[Heritage] Oregon Heritage News 2009-01-29

[Heritage Info]

Special Sesquicentennial Edition
Oregon's 150th birthday is only two weeks away. Here's a sampling of
the heritage activities that will be taking place that weekend in Bend,
Champoeg, Eugene, Monmouth, Rickreal, Salem and Tualatin.

BEND
The High Desert Museum will mark Feb. 14 with cake, an Oregon author
appearance, and the announcement of the winners of a fourth-grade
writing contest. Students wrote stories about an image from among the
"Faces of the High Desert Heartland" sesquicentennial exhibit of
photography from daily life in rural Oregon from 1895 through 1955. At
1:30 p.m., author Diane Hammond will talk about writing fiction in
Oregon. From 10 a.m.-3 p.m., there will be crafts of the Native American
culture of the High Desert. The High Desert Museum is located five
minutes south of Bend on Highway 97. Phone  (541) 382-4754 or visit
www.highdesertmuseum.org for more information.

CHAMPOEG
Champoeg State Heritage Area will commemorate statehood from 10 a.m.-4
p.m. Feb. 14 with events sponsored by Friends of Historic Champoeg,
Daughters of the American Revolution in cooperation with Oregon Parks
and Recreation Department. The days activities will include a grand
opening of new exhibits at 10:30 a.m., junior ranger activities at 10:30
a.m., a historical presentation by interpretive ranger Mike Niss at 1
p.m., and Janice Marschner, author of "Oregon 1859: A Snapshot in Time"

Champoeg State Heritage Area Visitor Center is located at 8239 Champoeg
Road NE, St. Paul. Additional information is available from 503-678-1251
x 221 or at
http://www.oregonstateparks.org/images/pdf/events/Champ_Feb14.pdf

EUGENE
The Lane County Historical Society and Museum will opening a new
exhibit "Changing Demographics: The People of Lane County" from noon-4
p.m. Feb. 14. The exhibit portrays the diversity of the state over time
and includes stories of the peoples, groups and individuals who have
made Oregon their hoe during the past 150 years. Music and ethnic food
will be provided. The Lane County Historical Society and Museum is
located at the Lane County Fairgrounds, 740 W. 13th Ave. Call
541-682-4242 or visit www.lanecountyhistoricalsociety.org 

MONMOUTH
Western Oregon University will have more than a half dozen activities
commemorating statehood. At 7:30 p.m. Feb. 12, Kevin Helppie of the WOU
music department will perform music made in Oregon in Smith Hall 121. At
9 a.m in the Hamersly Library, a daylong interdisciplinary symposium
will feature WOU faculty members analyzing Oregon's history and culture
with implications for the next 150 years and beyond. The speakers will
include history professor Max Geier talking about "Big History and Lost
Selves: Militarized Identities in Oregon" at 9:15 a.m., anthropology
professor Doug Smith speaking on "Border Economies and Border Policy:
Implications for Oregon" at 10:45 a.m., geography professor Shaun Huston
screening and discussing the film "24-Hour Comic Day at Cosmic Monkey"
at noon, history professor Kim Jensen speaking on "Citizens and
Activists: Oregon Women Beyond Suffrage" at 1:15 p.m., and science
professors Bryan Dutton and Steve Taylor talking about invasive plant
species in Oregon's past present and future at 2:45 p.m. For more
information, contact 503 838 8318.

RICKREAL
The Polk County Historical Society will host a program about Oregon
Century Farms in Polk County at 1 p.m. Feb. 14 at its museum on the Polk
County Fairgrounds. For more information, visit 
www.polkcountyhistoricalsociety.com or phone 503-623-6251.

SALEM
Oregon's capital city will mark the day with more than 12 hours of
activity at a half dozen venues, including a family day at the Capitol.
Other sites with sesquicentennial activity include Mission Mill Museum,
Bush House Museum, and A.C. Gilbert's Discovery Village. The Oregon
National Guard Association will stage the Oregon Ball in the evening,
while the Department of State Lands employees will be involved in their
Leave a Legacy Project, and the Oregon Century Farm and Ranch Program
inducts its newest sesquicentennial farms. A complete list of the
activities and events is available at
http://www.oregon.gov/OPRD/HCD/HPOR150.shtml

TUALATIN
A theater production *The Road to Statehood-the Tualatin
Connection* will take place at 2 p.m. Feb. 15 in Tualatin*s
Heritage Center. The play focuses on two Tualatin residents, Nathaniel
Robbins and Levi Anderson, who participated in the 1857 constitutional
convention. It includes a fiddle and guitar player performing 1850s
fiddle tunes and a sing-along of the state song *Oregon, My Oregon.*
For more information, contact the Heritage Center at 503-885-1926.
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Oregon Heritage News is a service of the Oregon Heritage Commission,
which can be contacted at heritage.info at state.or.us