Cecil is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...

in Morrow County,

Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...

, United States. It is about northwest of Ione, on

Oregon Route 74 Oregon Route 74 is an Oregon, U.S. state highway running from Interstate 84 in Gilliam County to U.S. Route 395 in Umatilla County. OR 74 is known as the Heppner Highway No. 52 (see Oregon highways and routes The state highway system of the ...

. The

Oregon Trail The Oregon Trail was a east–west, large-wheeled wagon route and Westward Expansion Trails, emigrant trail in the United States that connected the Missouri River to valleys in Oregon. The eastern part of the Oregon Trail spanned part of what ...

crossed Willow Creek here, and it was once an important

stagecoach A stagecoach is a four-wheeled public transport coach used to carry paying passengers and light packages on journeys long enough to need a change of horses. It is strongly sprung and generally drawn by four horses although some versions are draw ...

stop. Cecil was the name of a railroad station on the Heppner Branch of the

Union Pacific The Union Pacific Railroad , legally Union Pacific Railroad Company and often called simply Union Pacific, is a freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Paci ...

railroad. In 1867, a post office named "Cecils" was established a mile south of the station; it ran until 1870. Cecil post office was established in 1902 and closed in 1974. The Cecil family, including William Cecil, a pioneer of 1862, owned large amounts of land in the area and donated the site for the post office. In 1940, Cecil had a population of 15. As of 1993, Cecil had a store and gas station. The store is no longer operating. In 1993, the Union Pacific Railroad filed for abandonment of the Heppner Branch. The last train ran on the line on June 30, 1994, and all traces of the line including bridges, tracks, and depots were gone by August 1994.

References

External links

Historic image of the Cecil store
from Salem Public Library
Images of Cecil
from Flickr Unincorporated communities in Morrow County, Oregon 1867 establishments in Oregon Populated places established in 1867 Unincorporated communities in Oregon {{MorrowCountyOR-geo-stub