farewell Bend was the last stop on the Oregon Trail along the Snake River where travelers could rest and water and graze their animals before the trail turned north through more...
toward the town of Huntington on U.S. Route 30
U.S. Route 30
U.S. Route 30 is an east–west main route of the system of United States Numbered Highways, with the highway traveling across the northern tier of the country. It is the third longest U.S. route, after U.S. Route 20 and U.S. Route 6. The western end of the highway is at Astoria, Oregon; the...
.
Evidence of the hardships and tragedies of the pioneer movement still exists: a small iron cross, visible from Route 30, marks the location where Snake River Shoshone
Shoshone
The Shoshone or Shoshoni are a Native American tribe in the United States with three large divisions: the Northern, the Western and the Eastern....
Indians killed a number of emigrants in 1860.
At the turn of the 19th century, Huntington developed a reputation as "Sin City", a rugged frontier town having its share of saloons, Chinese opium dens, and gunslingers.
Governor Oswald West
Oswald West
Oswald West was an American politician, a Democrat, who served most notably as the 14th Governor of Oregon. Called "Os West" by Oregon writer Stewart Holbrook, who described him as "by all odds the most brilliant governor Oregon ever had."- Early life and career :West was born in Ontario, Canada...
was motivated to clean up the city, along with the community of Copperfield
Copperfield, Oregon
Copperfield is a former town in Baker County, Oregon, United States, located on the west bank of the Snake River, near a place called The Oxbow.-Early history:...
, in 1912-1914.
The first ransom bill from the 1935 George Weyerhaeuser Kidnapping
George Weyerhaeuser kidnapping
The kidnapping of nine-year-old George Weyerhaeuser in 1935 shocked the city of Tacoma, Washington. The son of prominent lumberman J.P. Weyerhaeuser, George lived and eventually became Chairman of the Weyerhaeuser Company.-Background:...
turned up in Huntington.
Geography
According to the United States Census BureauUnited States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
, the city has a total area of 0.7 square miles (1.8 km²), all land.
Huntington is across the Snake River
Snake River
The Snake is a major river of the greater Pacific Northwest in the United States. At long, it is the largest tributary of the Columbia River, the largest North American river that empties into the Pacific Ocean...
from the westernmost point
Extreme points of U.S. states
Extreme points are portions of a region which are further north, south, east, or west than any other. This is a list of extreme points in U.S. states. - Footnotes :-See also:*Extreme points of the United States...
of Idaho
Idaho
Idaho is a state in the Rocky Mountain area of the United States. The state's largest city and capital is Boise. Residents are called "Idahoans". Idaho was admitted to the Union on July 3, 1890, as the 43rd state....
.
Climate
Demographics
As of the censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of 2000, there were 515 people, 232 households, and 150 families residing in the city. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 700.8 people per square mile (272.4/km²). There were 301 housing units at an average density of 409.6 per square mile (159.2/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 97.67% White, 0.39% African American, 0.97% Native American, and 0.97% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.14% of the population.
There were 232 households out of which 21.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.9% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
living together, 6.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.3% were non-families. 31.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.22 and the average family size was 2.73.
In the city the population was spread out with 22.3% under the age of 18, 5.4% from 18 to 24, 21.6% from 25 to 44, 27.2% from 45 to 64, and 23.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 46 years. For every 100 females there were 113.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 105.1 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $25,132, and the median income for a family was $30,781. Males had a median income of $27,500 versus $22,083 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...
for the city was $13,396. About 10.7% of families and 17.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 30.8% of those under age 18 and 9.8% of those age 65 or over.