NATURAL HUMAN ECONOMIC PUBLIC OCTOBER 1973 EXTENSION cEiJ3SWPWALULt2I'L4JES2OfW.JC42VPROJECT I OREGON STATE UNIVERSITY Polk County, Oregon NATURAL RESOURCE HUMAN ATLAS ECONOMIC PUBLIC October 1973 Oregon State University ExtensionService Prepared by Gary Valde, Research Assistant, Under the supervision of Robert 0 Coppedge, Extension Economist, and Russell C. Youmans, Extension Resource Economist, Department of Agricultural Economics For sale by the Extension BusinessOffice, Extension Hall 118, Oregon State University, Corvallis,Oregon 97331. $2.50 per copy. POLK COUNTY MILES 10 15 20 -I POLK MILES 10 15 20 COUNTY -1 -1 LEGEND PRIMARY HIGHWAYS SECONDARY HIGHWAYS COUNTY ROADS INTERSTATE HIGHWAYS Contents General Description Physical Aspects. Climate . 2 Soils .................. 4 Soil Characteristics and LandCapability 5 Land Ownership and Land Use 8 Agricultural Land 9 Forest Land 10 Water 12 Minerals ...... 14 Wildlife ...... 15 Human Resources 16 Population..........................16 Employment 20 Income 27 Education 30 Health and Vital Statistics . 33 Public Welfare 37 Housing 38 The County's Economy 40 Agriculture 40 Logging and Wood Products 45 Manufacturing 47 Mining - Mineral and Metal Industries 49 Outdoor Recreation 50 Business .......................52 Public Services .....................54 Transportation 54 Communication 55 Library Facilities 57 Utilities ................ 57 Public Finance. ..................... 59 Selected List of Agencies 64 Selected Bibliography....................66 GENERAL DESCRIPTION Polk County is located in the northwest portion of Oregon. It is situ- ated in the west-central part of the Willamette Valley between the Cascade Mountains and the Willamette River. The county is bounded on the north by Yamhill County, on the west by Lincoln County, on the south by Benton County, and on the east by Marion County Dallas, the county seat, is approximately 60 miles southwest of Portland, 15 miles west of Salem, 70 miles northwest of Eugene, and 70 miles northeast of Newport Covering 708 squaremiles, the county ranks 30th in size in the state. Over half the land area is in forests Most of the remaining land is used for cultivated agriculture. About 12 percent of the land is publicly owned. The county has a maritime climate with dry, moderately warm summers and wet, mild winters. In 1972 the total county population was 37,060. Dallas is the largest town in the county with a 1972 population of 7,065 Agriculture and lumbering are the major industries although employment in retail trade and services has been increasing in recent years Polk County was created in 1845 Many early wagon trains to Oregon terminated at Independence in the county. A brief summary of facts for the county is noted below. Area: 708 square miles Population: 37,060 472,960 acres (July 1, 1972) Elevation at Dallas: 365 feet True Cash Value: $319,980,690 (1972) Average Temperature: Principal Industries: Summer - 63.6 Agriculture, Lumbering, Winter - 41.1 Heavy Manufacturing, Education County Seat: Dallas Oregon State Executive Department, Clay Myers, Secretary of State, Oregon Blue Book, 1973-74, Tanuary 1973 PHYSICAL ASPECTS The two major physiographic divisions in Polk County are the Coast Mountain Range and the Willamette Valley. The Coast Range is characterized by irregular ridges and short, steep slopes. The crest of the range aver- ages around 1,500 feet. Most slopes are covered with forests and receive relatively high levels of precipitation. The Willamette Valley is charac- terized by gently rolling topography and low elevations. Climate Polk County has a temperate maritime climate with dry, moderately warm summers and wet, mild winters. Climate varies throughout the county mainly with elevation Average annual precipitation varies from around 40 inches in the eastern portion of the county to well over 100 inches in the western part of the Coast Range. Most precipitation falls from November through February, while only about 10 percent of the annual total falls during the dryest months, June through September. Wind velocities are moderate, though strong winds sometimes accompany winter storms. Winter temperatures below l0°F and summer temperatures above 100°F. are rare. The frost-free season is from 180 to 200 days in most of the county. Table 1. Selected Weather Stations and Their Elcvations, Polk County Station Elevation in Feet Dallas 325 Falls City 599 Valsetz l,l35 SOURCE: U.S. Department of Commerce, Weather Bureau, Decennial Census of U.S. Climate, Supplement for 1951 through 1960, Oregon No. 86-31, 1965. Oregon State Water Resources Board, Middle Willamette River Basin, 1963. -2 Table 2 Temperature and Precipitation, Polk County, By Month, 1951 1960 Averages Station Jan. Feb. Mar. Apr. MayJune1 July Aug. Sep. Oct. Nov. Dec. Annual I Average Temperature degrees Farenhe Dallas )/...... 273 316 36645853460369066058.147.9 36.7 29.9 46.9 Falls City.... 38.2 40.9 42.6 48.6 53.8 58.2 64.1 63.8614 536 440 399 508 Valsetz 1/.... 38.3 41.0 41.6 47.1 52.2 58.2 62.5 61.257.9 51.7 43.7 40.3 49.6 Total Precipitation inches - - Dallas 11.33 7.18 5.68 2.99 2.02 1.20 .17 .641.40 3.69 6.74 8.00 51.04 Falls City. 16.07 10.98 9.35 4.76 2.40 1.31 .25 .761.98 5.77 10.95 13.24 77.82 Valsetz....... 23.47 16.17 15.56 8.17 4.13 2.32 1.00 1.524.76 12.83 16.98 19.88 126.64 1/ Some months are for somewhat less than the 1951-1960,ten year, period. SOURCE U S Department of Commerce, Weather Bureau, Decennial Census of U S Climate, Supplement for 1951 through 1960, Oregon No. 86-31, 1965. The following table gives anaverage day-time high and night-time low for each month over the years 1951 to 1960. Table 3. Mean Daily Maximum and Minimum Temperatures, Polk County, By Month, 1951-1960 Averages Station Jan.Feb.Mar.Apr.May JuneJJulyAug. Sep. 0ct.Nov.Dec. Annual Mean Daily Maximum Temp. degrees Farenheit Dallas 45.2 49.7 53.1 61.8 68.7 73.3 82.8 80.8 77.8 65.8 53.3 47.2 63.3 Falls City... 44.5 48.5 51.1 59.2 65.2 70.0 79.5 78.8 75.2 64.3 52.2 46.6 61.3 Valsetz 1/... 44.5 49.0 51.1 59.5 65.9 72.2 79.4 76.9 73.6 64.4 53.1 47.6 61.4 Mean Daily Minimum Temp. degrees Farenheit Dallas 1/.... 32.5 33.6 34.0 37.3 41.8 46.2 48.1 47.6 46.7 41.7 36.5 33.9 40.0 FalisCity 318332341379424464487487476428358332 40.2 Valsetzl/ 321330320347384441445454421389343329 377 1/ Some months are for somewhat less than the 1951-1960,ten year, period. SOURCE: U.S. Department of Commerce, Weather Bureau, Decennial Census of U.S. Climate, Supplement for 1951 through 1960, Oregon No. 86-31, 1965. Table 4. Freeze Data for Polk County, By Month, 1951-1960 Mean Number of Days with a Temperature of 32°F. or Below Station Jan. IFeb.lMariApr1 MayJuneIJulyAug.ISep.0ct.Nov.IDec.IAnnual Dallas 15 14 13 7 1 1/ 0 0 0 2 10 14 76 Falls City 17 14 13 4 1 0 0 0 0 1 10 15 75 Valsetz 2/ 15 15 18 13 6 1 1 1/ 2 6 13 16 106 1/ Some months are for somewhat less thanthe 1951-1960, ten year, period. 2/ Less than 0.5 days. SOURCE: U.S. Department of Commerce, Weather Bureau, Decennial Census of U.S. Climate, Supplement for 1951 through 1960, Oregon No. 86-31, 1965. For more recent climatological data on Polk County, see: U.S. Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Environmental Data Service, Climatological Data, Annual Summary 1971, Vol. 77, No. 13, 1971. Soils 1/- Polk County's soils may be grouped into those characteristic of the Coast Range and those located in the Willamette Valley. Coast Range soils are formed from weathered rock. Variations in these soils are closely related to parent rock and slope. There are two general groups of soils in the Willamette Valley. The first group is the residual soils formed from basic igneous rock and tuffa- ceous sandstone. These soils are generally reddish-brown in color, well drained, moderately fine textured, moderately deep, slightly to medium acid, and gently sloping to moderately steep. The second group was formed from alluvial sediments. Medium to fine textured soil is most common and pH values vary from slightly acid to strongly acid. Oregon State Water Resources Board, Middle Willamette River Basin, 1963. Table Summary of Selected Soil SeriesCharacteristics, Polk County Root Acres Percent Zone Irrigation Septic Tank Soil Series (1,000) Slo'e Draina:e (Inches) Suitabiljt Limitation amity 16.7 3-7 poor 60+ good severe Astoria 10.0 20-60 good 40-60 very poor very severe Bellpine 13 6 7-60 good 20-40 very poor very severe Blachly 12.6 20-60 good 40-60+ very poor very severe Chehalis 14 0 0-3 good 40-60+ excellent moderate Chehulpam 28 0 7-35 good 10-20 good to poor severe Dayton 8.1 0-3 poor 12-24 fair Hembre severe 35.4 20-90+ good 40-60 very poor very severe Klickitat 25.6 20-90+ good 20-40 very poor McBee very severe 8.5 0-3 poor 60+ excellent severe Nekia 13.4 3-60 good 20-40 very poor severe Newberg 7.7 0-3 slightly 40-60+ good severe excessive Steiwer 15 0 7-60 good 20-40 fair to severe very poor Wapato 8.5 0-3 poor 60+ good severe Willakenzie.