Cannon Beach, Oregon
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 |
This article may require cleanup to meet Wikipedia's quality standards. Please discuss this issue on the talk page or replace this tag with a more specific message. This article has been tagged since July 2006. |
| Cannon Beach, Oregon | |
 |
|
 |
|
| Coordinates: | |
|---|---|
| County | Clatsop County |
| Incorporated | 1956 |
| Government | |
| - Mayor | Dave Rouse |
| Area | |
| - City | 3.9 km² (1.5 sq mi) |
| - Land | 3.9 km² (1.5 sq mi) |
| - Water | 0 km² (0 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 9.14 m (30 ft) |
| Population (2000) | |
| - City | 1,588 |
| - Density | 411.5/km² (1,066.8/sq mi) |
| Time zone | Pacific (UTC-8) |
| - Summer (DST) | Pacific (UTC-7) |
| Website: www.ci.cannon-beach.or.us | |
Cannon Beach, a city in Clatsop County, Oregon, United States, is an affluent tourist resort destination, popular throughout the Pacific Northwest. Because of its proximity to Portland, Oregon, it is particularly known as a weekend getaway spot for Portlanders. Cannon Beach is generally considered to be a quieter and more cultured alternative to the sometimes raucous Seaside, Oregon, eight miles to the north. [1] The population was 1,588 at the 2000 census.
According to Oregon Geographic Names, Cannon Beach was originally named Ecola, after the creek that empties into the Pacific Ocean to the north of the city. In 1922 it was renamed Cannon Beach (after the name of the beach that extends south of Ecola creek for eight miles, ending at Arch Cape) at the insistence of the Post Office Department because the name was frequently confused with Eola.
Contents |
[edit] Transportation
While cars are everywhere in Cannon Beach, they are not the best mode of transportation within downtown. Parking spots can be difficult to find, especially in the summer months of tourist season. Most of the business district is easily accessible within walking distance of any parking spot. Biking is also a popular way to get around, as bikes can be used on not only the beach, but also to get around town.
A shuttle also runs from the north of Cannon Beach to the south, helping tourists get from the business district back to their resort or vacation rental, and vice versa.
[edit] History
The first recorded European American journey to this area was made by William Clark, one of the leaders of the Lewis and Clark Expedition in January, 1805, when a group of Native Americans invited him to view a beached whale at the nearby beach. The expedition was headquartered at the time near the mouth of the Columbia River. Curiosity got the better of him and Clark had to journey south over Tillamook Head, which he described in his journal as “the Steepest worst and highest mountain I ever assended [sic]…” to get there. [1] From a place near the western cliffs of the headland he saw “… the grandest and most pleasing prospects which my eyes ever surveyed, in front of a boundless Ocean…” That viewpoint is now called Clark's Point of View and can be accessed by a hiking trail which leaves Indian Beach within the Ecola State Park.
Upon arriving at what is now Cannon Beach, he and his companions found the flensed skeleton of a 105' whale on the beach and the Indians busily boiling blubber for storage. A 105' whale would have to be a blue whale - certainly noteworthy so far north. But Clark was a professional surveyor so it is unlikely he was wrong.
Clark and his small company bartered for some blubber and whale oil, then headed back home. Thus ended the first tourist visit to a west coast beach.
In 1846 a cannon from the US Navy schooner Shark washed ashore just north of Arch Cape, a few miles to the south of Elk Creek, the current Cannon Beach. The schooner was wrecked while attempting to cross the Columbia Bar, also known as the "Graveyard of the Pacific" because of the danger of the bar. The townspeople of Elk Creek thought Cannon Beach to be a more interesting name and so renamed their town thus. The cannon is in the town's museum and a replica of it can be seen alongside U.S. Route 101.
As with most coastal towns, Highway 101 ran right through Cannon Beach. In 1964 a tsunami, generated by an Alaskan earthquake, came ashore along the coasts of the Pacific Northwest. While it did not destroy the town of Cannon Beach it did inundate parts of it and washed away the highway bridge at the north side of town. The authorities decided to move the highway further inland in order to prevent a repeat of the damage. Cannon Beach being only a few blocks wide found itself bypassed by the highway. In their isolation they decided to hold a sandcastle building contest - an event which is repeated annually to this day. Eventually the washed out bridge was replaced, but the lack of through highway traffic proved not a curse but a blessing to the town. It evolved into an art colony, then into a destination tourist resort popular throughout the Pacific Northwest.
Cannon Beach is an affluent resort town; for a period in the 1980s, its principal gas station had a sign made from stained glass. Although locals and non-resident house owners have rented their houses to tourists, this practice has been the cause of much conflict. Until 1987, it was illegal to rent ones house for less than 14 days in the residential parts of Cannon Beach.
When the rules were loosened, in response to the recognition that they were being widely ignored, complaints of litter, traffic and noise over the next five years forced the city council to once again tighten the rules, although over 100 exceptions for short-term rentals were granted, at first for a period of five years, but since then most have been renewed, and will not expire until January 1, 2005. Wrangling over this practice still continues between renting and non-renting residents, most recently with a special election scheduled for March 8, 2005 concerning the latest compromise the city council has hammered out.
[edit] Geography
Cannon Beach is located at (45.889155, -123.960738)GR1.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 3.9 km² (1.5 mi²), all land.
It is located near several significant fault lines, and during the Scotts Mills earthquake in Oregon in 1993, Cannon Beach's tsunami warning system was activated immediately following the shocks that were strongly felt there in the early hours of the morning, evacuating residents and vacationers alike up steeply sloped Highway 101 towards Cannon Beach Junction.
[edit] Demographics
As of the censusGR2 of 2000, there were 1,588 people, 710 households, and 418 families residing in the city. The population density was 411.5/km² (1,066.8/mi²). There were 1,641 housing units at an average density of 425.2/km² (1,102.4/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 92.57% White, 0.19% African American, 0.88% Native American, 0.31% Asian, 3.27% from other races, and 2.77% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 10.52% of the population.
There were 710 households out of which 20.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.0% were married couples living together, 7.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 41.0% were non-families. 33.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.11 and the average family size was 2.70.
In the city the population was spread out with 17.4% under the age of 18, 12.3% from 18 to 24, 21.5% from 25 to 44, 32.1% from 45 to 64, and 16.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 44 years. For every 100 females there were 86.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 84.4 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $39,271, and the median income for a family was $45,329. Males had a median income of $31,250 versus $21,641 for females. The per capita income for the city was $24,465. About 8.2% of families and 12.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 16.3% of those under age 18 and 2.1% of those age 65 or over.
[edit] City Landmarks
Cannon Beach is recognized by its well-known landmark, Haystack Rock, located to the southwest of downtown Cannon Beach, near Tolovana Park. This igneous rock has an elevation of 235 feet, and is often accessible at low tide, especially in the summertime. There is a small cave system that penetrates the rock and can be seen from the coastline. The rock is also protected as a marine sanctuary.
Near Haystack Rock are the Needles, two tall rocks rising straight out of the water. Together with Haystack Rock, the Needles create a photogenic panorama that is even more appealing during a sunset over the Pacific Ocean.
Downtown Cannon Beach is filled with small businesses. Chain stores such as Safeway and McDonalds have been discouraged from building in Cannon Beach in order to preserve the local economy and small town feel.
The main drag through Cannon Beach is Hemlock Street, which runs from the north end of town to the south, through Tolovana Park. Both ends of the street connect to US Highway 101. The separation of the highway and the town's main street help ensure that the highway doesn't get bogged down with intracity traffic and the town doesn't have endure the trucks and tourist traffic.
[edit] Notes
- ^ Frommer's Oregon, Karl Samson, Wiley Publishing, Hoboken, NJ, 2004
[edit] External links
- City of Cannon Beach
- Maps and aerial photos
- Street map from Google Maps, or Yahoo! Maps, or Windows Live Local
- Satellite image from Google Maps, Windows Live Local, WikiMapia
- Topographic map from TopoZone
- Aerial image or topographic map from TerraServer-USA
