State of Oregon - Union County
Union County. Bounded north by Washington Territory,
east be the Territory of Idaho, south by Baker, and west
by Umatilla. Area 5,180 square miles. Assessed valuation
of property for 1874, $982,000. Population 3,500. County
seat. La Grande. Principal towns, Augusta, Cove, Gem
City, Island City, North Powder, Orodell, Sparta,
Summerville, and Union. This is one of the counties of
Eastern Oregon, and forms the extreme northeastern
portion of the State. It contains within its limits the
picturesque and fertile Grande Ronde Valley, comprising
an area of 288,000 acres, which for agricultural
purposes is unsurpassed by any equal area on the Pacific
Coast. All the fruits and vegetables of the temperate
climate are produced in perfection. About three-fourths
of the county consists of mountains and hills, the
former covered with forests of pine, larch and fir, and
the latter unsurpassed for pastoral purposes by any land
on the continent. Gold, silver, and copper exist in
paying quantities in many localities, and gold mines are
worked to a considerable extent. The main road from the
navigable waters of the Columbia to the mines of Idaho,
passes through the county. La Grande, in the Grande
Ronde, being on the route. The county is quite elevated,
but the climate is mild, the winters being dry, short
and quite cold, but the springs and falls are long and
pleasant, with frequent showers of rain. The Blue
Mountains are in the western part, and the Snake River,
a large navigable stream, forms the eastern boundary,
separating the county from Idaho.
Officers: E. C. Brainard, County Judge; R. S. Cates,
Clerk and Recorder; W. B. Laswell, District Attorney; J.
L. Curtis, Sheriff and Tax Collector; J. Hopper,
Treasurer; James Harris, Assessor; W. Skiff, Surveyor;
G. W. Webb, Coroner; S. S. Mitchel, Superintendent
Public Schools.
Pacific Coast Business Directory
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Oregon Territory Index
Oregon Directory and Gazetteer
Source: Pacific Coast Business
Directory for 1876-78, Compiled by Henry G. Langley, San
Francisco, 1875.
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