Sunset on the Oregon Coast

Oregon lays claim to the most beautiful ocean coastline in the world. Many of these scenes are from the Oregon Coast Highway, which is 425 miles long, took 10 years to build and cost $26 million. The Oregon Coast Highway connects the Columbia River Highway in Astoria with the Redwood Highway, in Crescent City, California. You can see glimpses of Seaside, Newport, Gearhart as well as Long Beach on the Washington shore. Bayocean was an amusement resort that fell into the sea and Pixieland was a short-lived theme park that fell victim to financial problems.

At the northernmost tip of Oregon, the Desdemona Lighthouse guided ships into the Columbia River

The very first settlement of Americans on the Pacific Coast was established in 1811 at the mouth of the Columbia River at Astoria, where John Jacob Astor of New York established the Pacific Fur Company Trading Post in 1810

Just north of Seaside is Gearhart by the Sea

The Seaside Turnaround is a very popular place come Spring and Summer vacations

Bayocean was built on the sand, right up to the ocean. It became the amusement resort that fell into the sea.

Pixieland opened at Otis, Oregon, near Lincoln City in 1969. This short-lived theme park disappeared within five years.

Nye Beach remains Newport’s center of culture and inspiration

Oregon’s world famous Sea Lion Caves are one of the most popular stops on the Oregon Coast Highway

During the 1930's, Conde B. McCullough designed several bridges for the Oregon Highway Department along what is now Highway 101. In all, he designed 25 or more bridges for the State of Oregon.

Though they have seen better days, most of these bridges are still in use today. During the last decade, the Alsea Bay Bridge in Waldport, one of the larger bridges, was replaced with a modern span that lacks the character and beauty of the original bridge.

The Yaquina Bay Bridge in Newport, which is guarded by the famous Haunted Light by the Sea

The Alsea Bay Bridge at Waldport was the first to be replaced

The Siuslaw River Bridge at Florence

The Rogue River Bridge at Wedderburn

The Coos Bay Bridge at North Bend

The Cape Arago Bridge and Lighthouse which were at the mouth of Coos Bay. Oregon has nine lighthouses and five of them are still in operation.

These pictures are dedicated to the memory of Barbara Brink, a very close family friend. After she passed away, her husband was going through her desk, and he came upon a set of old post cards featuring the Oregon Coast. He knew that I collected post cards and saved them for me. When she was a youngster, her family made their home in Toledo, which is near Newport.

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