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'4 Ote9on RESOURCE NATURAL HUMAN ATLAS ECONOMIC PUBLIC JUNE 1973 - EXTENSION PROJECT OREGON STATE UNIVERSITY Deschutes County, Oregon NATURAL RESOURCE HUMAN ATLAS ECONOMIC PUBLIC May 1973 Oregon State University Extension Service Prepared by Marilyn Ruttle, Research Assistant, Under the supervision of Robert 0Coppedge, Extension Economist, and Russell CYoumans, Extension Resource Economist, Department of Agricultural Economics For sale by the Extension Business Office, Extension Hall 118, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon 97331 $2 50 per copy DESCHUTES COUNTY MIL ES Sisters Red ond 0 5 10 IS 20 Millican Brothers p,o,iCrane Reser,o, acLake Lopine Hampton STATE LEGEND PRIMARY HIGHWAYS 0 SECONDARY HIGHWAYS 0 COUNTY ROADS INTERSTATE HIGHWAYS() General Description Physical Aspects. Climate 2 Soils ............ 5 Soil Charactristics and LandCapability 6 Land Use...... 8 Land Ownership. 10 Water . 11 Minerals. 19 Forest Land Wildlife. 20 24 Human Resources 30 Population. 30 Employment. 35 Income. 39 Education .......... 43 Health and Vital Statistics 46 Public Welfare....... 50 Housing 52 The County's Economy. Agriculture Logging and Wood Products Mining - Mineral and Metal Industries Manufacturing Business...................OutdoorRecreation........... Public Services Transportation. Communication . Library Facilities. Utilities Public Finance. Selected Listof Agencies Selected Bibliography . GENERAL DESCRIPTION Deschutes County now ranks 11th in size in the state witha total area of 1,939,200 acres It is in the heart of the state and is bordered on the south by Klamath and Lake Counties; on the east by Crook County, on the north by Jefferson County and on the west by Lane and Linn Counties. The county is in the southwestern part of the Walla Walla section of the Columbia Plateau physiographic province It consists, in the eastern part, principally, of a nearly level to rolling high plateau which slopes gently northward. The altitude is about 3,700 feet near Bend and 3,000 feet near Redmond. The western part of the county con- sists of the Cascade Mountains and their foothills. The highest of the mountains is the South Sister Mountain at 10,354 feet. Almost all of the county lies within the Deschutes River drainage basin. The river enters the area from the south at an altitude of 3,700 feet. As it flows northward through a shallow valley only 50 to 100 feet lower than the plateau to the east, it is joined by its main tri- butaries, the Crooked River, Mud Spring Creek and Willow Creek. The valley deepens considerably as the river continues north of Big Falls. The eastern part of the county has little or no dissection dueto stream flow. This is particularly noticeable in areas underlain by lava flow and in area west of the Deschutes River thatare underlain by out- wash sand and gravel. The southeastern part of the area is covered by recent lava f low and is somewhat rolling. Most of this land is either lava or shallow stony soil and has no surface drainage. Because of its variety of physical characteristics Deschutes County attracts many tourists and one of its major industries is recreation. Bachelor Butte is becoming an increasingly popular skiarea, while the Lava Caves and Three Sisters Primitive and Recreationareas remain a favorite spot for tourists. Lumbering is a major industry in the western part of the county, while the major emphasis in the central and eastern part of thecounty is agriculture and livestock raising. The first white man to come into the Deschutes Countyarea was a trader for the Hudson Bay Company, by the name of Peter Skene Ogden, who was in the area during the spring of 1826. In 1843, John C. Fremont, guided by Kit Carson, traversed the area from north to southon his way to Nevada. In 1862, Felix Fox, Jr. began to build a road from the 1/ Oregon State Executive Department, Clay Meyers, Secretary of State, Oregon Blue Book, 1971-72, January 1971, Oregon State University Cooperative Extension Service, Agriculture in Oregon Counties- Farm Sales apd General Characteristics, Special Report 330, Oregon State University, 1971. Willamette Valley up the McKenzie River into theDeschutes County. Fox had intended to ship supplies to the mines and miners in easternOregon where a mining boom was underway. The same reason induced several ranchers to settle in the area and to start raisinglivestock. In 1871, the first post office in the area was established atPrineville, a town named after Barney Prine, its first merchant. In the same year, the "Willamette Valley and Cascade Mountain Wagon Road Company" wasorganized and built the Wiley Pass Road into a good wagon road. The population grew slowly but steadily, and in 1886 a post office, named"Bend" was established on John Todd's "Farewell Bend"Ranch. By 1900, Bend had grown to a total population of 21 persons. Nineteen hundred and 1901 saw the beginning of construction for irrigation canals, and alsoconstruction of the first sawmill in Bend. In 1902, the "Oregon Trunkline" railroad and "The Deschutes Line" began building their tracks on eachside of the Deschiites River from the Columbia to Madras. On December 20, 1904, the city of Bend was incorporated with A.H. Goodwilly as thefirst mayor. On October 5, 1911, the OregonTrunkline was completed toBend. Deschutes County was officially established on December 13,1916, on an area which was carved .out of Crook County. A brief summary of the major facts for the county are noted below. Area: 3,060 square miles Population: 33,800 (July 1, 1972) 1,939,200 acres True Cash Value: $224,863,714 (1971) Elevation at Bend: 3,629 feet Principle Industries: Lumbering Average Temperature: Agriculture, Livestock Raising, Summer 61 2 Recreation Winter 34 3 County Seat: Bend PHYSICAL ASPECTS Climate The climate of the Deschutes area is continental, butthe moderating effects of the Pacific Ocean are not entirely shutoff by the Cascade Mountains The prevailing weather is not so mild as that of western Oregon nor as rigorous as that of the Rocky Mountain region orthe Great Plains Temperatures are generally comfortable, thoughthere are occasional extremes, and cloudy or foggy weather is rare Precipitation varies from an estimated 70 inches or more onthe Cascade Divide to as little as 5 or 6 inches on parts of thebasin floor. The heaviest precipitation occurs along the crest of theCascades. This rapidly fades out to some 10 or 15 inches near the foothills On most of the plateau precipitation amounts to approximately 10inches, but no- where is precipitation sufficient for crop cultivation withoutreliance on dry-farming methods or on irrigation. The annualrainfall varies greatly from year to year. At Bend it has varied from 6.04 to 25.74 inches and at Redmond, from 4.39 to14.19 inches. The precipitation is distributed unevenly throughout theyear, although it is distributed more evenly than thatwest of the Cascade Mountains. The precipitation is greatest in winter, whena large part falls as snow. The average snowfall varies from 17.0 inches at Redmond to 35.9 inches at Bend. Generally May and June are months of relatively high rainfall; July and August commonlyare the driest months. Most of the rains are light, but thunderstormsare somewhat frequent in the summer. The extremes in temperature are wide. A temperature of 250F. below zero has been recorded at Bend. Although temperatures rise above 100 in summer, the humidity is low and nightsare cool. The coldest temperatures in winter and the warmest temperatures insummer occur when the ocean winds cease and thearea is dominated by a mass of con- tinental air. The average growing season at Bend is 90 days, however,a large amount of variance is possible. Frost has occurred at Bend as late as July 29 'and as early as August 12. The short growing season permits successful cultivation of only the more hardy types ofcrops, and occasionally even these are damaged by frost. There is a relatively great diurnal range in temperature throughout theyear, and early morning frosts have occurred in every month. Hail and glaze-ice storms occasionally occur but seldom do material damage. Tornadoes are very rare. Other features of the climate, such as a highpercentage of possible sunshine in summer, are favorable for specificcrops, and invite tourists, vacationers, and sportsmen who enjoy the brisk dry air, clearskies, and cool nights. For more information and maps see Climates of the States-Oregon, number 60-35, published by the U.S. Department of Commerce,Environ- mental Services Administration in 1960 and revised in 1967. Precipitation, By Month, DeschutesCounty Table 1. Average Temperature and Total Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov DecAnnual Stat ion Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Average degrees Farenheit -- Temp. 64.5 66.8 51.5 42.3 38.6 30.0 45.4 Bend 34.4 36.3 34.6 41.8 50.9 53.4 65.7 49.1 41.1 34.6 24.0 42.3 Brothers 29.9 31.0 30.5 38.5 47.9 51.8 63.8 68.9M 53.944.5 39.1 32.5 47. 2M Redmond 2W 34.7 36.5 .37.2 43.3 52.4 55.9 67.6 Redmond 68.2 52.4 43.9 38.4 30.7 46.1 Airport 37.0 34.6 35.0 41.2 50.2 54.7 66.5 66.2 51.6 44.0 38.0 30.6 45. SM Sisters 34.6 34.6M 34.5 41.8 51.1 54.0 64.7 49.4 40.5 36.1 26.9 42.2 Wickiup Dam 27.9 30.4 29.0 38.6 47.8 51.9 63.6 64.5 Total inches Precip. .20 .40 .71 1.26 1.42 10.81 Bend 3.15 .26 1.12 .14 .79 1.29 .07 .09 .49 1.00 2.28 1.05 10.94 Brothers 1.70 .43 1.08 .58 .67 .88 .69 .30 .66 .96 7.05 Redmond 2W 1.81 .16 .74 .10 .83 .80 .14 .18 .37 Redmond .39 .30 .99 .97 8.42 Airport 1.82 .22 .87 .14 1.87 .21 .61 .03 .13 .89 .58 1.70 1.98 15.12 Sisters 4.53 1.14 2.11 .30 1.11 .52 .13 .96 1.05 2.70 3.56 22.63 Wickiup Dam 6.03 2.00 3.04 .43 1.57 .94 .13 .22 days record is M - one or more days mIssing.