Most Recent

Oregon’s Drain

By Ron Bolt

            Folks say western Oregon is so wet it needs more than rivers to carry off the water. Oregon needs a drain — and as a matter of fact, it has one.

            Midway between Washington and California, halfway between the Cascade Range and the Pacific Ocean, lies Oregon’s Drain. Nestled in a valley surrounded by hills, this city of just over 1,000 people is strategically situated at the confluence of Pass Creek and Elk Creek.

            You might ask, “Why would anyone name a city Drain?” A lot of water does collect there. The valley receives over 47 inches of rain a year. The two creeks and their tributaries collect rain from their watersheds and join forces in Drain.

            However, sightseers will find themselves disappointed if they search for an actual drain. The city sometimes floods a bit, but the water exits not down a hole-in-the-ground but flows westward and into the Umpqua River at Elkton.

If your next guess is that Drain might be named for a person, you are correct. Charles C. Drain bought the land from pioneer and trailblazer Jesse Applegate in 1861.

The new owner platted and sold 60 acres to the Oregon-California Railroad in 1872 for one dollar. They laid the rails and built a depot the following year. In 1876, residents and travelers could hop aboard a stagecoach on the Drain-Coos Bay Stage Line to the Oregon Coast.

The improved transportation attracted farmers, ranchers and supporting businesses. Charles Drain’s son, C. D. Drain, built a mercantile and a mansion: the Charles and Anna Drain House. Others built a livery stable, drug store, hardware store and hotel. In 1885, Oregon selected Drain for the site of Oregon State Normal School, a teacher training institute.

            The town incorporated in 1888 and another of Charles’ sons, John C. Drain, served as the city’s first mayor. He later served as Oregon’s Speaker of the House.        

You can visit Drain by taking a Highway 99 loop off Interstate 5 at Exits 150 or 162. At Drain, you can catch scenic Highway 38, which meanders alongside the Umpqua River for 50 miles to Reedsport on the Oregon coast. If you explore Drain, be sure to check out the Charles and Anna Drain House, which serves as the North Douglas School District Office.  

            Creeks may swell during the rainy winter months, but it’s still safe to visit – and you won’t get swept down the drain.

Sources

Beckham, Stephen Dow. Land of the Umpqua: A History of Douglas County Oregon (Roseburg, Oregon: Commissioners of Douglas County Oregon, 1986).

Jones, Edward Gardener. The Oregonian’s Handbook of the Pacific Northwest. (Portland, Oregon: The Oregonian Publishing Co. 1894.)

McArthur, Lewis A. Oregon Geographical Names. (Portland, Oregon: Oregon Historical Society, 1974).

Oregon Atlas & Gazetteer. (Freeport, Maine: DeLorme Mapping, 1991).

The Oregon Encyclopedia. (Portland: Portland State University and the Oregon Historical Society, 2017) https://oregonencyclopedia.org/

www.cityofdrain.org

http://www.drainoregon.org/history.htm

Ron Bolt moved to Drain not in search of “the drain” but to pursue his college girlfriend

who had moved there to teach at North Douglas Elementary School.

Ron and Carol met in Monmouth while attending Western Oregon University,

known in years past as Oregon State Normal School.

They married in 1974 and lived in Drain for 19 years.