Meacham, Oregon
Meacham | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Oregon |
| County | Umatilla |
| Elevation | 4,964 ft (1,513 m) |
| Time zone | UTC-8 (Pacific (PST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-7 (PDT) |
Meacham is an unincorporated community in Umatilla County, Oregon. It is located on the old alignment of U.S. Route 30 off Interstate 84, in the Umatilla National Forest, near Emigrant Springs State Heritage Area and the route of the Oregon Trail. It is part of the Pendleton–Hermiston Micropolitan Statistical Area.
History
Meacham was a station on the Union Pacific Railroad, near the summit of the Blue Mountains. Major Henry A. G. Lee established a troop encampment, called Lee's Encampment, there in 1844. Meacham was named for Harvey J. and Alfred B. Meacham, who operated Meacham Station, a stage station, in the 1860s and 1870s. The first post office in the locality, established in 1862, was named "Encampment". The name was changed to "Meacham" in 1890.[1][2]
On July 3, 1923, Meacham was declared the capitol of the United States for one day when President Warren G. Harding stopped for a day and participated in the exercises commemorating the eightieth anniversary of the covered wagon migration of 1843 (The Oregon Trail)." President Warren G. Harding gave a speech in Pendleton on July 4, 1923, commemorating the Oregon Trail, at which time his wife was presented with a Pendleton blanket shawl in a design that became popular as the "Harding design".[3][4]
Climate
Meacham has a dry-summer humid continental climate (Köppen Dsb) with cold snowy winters and mild summers. It was widely reported that Meacham set the state record for lowest recorded temperature in February 1933 at −52 °F (−47 °C). Seneca, in Grant County, however, was colder at −54 °F (−48 °C).[2]
| Climate data for Meacham, OR (1948-2013 Normals) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 32.1 (0.1) |
37.2 (2.9) |
40.5 (4.7) |
48.1 (8.9) |
57.5 (14.2) |
65.7 (18.7) |
76.8 (24.9) |
75.4 (24.1) |
67.6 (19.8) |
54.6 (12.6) |
41.1 (5.1) |
34.0 (1.1) |
52.6 (11.4) |
| Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 20.1 (−6.6) |
24.0 (−4.4) |
25.6 (−3.6) |
30.1 (−1.1) |
37.2 (2.9) |
43.5 (6.4) |
49.8 (9.9) |
49.2 (9.6) |
43.4 (6.3) |
36.2 (2.3) |
28.6 (−1.9) |
23.3 (−4.8) |
34.3 (1.3) |
| Average precipitation inches (mm) | 4.68 (119) |
3.40 (86) |
3.21 (82) |
2.92 (74) |
2.32 (59) |
2.01 (51) |
0.56 (14) |
0.82 (21) |
1.36 (35) |
2.65 (67) |
4.13 (105) |
4.82 (122) |
32.9 (840) |
| Average snowfall inches (cm) | 30.9 (78) |
25.0 (64) |
23.2 (59) |
13.5 (34) |
3.3 (8.4) |
0.5 (1.3) |
0 (0) |
0 (0) |
0.3 (0.76) |
4.5 (11) |
17.8 (45) |
28.4 (72) |
147.5 (375) |
| Source: [5] | |||||||||||||
References
- ^ McArthur, Lewis A.; Lewis L. McArthur (2003) [1928]. Oregon Geographic Names (Seventh ed.). Portland, Oregon: Oregon Historical Society Press. ISBN 0-87595-277-1.
- ^ a b "Meacham and Ukiah, Arctic Kings". www.oregonphotos.com. Retrieved 2006-11-13.
- ^ http://drewsboots.com/pendle2.htm
- ^ "Pendleton Blankets, Robes & Shawls". Historical Gazette, Volume Three Number One. Historical Gazette. Retrieved 2006-11-13.
- ^ "Meacham". Western Regional Climate Center. Retrieved December 14, 2014.
Further reading
- Stewart, Betty Booth (1996). Meacham: A Wide Spot on the Oregon Trail Where the Meadowlark Still Sings. Tigard, Oregon: Crossroad. ISBN 0-9653021-0-5.
External links
Municipalities and communities of Umatilla County, Oregon, United States | ||
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| Indian reservation | ||
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