Oregon Trivia & Tidbits
Looking for Oregon trivia? Try our list Oregon little know facts, tidbits and trivia.
—When astronaut Stuart Roosa traveled to the moon on Apollo 14 in 1971, more than 400 seeds went with him in his personal property kit, including Douglas fir seeds from Corvallis (pop. 49,322). One of those seeds is now a “Moon Tree” on the grounds of the state Capitol in Salem. The tree was planted on Arbor Day, April 30, 1976, by Gov. Bob Straub.
first appeared: 5/4/2008
—In 2002, kayaker Tim Gross set a world record for the highest waterfall plunge in a kayak when he dropped over the 101-foot Abiqua Falls near Silverton (pop. 7,414)—although he parted company with his kayak at the bottom, forcing him to swim. David Grove ran the 101-foot Metlako Falls near Bonneville Dam in 2004, and managed to stay in his kayak.
first appeared: 3/9/2008
—From 1915 to 1975, the Kennedy School in Portland operated as an elementary school. Today, the schoolhouse houses McMenamins, a hotel that preserves the school’s original blackboards and cloakrooms and features modern amenities such as private bathrooms and Internet access. The hotel also has a movie theater, soaking pool, brewery, restaurant and several bars.
first appeared: 2/24/2008
Located 12 miles northwest of Sutherlin (pop. 6,669) on a site that was likely an American Indian camping and fishing ground, a tree known as the Hinds walnut stands about 103 feet high. As one of Oregon’s heritage trees, the walnut, which is not native to the state, is believed to be more than 250 years old, predating the area’s pioneer settlement.
first appeared: 2/24/2008
—Students at Clackamas High School in Clackamas (pop. 5,177) learn about protecting the environment in class and outside, too. They get involved with projects such as monitoring the health of the nearby wetlands, removing invasive plant species, recycling and collecting trash. The school also incorporates environmentally friendly features such as solar power.
first appeared: 2/10/2008
—As many as 37,000 different kinds of bacteria—some of which haven’t been seen before—have been found on an underwater volcano named Axial Seamount, located off the Oregon coast. Scientists from the Marine Biological Laboratory in Woods Hole, Mass., and the University of Washington studied two hydrothermal vents on the ocean floor where warm liquids from the Earth’s crust meet cold seawater.
first appeared: 1/27/2008
—In 2006, Rachael Scdoris became the first legally blind dogsled racer to complete Alaska’s Iditarod, considered one of the world’s toughest dogsled races. Scdoris, who hails from Bend (pop. 52,029), learned to race as a child from her father, musher Jerry Scdoris. She raced the Iditarod with a visual interpreter authorized by organizers to help her navigate.
first appeared: 1/13/2008
—Memaloose State Park near The Dalles (pop. 12,156) is named for nearby Memaloose Island in the Columbia River. Chinook Indian tribes once used the island as a final resting place for their dead, prompting explorers Meriwether Lewis and William Clark to name it Sepulchar (or Sepulcher) Island in 1805. Memaloose comes from the Chinook language and means “land of the dead.”
first appeared: 12/30/2007
—In August 1999, kayaker Tao Berman dropped over the edge of Upper Johnston Canyon Falls, a waterfall in Canada’s Banff National Park that cascades 98 feet into a narrow canyon. The feat earned Berman, a native of Ashland (pop. 19,522), a new world record for the longest vertical drop in a kayak.
first appeared: 12/2/2007
—The Joseph Canyon Viewpoint is part of Nez Perce National Historical Park, a collection of 38 sites across Idaho, Montana, Oregon and Washington. The recently restored RimRock Inn Restaurant, near Enterprise (pop. 1,895), perches on a site overlooking the canyon not far from the viewpoint, offering dining, camping in authentic tepees, and recreational-vehicle sites from May through November.
first appeared: 11/18/2007
—Designated in 1907 as the first National Wildlife Refuge west of the Mississippi River, Three Arch Rocks totals just 15 acres, but supports one of the state’s largest seabird nesting colonies. Located offshore near Oceanside (pop. 326), the refuge is home to more than 230,000 birds seasonally, including common murres, fork-tailed storm-petrels and tufted puffins, and also is a pupping site for Steller sea lions.
first appeared: 11/4/2007
The sole survivor of 21 Columbia River Gorge inns from the 1920s reopened earlier this year. Built in 1924 by Oregon architect Carl Linde, The View Point Inn, located in Corbett along the Columbia River Historic Highway, once hosted Charlie Chaplin, Franklin D. Roosevelt and European royalty. Today, the Tudor Arts and Crafts-style building features a restaurant, five suites and dramatic views.
first appeared: 11/4/2007
—The first new full-service state park in more than 30 years, L.L. “Stub” Stewart State Park opened this summer west of Portland. The 1,654-acre park features hiking, biking and horseback riding trails, including part of the state hiking trail between Banks (pop. 1,286) and Vernonia (pop. 2,228). Businessman and state legislator Loran L. “Stub” Stewart (1911-2005) was a longtime supporter of Oregon parks.
first appeared: 10/21/2007
—A giant sequoia that stands some 129 feet tall in front of the Queen of Angels Monastery in Mount Angel (pop. 3,121) was named an Oregon Heritage Tree in 2004, when it was 111 years old. The tree was found in 1893 as a seedling along nearby railroad tracks by Sister Protasia Schindler, who replanted it in front of the Benedictine Sisters’ monastery.
first appeared: 10/7/2007
—When Frenchman Emmanuel Coindre arrived in Coos Bay (pop. 15,374) on Nov. 1, 2005, he had spent 129 days rowing solo up to 18 hours daily in a 21-foot-long kayak. Coindre intended to land in San Francisco, Calif., but rough water forced a change of destination for his 5,600-mile journey across the Pacific Ocean from Choshi, Japan.
first appeared: 9/30/2007
Dave Husted of Milwaukie (pop. 20,490) was inducted into the Professional Bowlers Association Hall of Fame in 1996. Husted was the first three-time U.S. Open winner, and—with his wins in 1982, 1995 and 1996—the first bowler to win two U.S. Opens consecutively. A right-handed bowler, Husted also earned the Steve Nagy Sportsmanship Award in 1988 and 1989.
first appeared: 9/30/2007
—The Cove Palisades State Park, near Culver (pop. 802), is located on Lake Billy Chinook, which was created by the construction of Round Butte Dam in 1964. The lake is named for a Wasco Indian who guided explorer John Fremont in the area in 1843, while the park got its name from the tall, column-like formations in the cliffs around the lake.
Each September, The Cove Palisades State Park hosts Lake Billy Chinook Day, a volunteer cleanup and festival. The cleanup, which includes garbage collection and erosion control, is part of an annual effort coordinated by Clean Up the World, an Australia-based organization whose partners carry out environmental projects worldwide.
first appeared: 9/9/2007
—In 1991, cowboy Wade Leslie scored the first perfect ride in bull-riding history when he rode “Wolfman” for a perfect score of 100 points—50 for the bull’s performance, and 50 for the rider’s form—in Central Point (pop. 12,493). Wolfman was the 1991 National Finals Rodeo Bucking Bull of the Year, and was retired in 1998 at the NFR’s opening ceremonies.
first appeared: 8/26/2007
—Witness Tree Vineyard, in the Eola Hills grape-growing area northwest of Salem, is named for an ancient oak tree that towers over the vineyard. The tree, used as a surveyor’s landmark in 1854, marked the northwest corner of the original Donation Land Claim No. 51, according to the winery, which produces estate-bottled pinot noir and chardonnay wines.
first appeared: 8/12/2007
—Geothermal energy heats a number of downtown buildings in Klamath Falls (pop. 19,462), plus about 60,000 square feet of sidewalks to keep them clear of winter snowfall. Constructed in the early 1980s to serve 14 buildings, the district heating system uses the earth’s natural warmth to heat water that’s piped to where it’s needed. Today, an upgraded system heats about two dozen structures.
first appeared: 7/29/2007
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