Oregon - #33, February 14, 1859

For the Beaver State - you get two flag images - because Oregon is the only state in the union that has something different on the reverse - an image of the beaver, the state animal!

They say that Virginia is for lovers - but Oregon was actually admitted to the Union on Valentine's Day, it must have been really loved by the US!

The state of Oregon was "discovered" by Spanish and English explorers in the 1500s and 1600s. Captain James Cook, while looking for the Northwest Passage charted some of the Oregon coastline in 1778. The Lewis and Clark expedition reached the Pacific Ocean from the Columbia River which traverses Oregon. Now, c'mon raise your hand if you have spent more time than you care to admit playing the Oregon Trail, which was one of the primary pioneer routes to the West. The state became prominent in the fur trade and John Jacob Astor's fur trading post, Astoria, was established in 1811. Today, Oregon is the leading producer of grass (the kind you walk on - not the kind you smoke), peppermint oil, and Christmas trees.  If one travels to Portland, you will find yourself in the US city with the most breweries in the country.

Oregon is a popular destination for Hollywood filmmakers as well - some of the movies filmed in Oregon include: Animal House, Free Willy, The General, The Goonies, Kindergarten Cop, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, and Stand By Me.

The current Governor of Oregon is Democrat John Kitzhaber. Both Senators for the state of Oregon are Democrats, Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley. The Congressional delegation has five members, all of which are Democrats but one.

• 1st District - Suzanne Bonamici (D)
• 2nd District - Greg Walden (R)
• 3rd District - Earl Blumenauer (D)
• 4th District - Peter DeFazio (D)
• 5th District - Kurt Schrader (D)

Facts

• State Capital - Salem
• Largest city - Portland
• Date of Admission - February 14, 1859
• Area - 98,381 sq mi (9th) 
• Population (2011 est.) - 3,871,859 (27th) 
• State Motto - "Alis Volat Propiis" "She Flies With Her Own Wings" 
• State Nickname - The Beaver State
• State animal - beaver
• State bird - Western meadowlark
• State fish - Chinook salmon
• State flower - Oregon grape
• State nut - hazelnut
• State tree - Douglas fir
• State University - The University of Oregon is the state's flagship liberal arts university, while Oregon State University is the state's leading research institution.  The state's largest enrollment is at Portland State University.
• Oregon State Archives 
• The Oregon Historical Society 

Links

• oregon.gov - the Official Website of the State of Oregon
• The Oregon Tourism site - Travel Oregon
• Wikipedia 
• 50states.com entry for Oregon
• InfoPlease entry for Oregon
• The Oregon Blue Book (official government manual)
• Census Quick facts on Oregon
• USDA Fact Sheet for Oregon

Prominent Oregonians - (here's a few lists to peruse, one and two)

• WWII Aviator Rex T. Barber, who shot down the plane carrying Admiral Yamamoto
• James Beard
• The Beaver Archivist and all around great guy - he works at a county archives in the Beaver State
• Author Raymond Carver
• Children's writer Beverly Cleary
• Progressive Era political cartoonist Homer Davenport
• Botanist (and individual for whom the state tree is named) David Douglas (Scottish by birth - but was on the Lewis and Clark expedition)
• Suffragist Abigail Scott Duniway
• Scientist and inventor Douglas Engelbart
• Matt Groening
• Oregon Political Pioneer LaFayette Grover (served as first Governor, Representative and Senator)
• Tonya Harding (wouldn't you have expected here to be from New Jersey?)
• Senator Mark O. Hatfield (trivia note - when in high school, acting out a mock Congress, I played Mark Hatfield)
• Actor Howard Hesseman (Dr. Johnny Fever!)
• Olympian Joni Huntley
• Nez Perce leader Chief Joseph
• Photojournalist David Kennerly
• Dave Kingman, baseball player
• Poet Edwin Markham (poet laureate of Oregon, 1923-1931)
• Author Phyllis McGinley
• Linus Pauling, the only individual to win two Nobel Prizes outright
• River Phoenix
• Actress Jane Powell
• NFL player and TV commentator Ahmad Rashad
• Journalist John Reed - you may have seen the Warren Beatty movie, Reds? That's the guy
• Although elected to Congress from Colorado, Pat Schroeder was born in Portland
• Tonight Show band leader Doc Severinsen
• Madam (yes, that kind of Madam) and Mayor (of Sausalito, CA) Sally Stanford
• Sally Struthers
• Dave Wiegand, professional Scrabble player & winner of the 2005 and 2009 National Scrabble championship