State of Oregon - Multnomah County

Multnomah County. Bounded north by the Columbia River, separating it from Washington Territory; east by Wasco; south by Clackamas; and west by Washington County. Area, 400 square miles. Assessed valuation of property for 1873, $10,804,662. Population, 15,000. County seat, Portland. Principal towns: East Portland, Sandy, and Springville. This, although the smallest, is the wealthiest County of Oregon, comprising within its limits the city of Portland, the commercial metropolis of the State, and the country bordering on the Columbia, The commercial advantages it possesses gives Multnomah its chief importance. The mighty Columbia flows in majestic grandeur along the northern border, and the Willamette, with its deep channel, admits the great ships and steamers from the ocean. Far to the south spreads the broad valley of the last named river, one of the most fertile and productive of the world, giving to Oregon its wealth and celebrity, and destined to be the garden of the West when the infinite resources of the Pacific Coast shall have been developed, the commerce of the great ocean governed by the principal cities, and the millions of population it is capable of supporting are gathered on its shores. This county is the entrepot of this great section, and a prosperous future awaits it. The Willamette enters the Columbia by several mouths, and large islands of unsurpassed fertility are enclosed by the waters of the two rivers. Among these are Sauvie Island, in the delta of the Willamette, Haydens, Swan, Ross, and others, in the Columbia, generally subject to overflow. The valley of the Columbia, in the limits of this county, for some 26 miles in length, and from one to three in breadth, together with the islands and the bottom lands of the Willamette, are, in their present condition, well adapted to grazing purposes, and In this region are the finest dairies of the State. The annual overflows constantly renew the richness of the soil, and heavy crops of hay, or of whatever may have been planted, are removed year after year without exhaustion. There are high lands within these bottoms, called hardback ridges, which are not subject to overflow, and where the farmers can harvest from forty to sixty bushels of wheat, and from sixty to ninety bushels of oats to the acre. Root crops are produced in equal abundance. The climate is mild and temperate, the cold being seldom so severe as to interfere with the navigation of the river. The county contains more manufactories than any other section of the State, which are encouraged by the cheapness of raw material and the great facilities for transportation. Churches and schools are maintained most liberally, and the most comfortable and pleasant homes are established.

Officers: J. H. Woodward, County Judge; George L. Story, Clerk; H. Y. Thompson, District Attorney; E. J. Jeffrey, Sheriff, and Tax Collector; F. Harbaugh, Treasurer; O. M. Barnard, Assessor; C. W. Burrage, Surveyor; J. H. Wetmore, Coroner; T. L. Eliot, Superintendent Public Schools.

Pacific Coast Business Directory | Oregon Territory Index

Oregon Directory and Gazetteer

Source: Pacific Coast Business Directory for 1876-78, Compiled by Henry G. Langley, San Francisco, 1875.