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Oregon State Archives

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United States
Salem, OR
Oregon State Archives

Find us at https://sos.oregon.gov/archives and on Instagram at .

Provides access to the permanently valuable records of Oregon government and also publishes the Oregon Blue Book and Oregon Administrative Rules.

05/26/2026

Named for the largest river of the Pacific northwest, Columbia County is bordered by 62 miles of its namesake waterway. In fact, the county touches a longer stretch of the river than any other in the state. Here, the mountains of the Coast Range rise sharply over the lower Columbia, offering panoramas of the snow-capped peaks in Oregon and Washington. The county seat is even named St Helens, owing to its view of the nearby volcano across the river.

(Oregon State Archives Scenic Images: Mt. Hood and the Columbia River from St. Helens, 2017; A canal on Honeyman Road, 2017; The Beaver Falls waterfall on Beaver Creek along Beaver Falls Road, 2021; Mt. Rainier from a hill on Highway 47, 2017)

05/25/2026

The Oregon Secretary of State's office is closed today in recognition of Memorial Day. We will return tomorrow with our regular business hours. You can reach us by email at oregon.sos@sos.oregon.gov or by phone at 503-986-1523.

04/30/2026

We're looking for the next great cover of the OREGON BLUE BOOK! Today we begin the 2027-2028 Oregon Blue Book Cover Photo Contest. From now through October 31st, amateur photographers who live in Oregon can submit their images for consideration. We encourage photographers of all ages to participate.

Visit the Blue Book website to learn more about how to enter the contest. https://sos.oregon.gov/blue-book/Pages/about-contest.aspx

(Oregon Blue Book Cover Photos: 2025-2026: “The Many Sides of Oregon,” taken at the John Day Fossil Beds National Monument by Matt Straite of Keizer; 2023-2024: “Morning Magnificence,” taken at the Columbia Gorge near Rowena Crest by Micah Lundstedt of Eugene; 2021-2022: “Whaleshead Beach under the Stars,” taken near Brookings by Nomeca Hartwell of Grants Pass.)

04/15/2026

Josephine County in southwestern Oregon is remarkable for its distinctive geology and ecology. Situated in the rugged Siskiyou mountains, the county features marble cave systems, rare serpentine soils, and was once a site of gold placer mines. Sitting at the crossroads of ecological zones, Josephine County’s warm weather and moderate precipitation also supports a diverse mixture of plants and animals from western Oregon and California, as well as the Great Basin to the east.

(Oregon State Archives Scenic Images: The view of the Illinois River from Illinois River Road, 2018; Cattle in a field along Williams Highway, 2018; Rapids where a stream meets Sucker Creek near the Grayback Campground along Highway 46 in the Oregon Caves National Monument and Preserve, 2019; and The view from Big Tree Trail at Oregon Caves National Monument, 2018)

04/10/2026

An additional 16,000 names of individuals committed to the Oregon State Hospital have been added to the searchable records index on our website. OSH is Oregon’s longest operating institution for mental health treatment, and the State Archives holds the hospital’s historic records which date from its founding up to the mid-20th century. Visit our website to search by name on the Oregon Historical Records Index: https://secure.sos.state.or.us/ohri/search.action

Records can be requested via our online form: https://sos.oregon.gov/archives/Pages/order.aspx. Contact us at [email protected] or 503-373-0701 (option 1).

(Images: West facade of the Oregon State Hospital, 2011, Wikimedia Commons image; Oregon State Hospital, 1892, Courtesy of Oregon State Library)

03/16/2026

Harney County in southeastern Oregon’s high desert is bigger than six US states. It is the largest county in Oregon by area at 10,226 square miles, but is so sparsely populated that it has the lowest population density of any county. Cattle outnumber people over 10-to-1 in this rural county, though it is also important ecologically, home to both the Malheur Wildlife Refuge and the Steens Mountain Wilderness Area.

(Oregon State Archives photos, scenic image collection. Photo 1: U.S. Highway 395 north of Wagontire, 2018; Photo 2: Rimrock along Highway 205 north of Frenchglen, 2017; Photo 3: The Donner und Blitzen River at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge along Central Patrol Road, 2017; Photo 4: The view from near the East Rim Viewpoint on Steens Mountain along North Loop Road, 2017.)

03/04/2026

First lit in 1894, the lighthouse on Heceta Head near Florence is the brightest light on the Oregon Coast, visible 21 miles out to sea. It is one of nine surviving historic lighthouses in the state. Besides the tower and its two kerosine storage buildings, there was a nearby house for the head light keeper, and one for the two assistant light keepers and their families. The 56-foot tower was electrified and automated in the 1960s, and eventually passed to the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department which manages it as the Heceta Head Lighthouse State Scenic Viewpoint.

These photos, taken in 1937 and 2009, show the changes to the lighthouse and Heceta Head over time. Today, the site is open to visitors year round who want to see a piece of Oregon’s maritime history in operation for over 100 years.

(Oregon State Archives Photos: Oregon Highway Department collection and Scenic Image collection)

02/25/2026

Oregon’s original 1857 Constitution Bill of Rights included specific provisions to prohibit Black people from owning property, making contracts or even residing in the state. This was one of several constitutional sections designed by white settlers to keep people of color out of Oregon and limit the rights of those already here.
The provisions were not enforced and were quickly invalidated by the 14th and 15th Amendments to the U.S. Constitution. But these and other “Black exclusion laws” remained on the books for decades after. Although much of the racial exclusion clauses were repealed in 1926, Oregon voters didn’t remove all the Constitution’s historical racial references until 2002.
Since the exclusion laws and their repeal (including laws outlawing Black suffrage) were decided through the referendum and initiative process, we can track the history of Oregon voters’ opinions of Black exclusion laws and voting restrictions.
These graphs show the votes cast in statewide elections to enact and then repeal exclusionary language in the Oregon Constitution’s Bill of Rights. We can also see the effort to repeal the prohibition of Black suffrage in Article 2.

02/20/2026

On this day in 1893, the Oregon Legislature created Lincoln County from portions of Benton, Polk, and Tillamook Counties. In its early years the area’s harbors, estuaries, and forested mountains made it a center for fishing and timber industries. Today’s Lincoln County is a destination for coastal tourism, drawing thousands of Oregonians to its beaches, marinas, amenities, and natural areas every year. To mark the day, we’re sharing a few photos from up and down the county’s coast, all pulled from the scenic image collection.

(Oregon State Archives photos, image 1: The Port of Newport marina at Yaquina Bay, 2022; image 2: Ocean waves crash onto rocks at Yachats State Park in Yachats, 2016; image 3: The coastline along Otter Crest Loop, 2013; image 4: Sunset at Beverly Beach and Spencer Creek, 2016.)

02/19/2026

This week marks the passing of Senator Avel Louise Gordly (1947-2026), the first Black woman elected to the Oregon Senate. Born and raised in a predominantly Black neighborhood in northeast Portland, she is remembered as an activist and community organizer before being elected in 1992 to represent her home district in the state legislature. In 1996, then-Representative Gordly was elected to the Senate where she served until 2009. During her political career, Senator Gordly focused on mental health, environmental and social justice, as well as cultural competency in education. She sponsored Senate Joint Resolution 31 in 2001, which recognized Juneteenth in Oregon. Senator Gordly was also the chief petitioner for 2002’s Ballot Measure 14, which officially removed racially discriminatory language from the state constitution.

After Senator Gordly retired from public service, she became an associate professor in the Black studies Department of her alma mater, Portland State University. In 2011 she published her memoir, Remembering the Power of Words, and in 2017, Senator Gordly was awarded an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters by PSU. Her childhood home on North Williams Avenue was turned into the Gordly Burch Center for Black Leadership and Civic Engagement. The center works to preserve the history of Black leaders and movements in Oregon, and to encourage more Black Oregonians to run for office, participate on boards and commissions and engage in civic life.

Address

800 Summer Street NE
Salem, OR
97301

Opening Hours

Monday	8am - 4:45pm
Tuesday	8am - 4:45pm
Wednesday	8am - 4:45pm
Thursday	8am - 4:45pm
Friday	8am - 4:45pm

Telephone

+15033730701

Website

http://sos.oregon.gov/archives

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