The Standard Blue Book of Oregon
land a well-equipped plant for the handling of seed and fibre and the making of linseed oil.
Oregon produces at least 38 per cent of the hop crop of the United States. Last year the output was 115,000 bales, amounting to $4,140,000. She is also becoming well known as a grape producing state, ranking with Florida, and ahead of every other Western state, excepting California.
She has always been famous for her fruits, pears, peaches, prunes, strawberries, loganberries, and apples are grown abundantly. There is at present 2,030,000 apple trees bearing fruit and 2,341,000 under age. The yield last year was 1,931,-000 boxes, selling at an average of 86 cents a box. The entire yield amounted to approximately $1,000,000.00.
The state's leading industry is lumber and its kindred manufactures. There are approximately 496,048,000,000 feet of standing timber in the state, and it has been said that it would take 40 sawmills 400 years, running at capacity, to saw this timber into logs and lumber. Here may be found one-fifth the standing timber of the United States. The principal varieties are Douglas fir or Oregon pine, spruce, hemlock, red and Port Orford cedars, sugar and yellow pine. The cut annually approximates 2,000,000,000 feet. There is a national forest in Oregon comprising 164,040 acres, and it is estimated that private interests hold 2,401,309 acres more. Statistics show during 1912, 21,285 carloads of lumber left the state for practically every country, and the industry is yet in its infancy.
There is a rapid increase as a manufacturing state, and these manufactories net her annually $100,000,000. She has nearly 2500 plants, employing some 40,000 people. Timber being the principal product, the principal manufactures are the making of furniture and other wooden articles.
Another of the leading industries is salmon fishing. The laws are rigidly enforced for the protection of the fish. The salmon crop for the last year netted $6,-000,000. There were 13,871,000 young salmon released from the hatcheries of the state into the streams tributary to the Columbia last year, and 15,998,028 liberated into the coast streams. There are twelve of these hatcheries, all of which are successful, the largest in the world being located in Multnomah County. It is equipped for the handling and feeding of 30,000,000 salmon, besides facilities for the hatching and caring for 5,000,000 trout eggs. Quite a sum was derived from the sale of halibut, oysters, clam and trout, which also abound in Oregon. Dairying and wool follows closely in importance.
The mineral products of Oregon net her yearly about $4,000,000. Leading in importance is building stone and clay products. Gold, silver, copper and coal are mined; sand and gravel, mineral waters and gypsum are also abundant. The output of gold, silver and copper for the last year for the state amounted to $700,-676, coming from 180 mines, 116 of which were placer mines, the other 64 being quartz mines.
Oregon is well provided with water transportation, having the second largest river in the United States as its northern boundary, and the Pacific Ocean as its western boundary. The Columbia River, with its tributaries, is navigable 1664 miles, the lower portion being navigable for deep water vessels 100 miles. The basin of this river is larger than the 13 original states, with the exception of Georgia, and the river itself has an area of 254,338 square miles, 215,993 of which are m the United States. The rail facilities for the state are fairly good, and a probability for future improvement both in rail and also to make the Willamette River navigable the entire year.
Some of the counties have awakened to the need of good roads. A campaign is now on for the betterment of roads generally. Possibly one reason that her roads are no better is that more than one-third the population of the entire state is in one city—Portland.
12