CogKnoSys

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Physical

Columbia County, Oregon

Columbia County is one of the 36 counties in Oregon, and its county seat is the city of St. Helens.

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The idea

Columbia County is one of the 36 counties in the U.S. state of Oregon. Its county seat is St. Helens. A county seat is the town where a county's government is based. Its other cities include Clatskanie, Rainier, Scappoose and Vernonia. The federal government counts the county as part of the Portland metropolitan area.

The county covers 688 square miles, 657 of them land, and it is Oregon's third-smallest county by land area. The county has suffered numerous flooding disasters over the years. Across the Columbia River, it borders three Washington counties: Wahkiakum, Cowlitz and Clark. Three elected commissioners govern the county, and each serves a four-year term. In 2016, Donald Trump won the county with just under fifty percent of the vote, breaking its tradition of choosing Democrats for president.

The main industries are wood products and paper manufacturing, trade, construction and horticulture. Huge stands of old-growth timber first attracted many settlers. Younger second-growth trees supply the raw material for local lumber and paper mills. Many of the county's workers commute somewhere else for their jobs, most of them to the nearby Portland area.

Check yourself

Question 1 of 3

Which city is the county seat of Columbia County?

Pick one. The first pick counts.

Composition

what it's made of

  • St. Helens — The county seat since 1857, when it took over from Milton.
  • Seven cities — Clatskanie, Columbia City, Prescott, Rainier, St. Helens, Scappoose and Vernonia.
  • Nehalem River — A river that flooded Vernonia and nearby rural land in December 2007.
  • Julia Butler Hansen National Wildlife Refuge — Part of this national wildlife refuge lies in the county.
  • CC Rider — The county's bus service, which the county has run directly since July 2022.

Connection

how it relates

Under Lower Columbia Counties

In place

  1. St. Helens, Oregonstrength 90 of 100

    St. Helens has been the county seat of Columbia County since 1857.

  2. Columbia Riverstrength 70 of 100

    The Lewis and Clark Expedition camped along the Columbia River shore in the area that became Columbia County.

  3. Lewis and Clark Bridgestrength 60 of 100

    The Lewis and Clark Bridge crosses the Columbia River between Rainier, Oregon, and Longview, Washington.

  4. Sauvie Islandstrength 60 of 100

    The northern third of Sauvie Island lies in Columbia County.

Change

how and why it evolves

Past
The Chinook and Clatskanie peoples lived in the region for centuries before Robert Gray arrived in 1792. Columbia County was created in 1854 from the northern half of Washington County, and the county seat moved from Milton to St. Helens in 1857. By the 1950s, its old-growth forests had been completely logged.
Now
In the 2020 census, the county had 52,589 people.
Next
County leaders will likely keep looking for steady ways to pay for the local bus service.

Knowledge you can walk. Read the idea, then step up, across or down.

Columbia County, Oregon

Columbia County is one of the 36 counties in Oregon, and its county seat is the city of St. Helens.

See it on the map

Learn, discuss, create, buy or invest

The idea

Columbia County is one of the 36 counties in the U.S. state of Oregon. Its county seat is St. Helens. A county seat is the town where a county's government is based. Its other cities include Clatskanie, Rainier, Scappoose and Vernonia. The federal government counts the county as part of the Portland metropolitan area.

The county covers 688 square miles, 657 of them land, and it is Oregon's third-smallest county by land area. The county has suffered numerous flooding disasters over the years. Across the Columbia River, it borders three Washington counties: Wahkiakum, Cowlitz and Clark. Three elected commissioners govern the county, and each serves a four-year term. In 2016, Donald Trump won the county with just under fifty percent of the vote, breaking its tradition of choosing Democrats for president.

The main industries are wood products and paper manufacturing, trade, construction and horticulture. Huge stands of old-growth timber first attracted many settlers. Younger second-growth trees supply the raw material for local lumber and paper mills. Many of the county's workers commute somewhere else for their jobs, most of them to the nearby Portland area.

Check yourself

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