Small Towns

This post will be about a couple of small towns from Oregon. I will do more posts about small towns in the future. I’ll start with Drain, Oregon. Drain is a city in Douglas County. It’s zip code is 97435. It was named after the founder, Charles J. Drain. It has a very low population, with only 1,151 people. That’s less than the West Linn High School population. In 1876, a road was built between Drain and Scottsburg. The Drain Normal School was founded in 1883 by the Methodist Church. The state took it over in 1885 and renamed it Central Oregon State Normal School. Drain’s total area is 0.61 square miles, according to the United States Census Bureau. In 2010, there were 454 houses and 319 families living there.Color Logo

I hope you enjoyed learning about Drain, Oregon. Next up: Idiotville.

Idiotville is a ghost town on the border of Washington County and Tillamook County. There’s nothing at the site, so don’t try looking for it on Google Maps. The stream nearby was named Idiot Creek.  A half mile up Idiot Creek there is a logging camp called Ryan’s Camp. Idiotville got it’s name because it’s so remote that it was said that only an idiot would work at the logging camp, and the name stuck.

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Spray is a small town in Wheeler County. It was named after the first postmaster John Spray. In 1900 he created a ferry to cross the John Day River, and he also helped create a school and store. Spray only has 160 people! After Wheeler County was established in 1899, Spray was considered as a possible county seat. An election was held in 1900. The final score came at 436 votes for Fossil, 267 for Twickenham, and 82 for Spray. John Butler was the first mayor. The total area of Spray is 0.29 square miles. The average climate is 33˚ in January and 72 in July. It once went up to 116˚ degrees! Do you know anyone who lives in a small town?

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7 thoughts on “Small Towns

  • 02/26/2016 at 3:54 am
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    Dear Ethan,
    It’s amazing that you started a post about the small towns in Oregon. I think it’s a fun research theme that you chose. Before your post, I hadn’t heard of Drain, Idiotville or Spray I have a friend that currently lives in a small town named Victor, Montana. My first teaching job was in Florence, Montana. At the 2010 census, Florence was reported to have a population of 765. Most of the students at the elementary school lived in the neighboring countryside and would commute to the school.

    Have you ever been to a small town Ethan? I can’t wait to hear about the other small towns that you will teach us about. I liked the Small Town video too!

    From,
    Mrs. Fordyce

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  • 02/26/2016 at 3:01 pm
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    that was very interesting and i really liked it also very good how much$

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  • 03/08/2016 at 9:08 pm
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    nice about telling about some small towns all over united states

    Reply
  • 03/09/2016 at 8:06 pm
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    Is there a real place called Idiotville? That sounds kind of an interesting place. (:

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    • 04/30/2016 at 1:55 am
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      Dear Ethan,
      Yes, there really is a town named Idiotville. It is located in the northwest corner of Oregon, near the Tillamook State Forest.
      From, Ethan

      Reply
  • 03/11/2016 at 3:03 pm
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    Hi Ethan It’s me Tate I really liked your post about towns in Oregon because a town is named idiotville and you said only an idiot could go there laugh out loud that was funny.I wish I could visit idiotville it sounds idiotic.I wonder if that town in the video was on an episode of brain games?

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  • 04/06/2016 at 2:50 am
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    I’ve been to Drain, Oregon before. It’s easy to miss…if you blink you might drive right through it. It would be interesting to be a kid growing up in a town like that. I think it would be fun to know everyone, but it might get a little boring. A trip to the big city every now and then would probably be necessary. Great post!

    Reply

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