Nyssa, Oregon
Encyclopedia
Nyssa is a city in Malheur County
, Oregon
, United States
. The population was 3,163 at the 2000 census. The city is located along the Snake River
on the Idaho
border, in the region of far eastern Oregon known as the "Treasure Valley
". It is part of the Ontario
, OR–ID Micropolitan Statistical Area
.
The primary industry in the region is agriculture
, including the cultivation of Russet potato
es, sugar beet
s, onion
s, corn
, flower seed, mint
, and wheat
. The city's economy relies on the surrounding agricultural area with its several large onion and potato packaging plants.
. Northern Paiute
and Cayuse
frequented the area but had difficulty living in the relatively harsh climate. The original Fort Boise
, established in the 1830s, is nearby to the southeast. The city was originally a shipping center for sheep and stock on the Union Pacific's main trunk line.
Experiments with growing sugar beet
s were begun in 1935 by R. H. Tallman, the Idaho district manager of the Amalgamated Sugar Company
. Successful yields led to the first Amalgamated-designed and built factory, which began operation on October 9, 1938. The factory was located at 43.875298°N 116.990629°W, on both the Union Pacific Railroad
lines and along U.S. Route 20
.
Near the end of World War II
, a branch camp for German
and Italian prisoners of war from Camp Rupert
, near Buhl, Idaho
, was established. Those POWs helped with the sugar beet industry, typically through thinning
and harvesting.
From 1936 until 2005, the Amalgamated Sugar Company (White Satin brand) owned and operated a sugar-processing plant that served as the city's main source of commerce. The closing of the plant resulted in the loss of 600 seasonal jobs.
, the city has a total area of 1.1 square miles (2.8 km²), all land.
of 2000, there were 3,163 people, 1,018 households, and 761 families residing in the city. The population density
was 2,772.6 people per square mile (1,071.3/km²). There were 1,099 housing units at an average density of 963.4 per square mile (372.2/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 56.50% White, 0.41% African American, 0.79% Native American, 1.01% Asian, 0.09% Pacific Islander, 38.22% from other races
, and 2.97% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 57.19% of the population.
There were 1,018 households out of which 43.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.5% were married couples
living together, 13.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.2% were non-families. 20.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.11 and the average family size was 3.61.
In the city the population was spread out with 35.7% under the age of 18, 9.5% from 18 to 24, 25.8% from 25 to 44, 17.2% from 45 to 64, and 11.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 29 years. For every 100 females there were 99.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.0 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $27,372, and the median income for a family was $28,919. Males had a median income of $26,731 versus $20,667 for females. The per capita income
for the city was $10,317. About 19.9% of families and 23.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 28.2% of those under age 18 and 15.6% of those age 65 or over.
Malheur County, Oregon
Malheur County is a county located in the southeast corner of the U.S. state of Oregon. It is included in the eight-county definition of Eastern Oregon. Most of the county observes the Mountain Time Zone, although the southern quarter of the county observes the Pacific Time Zone along with the...
, 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...
. The population was 3,163 at the 2000 census. The city is located along 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...
on the 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....
border, in the region of far eastern Oregon known as the "Treasure Valley
Treasure Valley
The Treasure Valley is the area of the Western United States where the Payette, Boise, Weiser, Malheur, Owyhee, and Burnt rivers drain into the Snake River. Treasure Valley includes all the lowland areas from Vale, Oregon on the west to Boise, Idaho on the east. Formerly, the valley had been known...
". It is part of the Ontario
Ontario, Oregon
Ontario is the largest city in Malheur County, Oregon, United States. It lies along the Snake River at the Idaho border. The population was 10,985 at the 2000 census, with an estimated population of 11,245 in 2006...
, OR–ID Micropolitan Statistical Area
Ontario micropolitan area
The Ontario Micropolitan Statistical Area, as defined by the United States Census Bureau, is an area consisting of two counties – one in southeastern Oregon and one in southwestern Idaho, anchored by the city of Ontario....
.
The primary industry in the region is agriculture
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
, including the cultivation of Russet potato
Russet Burbank potato
The Russet Burbank potato is a large brown-skinned, white-fleshed cultivar of potato. Luther Burbank developed the Burbank potato in Lunenburg, Massachusetts, U.S., in the early 1870s. In 1875, Burbank sold his farm and the rights to his potato, and moved to Santa Rosa, California...
es, sugar beet
Sugar beet
Sugar beet, a cultivated plant of Beta vulgaris, is a plant whose tuber contains a high concentration of sucrose. It is grown commercially for sugar production. Sugar beets and other B...
s, onion
Onion
The onion , also known as the bulb onion, common onion and garden onion, is the most widely cultivated species of the genus Allium. The genus Allium also contains a number of other species variously referred to as onions and cultivated for food, such as the Japanese bunching onion The onion...
s, corn
Maize
Maize known in many English-speaking countries as corn or mielie/mealie, is a grain domesticated by indigenous peoples in Mesoamerica in prehistoric times. The leafy stalk produces ears which contain seeds called kernels. Though technically a grain, maize kernels are used in cooking as a vegetable...
, flower seed, mint
Mentha
Mentha is a genus of flowering plants in the family Lamiaceae . The species are not clearly distinct and estimates of the number of species varies from 13 to 18. Hybridization between some of the species occurs naturally...
, and wheat
Wheat
Wheat is a cereal grain, originally from the Levant region of the Near East, but now cultivated worldwide. In 2007 world production of wheat was 607 million tons, making it the third most-produced cereal after maize and rice...
. The city's economy relies on the surrounding agricultural area with its several large onion and potato packaging plants.
History
The area surrounding the city was originally inhabited by Native AmericansNative Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
. Northern Paiute
Paiute
Paiute refers to three closely related groups of Native Americans — the Northern Paiute of California, Idaho, Nevada and Oregon; the Owens Valley Paiute of California and Nevada; and the Southern Paiute of Arizona, southeastern California and Nevada, and Utah.-Origin of name:The origin of...
and Cayuse
Cayuse
The Cayuse are a Native American tribe in the state of Oregon in the United States. The Cayuse tribe shares a reservation in northeastern Oregon with the Umatilla and the Walla Walla tribes as part of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation...
frequented the area but had difficulty living in the relatively harsh climate. The original Fort Boise
Fort Boise
Fort Boise refers to two different locations in southwestern Idaho. The first was a Hudson's Bay Company trading post near the Snake River on the Oregon border, dating from the era when Idaho was part of the fur company's Columbia District. After several rebuilds, it was ultimately abandoned in...
, established in the 1830s, is nearby to the southeast. The city was originally a shipping center for sheep and stock on the Union Pacific's main trunk line.
Experiments with growing sugar beet
Sugar beet
Sugar beet, a cultivated plant of Beta vulgaris, is a plant whose tuber contains a high concentration of sucrose. It is grown commercially for sugar production. Sugar beets and other B...
s were begun in 1935 by R. H. Tallman, the Idaho district manager of the Amalgamated Sugar Company
Amalgamated Sugar Company
The Amalgamated Sugar Company is a sugar beet refining company run on a cooperative basis. It was founded in 1897 in Logan, Utah, and is now located in Nampa, Idaho, United States. The company markets its sugar under the White Satin brand.-Founding:...
. Successful yields led to the first Amalgamated-designed and built factory, which began operation on October 9, 1938. The factory was located at 43.875298°N 116.990629°W, on both the Union Pacific Railroad
Union Pacific Railroad
The Union Pacific Railroad , headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska, is the largest railroad network in the United States. James R. Young is president, CEO and Chairman....
lines and along U.S. Route 20
U.S. Route 20 in Oregon
U.S. Route 20 in Oregon is a major east–west cross-state highway, especially east of the Cascade Mountains. It connects U.S. Route 101 in Newport on the central Oregon Coast to the Idaho state line east of Nyssa.- Route description :...
.
Near the end of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, a branch camp for German
Germans
The Germans are a Germanic ethnic group native to Central Europe. The English term Germans has referred to the German-speaking population of the Holy Roman Empire since the Late Middle Ages....
and Italian prisoners of war from Camp Rupert
Camp Rupert
Camp Rupert was a World War II prisoner of war camp near Paul, Idaho. It was built for $1.5 million, which was everything needed for a city of 3,000: barracks, water, sewer, and a hospital. The first POWs were Italian and were received in May 1944...
, near Buhl, Idaho
Buhl, Idaho
Buhl is a city located on the old Oregon Trail in the western half of Twin Falls County, Idaho, United States. The population was 4,037 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Twin Falls, Idaho Micropolitan Statistical Area....
, was established. Those POWs helped with the sugar beet industry, typically through thinning
Thinning
Thinning is a term used in agricultural sciences to mean the removal of some plants, or parts of plants, to make room for the growth of others.- Forestry :...
and harvesting.
From 1936 until 2005, the Amalgamated Sugar Company (White Satin brand) owned and operated a sugar-processing plant that served as the city's main source of commerce. The closing of the plant resulted in the loss of 600 seasonal jobs.
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 1.1 square miles (2.8 km²), all land.
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 3,163 people, 1,018 households, and 761 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 2,772.6 people per square mile (1,071.3/km²). There were 1,099 housing units at an average density of 963.4 per square mile (372.2/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 56.50% White, 0.41% African American, 0.79% Native American, 1.01% Asian, 0.09% Pacific Islander, 38.22% from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, and 2.97% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 57.19% of the population.
There were 1,018 households out of which 43.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.5% 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, 13.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.2% were non-families. 20.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.11 and the average family size was 3.61.
In the city the population was spread out with 35.7% under the age of 18, 9.5% from 18 to 24, 25.8% from 25 to 44, 17.2% from 45 to 64, and 11.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 29 years. For every 100 females there were 99.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.0 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $27,372, and the median income for a family was $28,919. Males had a median income of $26,731 versus $20,667 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 $10,317. About 19.9% of families and 23.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 28.2% of those under age 18 and 15.6% of those age 65 or over.