Austin, Oregon | |
|---|---|
  Austin, Oregon | |
| Coordinates:44°36′10″N118°29′48″W / 44.602656°N 118.49661°W /44.602656; -118.49661 | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Oregon |
| County | Grant County |
| Founded | late 1800s |
Austin is anunincorporated community, considered aghost town,[1][2] inGrant County,Oregon,United States. It is located north ofOregon Route 7, near theMiddle Fork John Day River in theMalheur National Forest.
Austin was named for Minot and Linda Austin, early settlers of the area.[3][4] The Austins operated a small store and hotel, Austin House. Austin House was started as a hotel andstagecoach station by a Mr. Newton.[2] Austin post office was established in 1888 and closed in 1950.[3]
The tracks of theSumpter Valley Railway reached Austin in 1905.[4] The railway was built byOregon Lumber Company and Austin became an important railroadlogging community.[5]Austin was the hub of the area untilBates, a company town of the Oregon Lumber Company,[4] was built 1 mile (1.6 km) to the west.[5] Austin was also a supply depot for local mining towns, includingSusanville andGalena. Austinsawmills supplied lumber for places such asGreenhorn and the Bonanza Mine, higher up in theBlue Mountains.[2] At its height, the population was about 500 (some estimates say it was high as 5,000)[2] and the community had three sawmills.[1][2] The town also had a substantial jail and the offices of several doctors, lawyers and real estate operators.[2] As the neighboring mining towns disappeared, however, Austin also went into decline.[2]
By 1997, a newer business called Austin House was the only business remaining in the Austin area, atAustin Junction where Oregon Route 7 meetsU.S. Route 26. Built in 1959,[6] the business is about 2.5 miles (4.0 km) from the original site of Austin and serves as a combination tavern, grocery store, restaurant and gas station.[3] As of 2002, fewer than 35 people lived within a 5-mile (8.0 km) radius of Austin.[5]
| Climate data for Austin, Oregon, 1991–2020 normals, 1912-2020 extremes: 4213ft (1284m) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °F (°C) | 58 (14) | 65 (18) | 75 (24) | 90 (32) | 95 (35) | 103 (39) | 108 (42) | 103 (39) | 99 (37) | 89 (32) | 73 (23) | 60 (16) | 108 (42) |
| Mean maximum °F (°C) | 49.2 (9.6) | 53.4 (11.9) | 61.9 (16.6) | 73.5 (23.1) | 83.5 (28.6) | 89.0 (31.7) | 95.5 (35.3) | 94.4 (34.7) | 89.4 (31.9) | 76.9 (24.9) | 60.2 (15.7) | 47.8 (8.8) | 95.8 (35.4) |
| Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 34.4 (1.3) | 39.4 (4.1) | 46.1 (7.8) | 52.9 (11.6) | 62.0 (16.7) | 71.3 (21.8) | 83.4 (28.6) | 82.7 (28.2) | 73.3 (22.9) | 58.5 (14.7) | 42.0 (5.6) | 33.5 (0.8) | 56.6 (13.7) |
| Daily mean °F (°C) | 24.8 (−4.0) | 29.0 (−1.7) | 34.7 (1.5) | 40.4 (4.7) | 47.9 (8.8) | 54.9 (12.7) | 63.3 (17.4) | 62.4 (16.9) | 54.1 (12.3) | 43.3 (6.3) | 32.1 (0.1) | 24.8 (−4.0) | 42.6 (5.9) |
| Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 15.2 (−9.3) | 18.5 (−7.5) | 23.2 (−4.9) | 27.8 (−2.3) | 33.8 (1.0) | 38.5 (3.6) | 43.2 (6.2) | 42.0 (5.6) | 34.8 (1.6) | 28.2 (−2.1) | 22.2 (−5.4) | 16.0 (−8.9) | 28.6 (−1.9) |
| Mean minimum °F (°C) | −7.7 (−22.1) | −6.3 (−21.3) | 6.1 (−14.4) | 15.9 (−8.9) | 21.4 (−5.9) | 27.3 (−2.6) | 31.3 (−0.4) | 29.3 (−1.5) | 21.4 (−5.9) | 12.6 (−10.8) | 2.5 (−16.4) | −8.5 (−22.5) | −16.3 (−26.8) |
| Record low °F (°C) | −52 (−47) | −47 (−44) | −25 (−32) | −1 (−18) | 7 (−14) | 13 (−11) | 15 (−9) | 17 (−8) | 10 (−12) | −6 (−21) | −29 (−34) | −41 (−41) | −52 (−47) |
| Averageprecipitation inches (mm) | 2.56 (65) | 1.74 (44) | 1.92 (49) | 1.66 (42) | 1.84 (47) | 1.62 (41) | 0.69 (18) | 0.71 (18) | 0.79 (20) | 1.25 (32) | 2.66 (68) | 3.32 (84) | 20.76 (528) |
| Average snowfall inches (cm) | 22.3 (57) | 11.3 (29) | 7.1 (18) | 2.8 (7.1) | 0.4 (1.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.1 (0.25) | 0.8 (2.0) | 11.1 (28) | 26.8 (68) | 82.7 (210.35) |
| Average extreme snow depth inches (cm) | 20.7 (53) | 21.6 (55) | 14.7 (37) | 3.3 (8.4) | 0.6 (1.5) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.7 (1.8) | 7.5 (19) | 16.0 (41) | 26.2 (67) |
| Source 1: NOAA (1981-2010 snowfall)[7][8] | |||||||||||||
| Source 2: XMACIS2 (records, 1981-2010 monthly max/mins & snow depth)[9] | |||||||||||||
44°36′10″N118°29′48″W / 44.602656°N 118.496611°W /44.602656; -118.496611
Municipalities and communities ofGrant County, Oregon,United States | ||
|---|---|---|
| Cities |  | |
| Unincorporated communities | ||
| Ghost towns | ||
| Footnotes | ‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties | |