| Smith River | |
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Along Lower Smith River Road northeast of Reedsport
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| Name origin: Jedediah Smith, early 19th century explorer[1] | |
| Country | United States |
|---|---|
| State | Oregon |
| County | Douglas County |
| Source | Central Oregon Coast Range |
| - location | north of Drain, Douglas County, Oregon |
| - elevation | 1,407 ft (429 m) [2] |
| - coordinates | [3] |
| Mouth | Umpqua River |
| - location | Reedsport, Douglas County, Oregon |
| - elevation | 0 ft (0 m) [3] |
| - coordinates | [3] |
| Length | 90 mi (145 km) [4] |
| Basin | 218 sq mi (565 km2) [5] |
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Location of the mouth of the Smith River in Oregon
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Smith River is a 90-mile (140 km) tributary of the Umpqua River in the U.S. state of Oregon.[4] It drains 218 square miles (560 km2) of the Central Oregon Coast Range between the watershed of the Umpqua to the south and the Siuslaw River to the north.[5] [6]
Rising in northern Douglas County about 10 miles (16 km) north of Drain, the river flows generally west in a winding course through the mountains, passing through the Siuslaw National Forest for about 10 miles (16 km) in its lower course. It joins the Umpqua from the north across from Reedsport, about 6 miles (9.7 km) from the mouth of the Umpqua on the Pacific Ocean.[6]
The river is named for Jedediah Smith, who in 1828 led a party of explorers from Utah overland to northern California and southern Oregon. From California, they traveled north to the Umpqua River, camping along its banks near the mouth of the Smith River on July 13. An attack by Native Americans (Indians) on July 14 killed 15 of Smith's party. One man escaped by heading north to Tillamook and then Fort Vancouver. Smith and two others who were not in camp at the time of the attack fled east toward the Willamette Valley and survived. Smith River in California is also named for Smith.[1]