Umpqua National Forest

W E L C O M E !

You are invited to a celebration that has been 100 years in the making. The Umpqua National Forest is celebrating 100 years of caring for the land and serving people. As part of our celebration, we developed an area of our forest web site to include our history, as we know it, complete with historic photographs. You can also find out about the celebrations we have planned this year and take a fun Forest Ranger Exam from 1908. Enjoy the site and join us for our centennial!

High Cascades glaciation, whitewater rapids and explosive volcanic events have shaped the spectacular scenery and abundant natural resources of the Umpqua National Forest.

The lands were included as part of the Cascade Forest Reserve in 1893. In 1908, Congress designated close to a million acres as the Umpqua National Forest.

The headwaters of the North and South Umpqua rivers and Row River begin on the Forest. Verdant stands of hemlock, true fir, Douglas-fir and cedar transition to lower elevation forests of mixed conifers and hardwoods. The waterways and diverse landscapes of the Forest create desirable habitat for many species of fish and wildlife in addition to providing outstanding recreational opportunities to our local communities and visitors.

THE UMPQUA NATIONAL FOREST IN SOUTHWESTERN OREGON...

...is nestled on the westside of the Cascade Mountains. Explosive geologic events have shaped the distinctive landscape on the 984,602-acre forest, and provide spectacular scenery as well as an abundance of natural and cultural resources. Visitors discover a diverse place of thundering waters, high mountain lakes, heart-stopping rapids, and peaceful ponds. The Forest is characterized by its many waterfalls, including the 272-foot Watson Falls on the North Umpqua Highway. The Boulder Creek Wilderness, 19,100 acres, is entirely within the Forest boundaries. Two other wilderness are shared with other Forests: Rogue-Umpqua Divide Wilderness, 26,350 acres, and Mt. Thielsen Wilderness, 26,593 acres.

The Umpqua National Forest is at the juncture of several distinct geologic provinces, providing a wide spectrum of habitat for a wide diversity of plants and wildlife. The Forest is home to 18 fish species, including winter steelhead, Chinook and coho salmon, and sea-run cutthroat trout. The Forest abounds with 66 mammal species, 236 bird species, and 27 reptile and amphibian species. Anadromous, or sea-going fish enjoy 359 miles of streams with thousands more miles of streams covering the forest landscape.

HISTORY

What does "Umpqua" mean? "Thundering waters" or "across the waters" are two popular translations for this surviving word of the Umpqua language. Another definition is "satisfied" -- as in a full stomach.

Ancestors of the Umpqua, Southern Molalla, Yoncalla, and Cow Creek Band of Umpqua Tribe of Indians lived here before Mt. Mazama erupted forming Crater Lake nearly 7,000 years ago. The Indians were moved to reservations in 1856. As Europeans bought reservation lands, the tribes further fragmented to become farmers and ranchers in the Umpqua Valley.

The Umpqua National Forest had its genesis on March 2, 1907, in the setting aside of acreage in the Coast Range in Douglas County. Two days later, Congress renamed all of the forest reserves as national forests. The Forest Service broke up the Cascade Forest Reserve on July 1, 1908, into what became the Mt. Hood, Willamette, Umpqua, and Rogue River National Forests. On the Umpqua, Forest Service staff began building trails, constructing bridges, fighting fire, monitoring grazing, and erecting lookouts. Logging and mining began in 1925.

The Civilian Conservation Corps shaped part of the Forest by building roads, bridges and recreation facilities in the 1930s. After the road connecting Roseburg and Diamond Lake was completed in 1940, it took another 25 years to become a major eastern route. With the new route in place, logging increased in the upper reaches of the Forest. The Umpqua National Forest currently has 54 developed campgrounds with nearly 800 campsites, 5 historic cabins and lookouts available for rent, 350 miles of trail maintained for year-round use, 1,150 miles of roads maintained for car travel, and 4 staffed lookouts.

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