Riley is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a parcel of land that is not governed by a local general-purpose municipal corporation. (At p. 178.) They may be governed or serviced by an encompassing unit (such as a county) or another branch of the state (such as th ...

in Harney County,

Oregon Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...

, United States, located at the crossroads of U.S. Highway 395 and U.S. Highway 20, milepost 104, about west of Burns, the seat of Harney County. The elevation of Riley is . The town presently consists entirely of two service establishments with attached apartments: a post office, and a general store with gas pump and garage service. It exists to serve the rural farming and ranching community that surrounds it, and highway travelers. Farmers grow

alfalfa Alfalfa () (''Medicago sativa''), also called lucerne, is a perennial plant, perennial flowering plant in the legume family Fabaceae. It is cultivated as an important forage crop in many countries around the world. It is used for grazing, hay, ...

, hay, and root crops. The Oregon Department of Transportation has a camera for road and weather conditions located at the intersection of U.S. 20 and U.S. 395 in Riley, facing west-northwest.

History

The town began with the establishment of a post office in about 1885, and was named for stockman Amos Riley of the

ranch A ranch (from /Mexican Spanish) is an area of landscape, land, including various structures, given primarily to ranching, the practice of raising grazing livestock such as cattle and sheep. It is a subtype of farm. These terms are most often ap ...

ing partnership Riley and Hardin. Previously, the nearest post office was at Hardin, northwest of Riley, so the people who lived along Silver Creek made Riley their new gathering spot. Riley's post office closed in 1919, but was reopened in 1949 after an office at Suntex was closed.

Climate

According to the

Köppen Climate Classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

system, Riley has a

semi-arid climate A semi-arid climate, semi-desert climate, or steppe climate is a dry climate sub-type. It is located on regions that receive precipitation below potential evapotranspiration, but not as low as a desert climate. There are different kinds of se ...

, abbreviated "BSk" on climate maps.

Points of interest

* Chickahominy Reservoir

Transportation

In the 21st century, Riley is a stop on the Eastern POINT intercity bus line between Bend and

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

. It makes one stop per day in each direction.

Education

The zoned

K-8 school K8 or K-8 may refer to: * K-8 (Kansas highway), two highways in Kansas, one in northern Kansas, one in southern Kansas * K-8 school, a type of school that includes kindergarten and grades one through eight * K8 telephone box, designed by Bruce M ...

is Suntex Elementary School,
Text list
- Compare to the highway map. which has a Riley postal address. The previous campus was destroyed in a 1978 fire. High school students are zoned to Crane Union High School, of Harney County Union High School District 1J. A 1975 proposal to merge the Suntex and Double O districts along with the elementary school districts of Burns and Hines, as well as the Burns high school district, was turned down by voters. The Burns and Hines elementary districts and the Burns high school district ultimately combined into Harney County School District 3 in 1989. Harney County is not in a community college district but has a "contract out of district" (COD) with Treasure Valley Community College. TVCC operates the Burns Outreach Center in Burns.

References

External links

History of Riley from Harney County Chamber of Commerce
{{Authority control Unincorporated communities in Harney County, Oregon 1885 establishments in Oregon Populated places established in 1885 Unincorporated communities in Oregon