Oregon has been home to many indigenous nations for thousands of years. The first European traders, explorers, and settlers began exploring what is now Oregon's Pacific coast in the early to mid-16th century. As early as 1564, the Spanish began sending vessels northeast from the Philippines, riding the Kuroshio Current in a sweeping circular route across the northern part of the Pacific. In 1592, Juan de Fuca undertook detailed mapping and studies of ocean currents in the Pacific Northwest, including the Oregon coast as well as the strait now bearing his name. The Lewis and Clark Expedition traversed Oregon in the early 1800s, and the first permanent European settlements in Oregon were established by fur trappers and traders. In 1843, an autonomous government was formed in the Oregon Country, and the Oregon Territory was created in 1848. Oregon became the 33rd state of the U.S. on February 14, 1859.
Today, with 4.2 million people over 98,000 square miles (250,000 km2), Oregon is the ninth largest and 27th most populous U.S. state. The capital, Salem, is the third-most populous city in Oregon, with 175,535 residents. Portland, with 652,503, ranks as the 26th among U.S. cities. The Portland metropolitan area, which includes neighboring counties in Washington, is the 25th largest metro area in the nation, with a population of 2,512,859. Oregon is also one of the most geographically diverse states in the U.S., marked by volcanoes, abundant bodies of water, dense evergreen and mixed forests, as well as high deserts and semi-arid shrublands. At 11,249 feet (3,429 m), Mount Hood is the state's highest point. Oregon's only national park, Crater Lake National Park, comprises the caldera surrounding Crater Lake, the deepest lake in the U.S. The state is also home to the single largest organism in the world, Armillaria ostoyae, a fungus that runs beneath 2,200 acres (8.9 km2) of the Malheur National Forest. (Full article...)
Crater Lake National Park is a United States National Park whose primary feature is Crater Lake. It was established on May 22, 1902 as the fifth National Park in the U.S., and is Oregon's only National Park. The park encompasses Crater Lake's caldera, which rests in the remains of a destroyed volcano posthumously called Mount Mazama. About 400,000 years ago, Mazama began life as overlapping shield volcanoes. Over time, alternating layers of lava flows and pyroclastic flows built Mazama until it reached about 11000 feet (3400 m) in height. After a period of dormancy, Mazama became active again. Then, around 5700 BC, Mazama collapsed into itself during a tremendous volcanic eruption. The eruption formed a large caldera that was filled in about 740 years, forming a lake with a deep blue hue, known today as Crater Lake. The lake is 1,949 feet (594 m) deep at its deepest point which makes it the deepest lake in the U.S., the second-deepest in North America, and the ninth-deepest anywhere in the world. The caldera rim ranges in elevation from 7000 to 8000 feet (2100 to 2400 m). The USGS benchmarked elevation of the lake surface itself is 6178 ft (1883 m). The park covers 286 mi² (741 km²) with the highest point at Mount Scott. The lake is filled entirely from direct precipitation in the form of snow and rain.
Daniel Francis Fouts (born June 10, 1951) is a former American footballquarterback in the National Football League (NFL) for the San Diego Chargers from 1973 through 1987. A native of San Francisco, California, he would play college football at the University of Oregon in Eugene, Oregon. Fouts' father Bob was a long-time announcer for the San Francisco 49ers, and Dan was a ball boy for the team while growing up. Fouts was drafted into the NFL by the Chargers in the third round of the 1973 NFL Draft. In the NFL, he led the league four times in passing yards and was a 6-time Pro Bowl selection (1979-1983 & 1985), ending his career with over 40,000, the third player to surpass that landmark. Dan Fouts is one of only seven quarterbacks in NFL history who have achieved two consecutive (back-to-back) 30-touchdown passing seasons. His number 14 jersey is one of only two numbers retired by the San Diego Chargers. In 1999, he was ranked number 92 on The Sporting News list of the 100 Greatest Football Players. Fouts was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1993. Fouts' post-NFL career included a well-received commentator role on ABC's Monday Night Football, alongside famed MNF anchor Al Michaels and comedian Dennis Miller. He also served as a college football analyst alongside Brent Musberger and Keith Jackson.
... that Gus C. Moser served five 4-year terms in the Oregon State Senate, including two non-consecutive 2-year periods as senate president, to which post he was elected unanimously in 1917?
... that future state senator William T. Vinton was sent to jail for contempt of court when he refused to sign a city paving contract, but was later vindicated by an Oregon Supreme Court decision?
Aisles of packaged food in a Fred Meyerhypermarket in Portland, Oregon. A hypermarket is a combination of a supermarket and a department store, and the Fred Meyer chain is one of the pioneers of the hypermarket format in the United States. Kroger, which owns Fred Meyer, is the top grocery retailer and the third largest general retailer in the country.
One of the most important things the United States did in the aftermath of World War II was to help returning veterans with housing. In 1945, in my home state of Oregon, we established the Veterans Home Loan Program, which for over 60 years has provided more than 300,000 loans. This has changed the lives of Oregon veterans and revitalized communities.
Mount Jefferson is an inactive stratovolcano in the Cascade Volcanic Arc, the Cascade Range and is the second-highest mountain in Oregon. Situated in the far northeastern corner of Linn County about 60 miles (96 km) east of Corvallis, Jefferson is in a rugged wilderness and is thus one of the hardest volcanoes to reach in the Cascades (logging road 1044 does come within 4 miles (6 km) of the summit, however).
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