It’s Oregon’s birthday, everyone! 158 years ago our particular piece of geography went from being a territory to a full-fledged member of these United States. In celebration of our state’s birthday, here are some facts about Oregon that you might not know.
-Oregon has a double-sided flag, just like Paraguay!
-Oregon is America’s ninth largest state. We cracked the top ten, everyone!
-Oregon’s first state motto was “The Union,” because in the 1850s mottos didn’t need verbs. Now the official state motto is “Alis Volat Propriis,” which means “She flies with her own wings.”
–Oregon was the first state with a bottle bill. You know that episode of Seinfeld where Kramer tries to recycle all of his bottles and cans in Michigan because they have a greater redemption value there? That would have never happened without Oregon!
-Oregon’s official state beverage is not beer for some reason. It’s milk.
-The Oregon coastline is public land. If you want to walk up to the Pacific Ocean you can just, well, do that. Thank Oswald West and Tom McCall! They were a pair of cranky governors who saved us from the scourge of private beaches.
-Our official state song is Oregon My Oregon!
-Oregon has more ghost towns than any other state!
-Oregon is home to the humongous fungus, the largest organism in the world!
-No one really knows where the name “Oregon” comes from. It’s mystified people for a long time. Maybe it had something to do with large ears?
Happy birthday, Oregon! You’re swell. Here’s to another 158 years!
Oregon Was Founded As a Racist Utopia. When Oregon was granted statehood in 1859, it was the only state in the Union admitted with a constitution that forbade black people from living, working, or owning property there. It was illegal for black people even to move to the state until 1926.
Fuck your birthday, state of Oregon. After a very tumultuous adolescence, experimenting with inclusivity, diversity, equality and ganja, you grew up to be a pretentious, douchebag Californian developer who can’t even get behind their own (new) home-town basketball team.
😒