Oregon Electric Railway

Origins of the Oregon Electric Railway

The run from Portland to Salem, and possibly even Eugene–and back, along the route of the new Oregon Electric Railway, was one of the symbols of the new economic explosion that has hit Oregon. Excitement still was in the Oregon air from the Lewis and Clark Exposition in Portland in 1905 that triggered these boom times. We hear about how the 21st century, will be the “Century of the Pacific.” The economies of the Pacific Rim countries are booming and Oregon is sharing in that upsurge. Learn More

Waconda, Hopmere and Quinaby Stations

Looking ahead as we leave Concomly, we find we are approaching Waconda, Hopmere, Quinaby and Chemawa. The Oregon Electric decided to use famous Indian names in locating the stations along its route. So how did Hopmere get in there? Well, that’s a story in itself, but first, we’ve got to get to Waconda. You are running through some of the richest farming land in one of the most productive valleys in the world. By the end of the 20th century, 125 marketable crops would be grown in Marion County, through which you are traveling. Learn More

Chemawa Station Heading To Salem

The next station on our route is Chemawa, although the little Oregon Electric station house is a half-mile west of Chemawa itself. We associate Chemawa with the Indian school which bears that name. The school was moved to Salem from Forest Grove in the 1880s. The campus was built on both sides of the Oregon & California Railroad track, later to become the Southern Pacific. Learn More

Arriving at Salem

As we make our way into Salem, we discover one of the reasons the Oregon Electric Railway was the most popular of the interurban lines. We are paralleling Broadway street, just a dirt road at this time. Our route will take us to the heart of the downtown area. At the time of the first Oregon Electric trains, all of Salem’s wide downtown streets were dirt. Actually, they were mud most of the year, much to the discomfort of Salem ladies, who had to lift their dresses to cross the streets, but not high enough to display the ankles, of course. Learn More

Salem To Independence

Your route south towards Eugene takes you out of Salem past the old paper mill, along Minto-Brown Island. The first station, two miles along the track, is Hazelau, now lost to history. It was named for the native German birthplace of a nearby landowner. The name of the next station, Croisan, is perpetuated as Croisan Creek. It was named for John Henry Croisan who came to Oregon on the Applegate Trail in 1846 and settled… Learn More

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This article originally appeared on the original Salem Online History site and has not been updated since 2006.