Summer Lake, Oregon
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| Summer Lake, Oregon | |
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| Coordinates: | |
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| Country | United States |
| State | Oregon |
| County | Lake |
| Elevation | 4,229 ft (1,289 m) |
| Population (2005) | |
| - Total | 90 |
| Time zone | Pacific (UTC-8) |
| - Summer (DST) | Pacific (UTC-7) |
| ZIP code | 97630 |
Summer Lake is an unincorporated community in northern Lake County, Oregon, United States. It is located on Oregon Route 31 approximately halfway between Bend and Lakeview. The community of Summer Lake is named for a large lake located south of the town. The lake was named by the explorer John C. Fremont in 1843.
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[edit] Community
The town of Summer Lake is located at the base of the eastern slope of Winter Ridge adjacent to the Fremont-Winema National Forest. The community is spread thinly for about one mile (1.6 km) along Highway 31. Facilities include a post office, gas station, store, motel, restaurants, and several bed and breakfast establishments.[1]
There is also a wayside park located across the highway from the post office and store that has six interpretive markers that highlight the Fremont Expedition's travel through the Summer Lake basin, the geology of the Summer Lake region, and Oregon's Outback Scenic Byway.
The Summer Lake community includes the well preserved nineteenth-century Harris school. A one-room school house built in 1890 by the Harris family, who were among the first pioneer families to settle in the Summer Lake area. The school closed in 1919, and then briefly reopened in 1926 for three more years. In 1929, Summer Lake students began attending school in Paisley, Oregon twenty miles (32 km) south of Summer Lake.[2][3]
[edit] History
The lake for which the town is named is one of the largest in Oregon. It is approximately 20 miles (32 km) long and 10 miles (16 km) wide.[3] It was named by Captain John C. Fremont during his 1843 mapping expedition through Central Oregon.
Fremont and his Army Topographical team were mapping the Oregon Country as they traveled from The Dalles on Columbia River to Sutter's Fort in Sacramento, California. On 16 December 1843, the expedition struggled down a steep cliff from a snow-covered plateau to reach a lake the valley below. Fremont named them "Winter Ridge" and "Summer Lake."[4] From the rocky cliff overlooking the lake basin, Fremont described the discovery and naming of Summer Lake as follows:
"At our feet...more than a thousand feet below...we looked into a green prairie country, in which a beautiful lake, some twenty miles (32 km) in length, was spread along the foot of the mountain...Shivering on snow three feet deep, and stiffening in a cold north wind, we exclaimed at once that the names of Summer Lake and Winter Ridge should be applied to these proximate places of such sudden and violent contrast." (Captain John C. Fremont, 16 December 1843, Report of the Second Fremont Expedition)[5]
The first settlers began to arrive in the Summer Lake Valley around 1870. However, the high desert was difficult to farm, and many early settlers stayed only a few years before moving on to greener country.[6] As a result, the population of the valley never grew beyond a few hundred people.
[edit] Wildlife refuge
The Summer Lake Basin supports more than 250 species of birds including bald eagles, Canada geese, white faced ibis, yellow-headed blackbirds, goshawks, hermit thrushes, red-tail hawks, great blue herons, and numerous species of ducks. This makes Summer Lake a favorite bird watching and hunting area.[7]
The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife maintains the Summer Lake Wildlife Refuge on the north side of the lake. The refuge consists of a large marsh with associated uplands with an 8.3-mile (13.4 km) tour route open to the public most of the year.[8]
The refuge headquarters and several housing units are located adjacent to Highway 31 at the south end of the town.[8] The refuge is an important part of the Summer Lake community. The Department of Fish and Wildlife operation and the visitors who come to the refuge are an important part of the Summer Lake economy.
[edit] References
- ^ Lasater, Erika, and Denny Paul, "Places to Visit in Oregon's Outback", Oregon’s Outback.com, 21 January 2008.
- ^ "Harris Schoolhouse", Oregon Historical Marker, Summer Lake, Oregon.
- ^ a b Morris, Elizabeth and Mark, "Summer Lake", Moon Handbooks: Oregon, Avalon Travel Publishing, 2004.
- ^ "Fremont Memorial", Oregon Historical Marker, Summer Lake, Oregon, 2008.
- ^ Nevins, Allen, Fremont Pathmarker of the West, University of Nebraska Press, Lincoln, Nebraska, 1992, p. 149.
- ^ Allen, Cain, "Lula Schminck & Florence Klippel on Summer Lake Lava Beds", Oregon History Project, Oregon Historical Society, 2005
- ^ "Summer Lake Wildlife Refuge", Southern Oregon Visitor Guide, Southern Oregon Visitors Association, Ashland, Oregon, 2006.
- ^ a b "Summer Lake Wildlife Area", Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, Salem, Oregon, 19 October 2005.
[edit] External links
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