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Here comes 150: Oregon’s birthday brings a year-long celebration
By Jessica Musicar, Staff Writer
Sunday, January 11, 2009 | No comments posted.
If it were your birthday, you’d probably want to celebrate it by eating your favorite meal, taking in a show and seeing all your friends. It’s no different for Oregon’s 150th birthday, except the state gets to party all year long.
In Coos County, a variety of groups have a googolplex of plans to honor the state’s Sesquicentennial on Feb. 14 , from cracking open piles of fresh Dungeness crab while wearing a party hat to reading the works of Oregon writers with fellow patrons of Coos County libraries. Even the South Coast’s annual festivals — North Bend’s July Jubilee, the Blackberry Arts Festival and the Bay Area Funfest — will have a 150 theme.
“There are a million different ways people can get involved in the Oregon 150,” said Katherine Hoppe, the director of promotion and conventions for the Coos Bay-North Bend Visitor & Convention Bureau. “It’s a celebration of being an Oregonian. It’s a celebration of what we’ve been and what we’ll become and it’s a recognition of how lucky we are to live here.”
Admittedly, some of the party plans are pretty rough, but as the 150th hour approaches, Hoppe said she has faith that Coos County will do it up right.
“Oregonians have a spirit of working together and I have no doubt you’ll see a lot of wonderful celebrations,” Hoppe said.
The South Coast events kick off at the Coquille Community Center on Jan. 17 with the fourth-annual Chocolate Fantasy, where people can commemorate the state’s birthday with all the chocolate they can eat.
How ’bout some crab? The annual Charleston Crab Feed, which happens to share the same date as Oregon’s official birthday, will get crab munchers thinking about what it means to be an Oregonian. The “casually rowdy” event celebrates the sesquicentennial with birthday hats, candles and anyone who dresses up like an Oregon pioneer might be chased by a Charleston wild woman, said Mel Campbell, the coordinator of the Charleston Visitors and Information Center. She noted this will be the 24th-annual crab feed, which is always held on the second Saturday in February, but the event truly began about 50 years ago.
“I think it’s a good representation of Oregon’s pride in its wonderful bounties, the ocean, all the good things we have to share,” Campbell said.
Hoppe said some potential ways to build in the 150 theme is for events to showcase 150 musicians, display 150 pieces of art, feature an Oregon birthday party or include a past versus present point of view.
“The 150 campaign is not just about celebrating Oregon’s history. It’s also looking forward to the future,” Hoppe said.
Barb Dunham, who oversees the North Bend Visitor Center and helps coordinate July Jubilee, said the event committee will meet this month to discuss how they’ll combine North Bend and Oregon’s birthdays.
Coos Bay’s Economic and Community Development Manager Joyce Jansen said the city will incorporate 150 into its Fourth of July in the Park event and may ask for 150 participants in the Mayor’s Firecracker Run.
“We’re trying to be creative,” she said in an e-mail.
She noted that the Coos Bay Downtown Association will participate in the Take Care of Oregon Day, a clean up project that is part of the birthday celebration.
The South Slough Estuarine Research Reserve plans to dive into the festivities with its local fauna, said Deborah Rudd, the slough’s public involvement coordinator. This summer she hopes to hold a search for the hairy triton, the state shell (mollusk). It’s intended to be a fun event that asks participants to either photograph the snail, try to find the biggest one possible or discover as many as they can find.
The Coos Historical & Maritime Museum will be working with The World to provide a number of 150-themed photos and features. Collections Manager Vicki Wiese said there also will be exhibits at the North Bend museum specific to the state’s birthday.
“I’ve got lots of ideas but I need to get them approved before I can do them,” she said.
There’s so much in the works, including events most 150 organizers may not be aware of, Hoppe said.
Organizers say one of the best ways to read about others’ ideas and get some publicity is to register events on the Oregon150 Web site, http://www.oregon150.org.
— Staff Writer Jolene Guzman contributed to this story.
In Coos County, a variety of groups have a googolplex of plans to honor the state’s Sesquicentennial on Feb. 14 , from cracking open piles of fresh Dungeness crab while wearing a party hat to reading the works of Oregon writers with fellow patrons of Coos County libraries. Even the South Coast’s annual festivals — North Bend’s July Jubilee, the Blackberry Arts Festival and the Bay Area Funfest — will have a 150 theme.
“There are a million different ways people can get involved in the Oregon 150,” said Katherine Hoppe, the director of promotion and conventions for the Coos Bay-North Bend Visitor & Convention Bureau. “It’s a celebration of being an Oregonian. It’s a celebration of what we’ve been and what we’ll become and it’s a recognition of how lucky we are to live here.”
Admittedly, some of the party plans are pretty rough, but as the 150th hour approaches, Hoppe said she has faith that Coos County will do it up right.
“Oregonians have a spirit of working together and I have no doubt you’ll see a lot of wonderful celebrations,” Hoppe said.
The South Coast events kick off at the Coquille Community Center on Jan. 17 with the fourth-annual Chocolate Fantasy, where people can commemorate the state’s birthday with all the chocolate they can eat.
How ’bout some crab? The annual Charleston Crab Feed, which happens to share the same date as Oregon’s official birthday, will get crab munchers thinking about what it means to be an Oregonian. The “casually rowdy” event celebrates the sesquicentennial with birthday hats, candles and anyone who dresses up like an Oregon pioneer might be chased by a Charleston wild woman, said Mel Campbell, the coordinator of the Charleston Visitors and Information Center. She noted this will be the 24th-annual crab feed, which is always held on the second Saturday in February, but the event truly began about 50 years ago.
“I think it’s a good representation of Oregon’s pride in its wonderful bounties, the ocean, all the good things we have to share,” Campbell said.
Hoppe said some potential ways to build in the 150 theme is for events to showcase 150 musicians, display 150 pieces of art, feature an Oregon birthday party or include a past versus present point of view.
“The 150 campaign is not just about celebrating Oregon’s history. It’s also looking forward to the future,” Hoppe said.
Barb Dunham, who oversees the North Bend Visitor Center and helps coordinate July Jubilee, said the event committee will meet this month to discuss how they’ll combine North Bend and Oregon’s birthdays.
Coos Bay’s Economic and Community Development Manager Joyce Jansen said the city will incorporate 150 into its Fourth of July in the Park event and may ask for 150 participants in the Mayor’s Firecracker Run.
“We’re trying to be creative,” she said in an e-mail.
She noted that the Coos Bay Downtown Association will participate in the Take Care of Oregon Day, a clean up project that is part of the birthday celebration.
The South Slough Estuarine Research Reserve plans to dive into the festivities with its local fauna, said Deborah Rudd, the slough’s public involvement coordinator. This summer she hopes to hold a search for the hairy triton, the state shell (mollusk). It’s intended to be a fun event that asks participants to either photograph the snail, try to find the biggest one possible or discover as many as they can find.
The Coos Historical & Maritime Museum will be working with The World to provide a number of 150-themed photos and features. Collections Manager Vicki Wiese said there also will be exhibits at the North Bend museum specific to the state’s birthday.
“I’ve got lots of ideas but I need to get them approved before I can do them,” she said.
There’s so much in the works, including events most 150 organizers may not be aware of, Hoppe said.
Organizers say one of the best ways to read about others’ ideas and get some publicity is to register events on the Oregon150 Web site, http://www.oregon150.org.
— Staff Writer Jolene Guzman contributed to this story.
Help the celebration
What: Oregon celebrates 150 years of statehood on Feb. 14. Celebrations are planned throughout the state and throughout the year.
Web site: http://www.oregon150.org.
Want to be involved? In mid-February The World will help highlight Oregon’s history and dreams for the future. We’ll be publishing stories, historic photos, people’s recollections and predictions, and more regularly in the paper and online. Watch for details coming in The World as we get closer to the big day.
Things to do to celebrate the 150th
There may be no better way to celebrate the state’s birthday than to enjoy what it is to be an Oregonian, from learning its rich history to sampling its wares. Here’s a few ways to embrace the Sesquicentennial on your own:
• Buy Oregon-made goods for the next 150 days.
• Donate $150 or gather 150 canned goods to give to your favorite local charity or food bank.
• Visit a local history museum or historical society to learn more about your region’s past.
• Buy Oregon’s new 42-cent commemorative stamp ” available beginning Wednesday ” and mail a letter to a friend ” just like they did in the old days.
• Concoct a dish with Chinook salmon ” the state fish ” Oregon’s Pacific golden chanterelles and Dungeness crab, or munch on pears and hazelnuts ” the state fruit and nut ” for a taste of Oregon.
• Search for the Oregon hairy triton, also known as the Fusitriton oregonensis. According to the State History Guide Resources Web site, it’s the only shell (mollusk) that shares the name of a state, and is one of only three in the world named after a location. The marine organisms are found from Alaska to California and their shells wash up on beaches at high tide.
• Participate in the spring SOLV beach cleanup or pick up 150 pieces of trash in your community.
• Throw an Oregon 150 party on the state’s official birthday, Feb. 14.
• Take a road trip and retrace the Oregon Trail.
• Camp at state parks.
• Watch “Goonies,” and then check out Astoria where it was filmed or visit Cottage Grove, Eugene or Brownsville, where portions of “Stand By Me” and “Animal House” were filmed.
• Sample beer at the Rogue Ales brewery in Newport or the Deschutes Brewery in Bend.
• Go jet boating on the Rogue River.
• Ride the Oregon dunes on an ATV or Sand Rail
• Go off in search of shipwrecks on the South Coast. Look, but don’t touch.
• Hike the Pacific Coast Trail or the Oregon Coast Trail
• Go see Lake Abert, Oregon’s salty sea.
• Make or buy a myrtlewood walking stick.
• Watch a Trail Blazers’ basketball game.
• Golf at Bandon Dunes and other South Coast golf courses.
• Check out Oregon’s many ghost towns, including three in Douglas County, after purchasing a ghost map at Farr’s True Value in Coos Bay.
• Learn square dancing. It’s been the state’s official dance since the 1970s.
• Get your daily serving of dairy. Milk is the state beverage, after all, and Tillamook County produces some pretty good cheese and ice cream.
• Submit a story about your Oregon experiences on the state’s official sesquicentennial Web site, http://www.oregon150.org.
What: Oregon celebrates 150 years of statehood on Feb. 14. Celebrations are planned throughout the state and throughout the year.
Web site: http://www.oregon150.org.
Want to be involved? In mid-February The World will help highlight Oregon’s history and dreams for the future. We’ll be publishing stories, historic photos, people’s recollections and predictions, and more regularly in the paper and online. Watch for details coming in The World as we get closer to the big day.
Things to do to celebrate the 150th
There may be no better way to celebrate the state’s birthday than to enjoy what it is to be an Oregonian, from learning its rich history to sampling its wares. Here’s a few ways to embrace the Sesquicentennial on your own:
• Buy Oregon-made goods for the next 150 days.
• Donate $150 or gather 150 canned goods to give to your favorite local charity or food bank.
• Visit a local history museum or historical society to learn more about your region’s past.
• Buy Oregon’s new 42-cent commemorative stamp ” available beginning Wednesday ” and mail a letter to a friend ” just like they did in the old days.
• Concoct a dish with Chinook salmon ” the state fish ” Oregon’s Pacific golden chanterelles and Dungeness crab, or munch on pears and hazelnuts ” the state fruit and nut ” for a taste of Oregon.
• Search for the Oregon hairy triton, also known as the Fusitriton oregonensis. According to the State History Guide Resources Web site, it’s the only shell (mollusk) that shares the name of a state, and is one of only three in the world named after a location. The marine organisms are found from Alaska to California and their shells wash up on beaches at high tide.
• Participate in the spring SOLV beach cleanup or pick up 150 pieces of trash in your community.
• Throw an Oregon 150 party on the state’s official birthday, Feb. 14.
• Take a road trip and retrace the Oregon Trail.
• Camp at state parks.
• Watch “Goonies,” and then check out Astoria where it was filmed or visit Cottage Grove, Eugene or Brownsville, where portions of “Stand By Me” and “Animal House” were filmed.
• Sample beer at the Rogue Ales brewery in Newport or the Deschutes Brewery in Bend.
• Go jet boating on the Rogue River.
• Ride the Oregon dunes on an ATV or Sand Rail
• Go off in search of shipwrecks on the South Coast. Look, but don’t touch.
• Hike the Pacific Coast Trail or the Oregon Coast Trail
• Go see Lake Abert, Oregon’s salty sea.
• Make or buy a myrtlewood walking stick.
• Watch a Trail Blazers’ basketball game.
• Golf at Bandon Dunes and other South Coast golf courses.
• Check out Oregon’s many ghost towns, including three in Douglas County, after purchasing a ghost map at Farr’s True Value in Coos Bay.
• Learn square dancing. It’s been the state’s official dance since the 1970s.
• Get your daily serving of dairy. Milk is the state beverage, after all, and Tillamook County produces some pretty good cheese and ice cream.
• Submit a story about your Oregon experiences on the state’s official sesquicentennial Web site, http://www.oregon150.org.
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