Oregon

Or·e·gon  (ôr-gn, -gn, r-)

Abbr. OR or Ore.

A state of the northwest United States in the Pacific Northwest. It was admitted as the 33rd state in 1859. Claimed by the United States after Capt. Robert Gray explored the mouth of the Columbia River in 1792, the area was further explored by Lewis and Clark in 1805 and was soon the site of fur-trading posts. The Oregon Country, a region encompassing all the land from the California border to Alaska and the Pacific Ocean to the Rocky Mountains, was held jointly by Great Britain and the United States from 1818 until 1846, when the international boundary was fixed at the 49th parallel. In 1848 the Oregon Territory was created, including all of present-day Washington and Idaho. The state's current boundaries were established in 1853. Salem is the capital and Portland the largest city. Population: 3,750,000.

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Ore·goni·an (-gn-n) adj. & n.

Thesaurus

Noun

1.

Oregon - a state in northwestern United States on the Pacific Beaver State, OR Pacific Northwest - a region of the northwestern United States usually including Washington and Oregon and sometimes southwestern British Columbia Crater Lake National Park - a national park in Oregon having the deepest lake in the United States in the crater of an extinct volcano U.S.A., United States, United States of America, US, USA, America, the States, U.S. - North American republic containing 50 states - 48 conterminous states in North America plus Alaska in northwest North America and the Hawaiian Islands in the Pacific Ocean; achieved independence in 1776 Bend - a town in central Oregon at the eastern foot of the Cascade Range Eugene - a city in western Oregon on the Willamette River; site of a university Klamath Falls - a town in southern Oregon near the California border Medford - a town in southwestern Oregon; a summer resort Portland - freshwater port and largest city in Oregon; located in northwestern Oregon on the Willamette River which divides the city into east and west sections; renowned for its beautiful natural setting among the mountains capital of Oregon, Salem - capital of the state of Oregon in the northwestern part of the state on the Willamette River Klamath, Klamath River - a river flowing southwest from Oregon through northern California to the Pacific Ocean Snake River, Snake - a tributary of the Columbia River that rises in Wyoming and flows westward; discovered in 1805 by the Lewis and Clark Expedition Willamette, Willamette River - a river in western Oregon that flows north into the Columbia River near Portland