Fruit Lands and Turkey Town: Exploring Sutherlin and Oakland, Oregon

We've driven past the Sutherlin exit on Interstate 5 many times. Usually, we make a regular stop to eat at Romulos Mexican Grill (highly recommended!), but a brief look into the history of the area made me want to explore more and drive further in see to historic downtown Sutherlin.  

Sutherlin, once known as "Camas Swale," was organized into a town site from a large ranch inherited by Anne Sutherlin Waite from her pioneer father, Fendel Sutherlin (1824-1901). Anne and her husband, Frank Waite, decided to sell off the land as small farms. The camas wetlands throughout the area, drained by Fendel Sutherlin, were laid out into orchard tracts (mostly apples) between five and twenty acres in size by the Luse Land and Development Company (Frank Waite and J.F. Luse). The idea was to sell the tracts to home seekers in the mid-western and northeastern states with a contract requiring homeowners to maintain the orchards for several years. A post office was established, and the town was incorporated in 1911. Frank Waite built a small hotel, and a train depot site was donated to the Southern Pacific Railroad. Streets were laid out, a business district was built, homes were erected and the population was reported to be 800 by 1915 (The News-Review, Roseburg, Oregon, March 10, 1915).

Pioneer Life of Fendel Sutherlin by Anne Sutherlin Waite, Oregon Historical Quarterly
Vol. 31, No. 4 (Dec., 1930)

Many of the buyers, believing their property would produce a profit within five years, sold after the orchards were not yet at a level of production to make money. Other property owners were found to have torn out the orchards for more profitable crops or animals. Some, however, retained their properties and were rewarded with a fruit industry that grew to a level requiring the construction of two large packing plants and a fruit spray manufacturing plant. A box factory was constructed to supply fruit boxes for the growers, and the Sutherlin Lumber Company was formed. The town became known as the "Orchard Center of Douglas County." However, the financial return on the produce was low due to the high costs of shipping the fruit to major markets in the east. The last packing plant shut down in 1928 as the Great Depression began.

Sutherlin, Oregon in 1911 from "Sutherlin" by Tricia Dias

The Coos Bay Times (Marshfield, Oregon) · 1 Feb 1916

Above the valley, immense stands of timber were controlled by the Roach Timber Company. The owner, William Leroy Roach, made arrangements to construct a railroad line through the valley and up to the timber and logging camps. This enabled the transfer of timber from the logging camps into Sutherlin, where it was then transferred to the Southern Pacific Railroad's main railroad line. There were plans to build a large sawmill in Sutherlin; however, in August 1916 William Roach passed away from pneumonia, and the mill never materialized. The railroad line closed in 1961 after Weyerhaeuser purchased a mill to the north near Cottage Grove. The new mill purchase included a truck road, and it was decided that operations would be moved to the holdings northeast of Springfield.

       William Roach (Lumber World Review - July 10, 1916)

Weyerhaeuser #100

The town experienced a lumber boom in the 1940s. Other sawmills were constructed in Sutherlin, several of which were located at the present location of Murphy Plywood on Central Avenue. A few of the more long-term mills in operation include the L&H Lumber Company (1946-74); Springfield Plywood Corporation (1942-64); Nordic Plywood Corporation (1954-75); Mt Mazama Plywood Company (1975-85); and Murphy Plywood Company (Larry Moulton 2002).

The timber industry declined in Oregon during the 1980s from depletion of forest resources and new environmental restrictions creating the worst recession the state had experienced.  It was no exception in Sutherlin. The Mt. Mazama Plywood Company filed for bankruptcy in the mid-1980s ending employment for 185 workers. Murphy Plywood opened following the Mt. Mazama closure, but was  forced to shut down twice within one year due to poor market conditions. Unlike the more well-known destination, Bend, Oregon which capitalized on its scenic beauty and was successful in attracting companies in the aviation industry, Sutherlin was, unfortunately, not able to rebound from the lumber industry downturn.

Corvallis Gazette-Times - 25 Sep 1984

Today, Sutherlin remains an economically depressed town. I have to be frank - in my view, there is really no reason to visit at the present time.  There is no trace of the former orchard tracts, which have since been razed and devoured by rusting single-wide trailers and "canned ham" campers with a backdrop of heavily timbered hillsides. The downtown area is dilapidated with boarded windows and dingy storefronts. The one tourist feature of the town is the Weyerhaeuser #100 locomotive, retired in 1958, used to haul logs on the Roach Timber Company's railroad line. There is a plaque in front that says nothing about the train or the town's history. It is my personal opinion that Douglas County's economic revitalization lies, in large part, on its history, preservation of its forests, and restoration of its once glorious camas wetlands. One of the oldest stands of old growth timber in the world is found in Douglas County.

Downtown 1927

D.W. Banker Building (1916) and Sutherlin Bank Building (1910) on the corner of Central and State Streets. Then bank closed in 1933 due to poor economic conditions and reopened 1949-1973

A somewhat more interesting and well maintained historic town lies just five minutes north of Sutherlin. The town of Oakland, Oregon was founded by Dr. Dorsey S. Baker who constructed one of the state's first flour mills (1851). The mill wheel from Baker's grist mill is on display at the city park at the northeast corner of Second and Maple Streets.

Oakland was also a former stage coach stop on the route from California to Portland. The original town site during the stage coach years was actually one mile north of the present location. The town was moved to its present location in 1872 when the townspeople learned that the new railroad line would bypass Oakland. Some of the buildings were dismantled and rebuilt at the present location. The official stop for the stage coach was at the Pacific Hotel owned by Jonathan Tibbetts. Unfortunately, this hotel was not relocated and no longer exists. Other early establishments relocated from the original town site include the Deardorff Hotel (1860) at 337 NE First Street, the James Dearling House (1855) at 207 SE Second Street (originally a saloon in the old townsite), and James Dearling Cobbler Shop (pre-1871) at 226 Locust Street. Several additional residences were also relocated some of which include:


237 SE Second Street (c. late 1860s):

236 SE Second Street (c. 1865):

210 SE Second Street (pre-1871):

333 NE First Street (1850s):

After the relocation of the town to its present site, Oakland became an important railroad shipping point for the surrounding area. The railroad stimulated construction, although two fires in the mid-1870s and 1890s destroyed many of the original wooden structures. Many burned establishments, such as the Depot Hotel (1899) at 101 Locust Street, and J.H. Mahoney saloon building (1899) at 109 Locust Street, were replaced with brick buildings.

Thomas Hotel building (1899), originally the Depot Hotel

Harvey J Mahoney building (1899), a former saloon

Both buildings can be seen on Locust Street on the 1889 Sanborn Fire Insurance Map.

By 1922 the population of Oakland grew to about 700. The town became known as the center of the turkey industry for the north Pacific Coast. In addition to turkeys, Oakland was known for its stock raising industry including sheep, hogs and cattle. Unlike Sutherlin, the consistent farming industry allowed Oakland to weather economic fluctuations. By 1929, Oakland ranked sixth in the nation in turkey production, although breeding began to decline in the mid-1940s.

The News-Review - Roseburg, Oregon 27 Feb 1961

During WWII, Oakland also benefited from the lumber boom. The city expanded to twice its original size. Oakland's chief contribution to the lumber boom was through its being the headquarters site in Douglas County for the Martin Bros. Box Company which opened in 1946. It manufactured wirebound shipping containers, lumber and plywood. 

Another industry stimulating growth included quicksilver mining. The original deposits were discovered in 1870 and abandoned after small production; however, the Bonanza mine was reopened in 1937 by H.C. Wilmot who organized Bonanza Mines, Inc. After reopening, production was low until the main (north) ore body was discovered in 1939. By 1940, the mine led all mercury producing mines in the United States. Some of the ore ran as high as 120 pounds of mercury to the ton, but it averaged only 7 or 8 pounds (USGS 1947, Quicksilver Deposits of the Bonanza-Nonpareil District, Douglas County, Oregon Bulletin 955-F). The mine was located about six miles east of Sutherlin and operated until 1961 with other closures prior to that time. Total recorded mercury production was 39,540 flasks (or 3,005,040 pounds).

Environmental investigations completed in the late 1990s show that soil and sediment at the former mine are contaminated by mercury, arsenic, and other metals. Cleanup of the site began in 2014.