The Willamette Stone was a small stone

obelisk An obelisk (; , diminutive of (') ' spit, nail, pointed pillar') is a tall, slender, tapered monument with four sides and a pyramidal or pyramidion top. Originally constructed by Ancient Egyptians and called ''tekhenu'', the Greeks used th ...

originally installed by the

Department of Interior The United States Department of the Interior (DOI) is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the management and conservation of most federal lands and natural resources. It also administers programs relating t ...

in 1885 in the western hills of

Portland, Oregon Portland ( ) is the List of cities in Oregon, most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon, located in the Pacific Northwest region. Situated close to northwest Oregon at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, ...

, in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

to mark the intersection and origin of the Willamette

meridian Meridian or a meridian line (from Latin ''meridies'' via Old French ''meridiane'', meaning “midday”) may refer to Science * Meridian (astronomy), imaginary circle in a plane perpendicular to the planes of the celestial equator and horizon * ...

and Willamette baseline. It replaced a cedar stake placed by the Surveyor General of the Oregon Territory in 1851; this stake defined the grid system of

sections Section, Sectioning, or Sectioned may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * Section (music), a complete, but not independent, musical idea * Section (typography), a subdivision, especially of a chapter, in books and documents ** Section sig ...

and

townships A township is a form of human settlement or administrative subdivision. Its exact definition varies among countries. Although the term is occasionally associated with an urban area, this tends to be an exception to the rule. In Australia, Canad ...

from which all

real property In English common law, real property, real estate, immovable property or, solely in the US and Canada, realty, refers to parcels of land and any associated structures which are the property of a person. For a structure (also called an Land i ...

in the states of

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 ...

and

Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...

has been measured following the

Donation Land Claim Act of 1850 The Donation Land Claim Act of 1850, sometimes known as the Donation Land Act, was a statute enacted by the United States Congress in late 1850, intended to promote homestead settlements in the Oregon Territory. It followed the Distribution-Pre ...

. The Willamette meridian runs north–south, and the Willamette baseline runs east–west through the marker. The easternmost northeast corner of Washington County is sited on the marker.

History

The location of the obelisk is now indicated by a stainless steel marker in Willamette Stone State Heritage Site, an Oregon state park approximately west of downtown Portland. The site is near Skyline Boulevard, in the West Hills overlooking the

Tualatin Valley The Tualatin Valley is a farming and suburban region southwest of Portland, Oregon. The valley is formed by the meandering Tualatin River, a tributary of the Willamette River at the northwest corner of the Willamette Valley, east of the Northe ...

and the

Willamette River The Willamette River ( ) is a major tributary of the Columbia River, accounting for 12 to 15 percent of the Columbia's flow. The Willamette's main stem is long, lying entirely in northwestern Oregon in the United States. Flowing northward ...

watershed. The grid defined by the stone extended the

Public Land Survey System The Public Land Survey System (PLSS) is the surveying method developed and used in the United States to plat, or divide, real property for sale and settling. Also known as the Rectangular Survey System, it was created by the Land Ordinance of 17 ...

and was used as the basis of land claims in the

Oregon Territory The Territory of Oregon was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from August 14, 1848, until February 14, 1859, when the southwestern portion of the territory was admitted to the United States, Union as the Oreg ...

. The first marker, a red cedar stake, was placed on the site on June 4, 1851, by John B. Preston, the first Surveyor General of the Oregon Territory.Corning, Howard M. (1989) ''Dictionary of Oregon History''. Binfords & Mort Publishing. p. 138. Preston was appointed by President

Millard Fillmore Millard Fillmore (January 7, 1800 – March 8, 1874) was the 13th president of the United States, serving from 1850 to 1853. He was the last president to be a member of the Whig Party while in the White House, and the last to be neither a De ...

to create a system for surveying land in the territory; he lost his position in 1853, and "drifted into obscurity." The location was chosen such that the baseline would not cross the

Columbia River The Columbia River (Upper Chinook language, Upper Chinook: ' or '; Sahaptin language, Sahaptin: ''Nch’i-Wàna'' or ''Nchi wana''; Sinixt dialect'' '') is the largest river in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. The river headwater ...

and the

would lie west of

Vancouver Lake Vancouver Lake is located just west of Vancouver, Washington, United States, north of the Columbia River and Portland, Oregon, south of Ridgefield, Washington, and the Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge. The lake is shallow, with a maximum dept ...

. The meridian and baseline were surveyed using

solar compass Burt's solar compass or astronomical compass/sun compass is a surveying instrument that makes use of the Sun's direction instead of magnetism. William Austin Burt invented his solar compass in 1835. The solar compass works on the principle that ...

es by James E. Freeman of Wisconsin and William Ives of Michigan. Ives surveyed the baseline in both directions and the meridian to the north; Freeman surveyed the meridian to the south. The grid system was an extension of the system used in the

Northwest Territory The Northwest Territory, also known as the Old Northwest and formally known as the Territory Northwest of the River Ohio, was formed from part of the unorganized western territory of the United States after the American Revolution. Established ...

proposed by

Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson (, 1743July 4, 1826) was an American Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the third president of the United States from 1801 to 1809. He was the primary author of the United States Declaration of Indepe ...

. The Willamette Stone marked the location of the first townships and ranges north and south of the marker. The Department of Interior replaced the stake with a stone obelisk on July 25, 1885. On two sides, the stone was marked with the words "BASE" and "LINE", while on the other two sides it was marked with the words "WILL." and "MER." As the stone was vandalized in the 1980s, the federal government replaced it with the current marker. An accompanying bronze plaque was also placed by the State of Oregon which read:

Beginning here, the Willamette meridian was established running north to Puget Sound and south to the California border, and the baseline was established running east to the Idaho border and west to the
Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five Borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is ...
.

As part of the replacement project, the park was also improved which included adding signage, information boards, and improving the trail and parking areas. The park was re-dedicated by

Governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

Vic Atiyeh Victor George Atiyeh (; February 20, 1923 – July 20, 2014) was an American politician who served as the 32nd governor of Oregon from 1979 to 1987. He was also the first elected governor of Middle Eastern descent and of Syrian descent in the U ...

in 1988.

Streets

The location of the Willamette meridian and Willamette baseline can be identified by various streets that follow or parallel their courses, often named to call attention to this fact.

North–South streets and the meridian

;Streets named because they follow the meridian *In

Clackamas County Clackamas County ( ) is one of the 36 counties in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2020 census, the population was 421,401, making it Oregon's third-most populous county. Its county seat is Oregon City. The county was named after the na ...

, SW Stafford Road and Meridian Road follow the meridian. *In Marion County several sections of Meridian Road follow the meridian, but hilly terrain forces many deviations. *In Linn County, portions of Meridian Heights Loop, north of Sweet Home follow the meridian. *In Jackson County, Meridian Road follows several miles of the meridian. *In

Thurston County, Washington Thurston County is a County (United States), county located in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, its population was 294,793. The county seat is Olympia, Washington, Olympia, the ...

, east of Lacey, three sections of Meridian Road follow the meridian, totaling about three miles (5 km). *In

Kitsap County, Washington Kitsap County is a county in the U.S. state of Washington. As of the 2020 census, its population was 275,611. Its county seat is Port Orchard; its largest city is Bremerton. The county, formed out of King County and Jefferson County on Ja ...

, west of Silverdale near Apex Airport, Willamette Meridian Road NW follows the meridian for about three miles (5 km). ;Other streets that follow the meridian *In

Multnomah County Multnomah County is one of the 36 counties in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2020 census, the county's population was 815,428. Multnomah County is part of the Portland metropolitan area. The state's smallest and most populous county, it ...

, SW 65th Avenue and a short section of

Interstate 5 Interstate 5 (I-5) is the main north–south Interstate Highway System, Interstate Highway on the West Coast of the United States, running largely parallel to the Pacific coast of the contiguous U.S. from Mexico to Canada. It travels thro ...

immediately south of the Barbur Blvd. interchange overlay the meridian. *In

Clark County, Washington Clark County is the southernmost county in the U.S. state of Washington. As of the 2020 census, the population was 503,311, making it Washington's fifth-most populous county. Its county seat and largest city is Vancouver. It was the first ...

, north of Ridgefield, NW 71st Avenue follows the meridian for about two miles. *In

Lewis County, Washington Lewis County is a county in the U.S. state of Washington. As of the 2020 census, the county's population was 82,149. The county seat is Chehalis, and its largest city is Centralia. Lewis County comprises the Centralia, WA Micropolitan Stat ...

, east of

Toledo Toledo most commonly refers to: * Toledo, Spain, a city in Spain * Province of Toledo, Spain * Toledo, Ohio, a city in the United States Toledo may also refer to: Places Belize * Toledo District * Toledo Settlement Bolivia * Toledo, Or ...

, Templeton and Schmidt roads follow the meridian for the mile adjacent to SR 505. South of

US Highway 12 U.S. Route 12 or U.S. Highway 12 (US 12) is an east–west United States Numbered Highway, running from Aberdeen, Washington, to Detroit, Michigan, for almost . The highway has mostly been superseded by Interstate 90 (I-90) a ...

Ethel Ethel (also '' æthel'') is an Old English word meaning "noble", today often used as a feminine given name. Etymology and historic usage The word means ''æthel'' "noble". It is frequently attested as the first element in Anglo-Saxon names, ...

, Tucker and Classe Roads follow the meridian for about 3 miles. *In

Pierce County, Washington Pierce County is a County (United States), county in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 921,130, up from 795,225 in 2010, making it the second-most populous ...

, on the

Key Peninsula The Key Peninsula lies along Puget Sound to the south of Kitsap Peninsula in the U.S. state of Washington. It is part of Pierce County and is bordered to the west by Case Inlet and to the east by Carr Inlet. The peninsula is approximately 16 mi ...

, 150th Avenue S follows the meridian its entire length. *In

, east of Lacey, Tucker Road SE (no relation to the Tucker Road in Lewis County) follows the meridian for about . *In

, near the western border of

Naval Submarine Base Bangor Naval Submarine Base Bangor is a former submarine base of the United States Navy that was merged with Naval Station Bremerton into Naval Base Kitsap in 2004. History The Naval Support Base Bangor's naval history began in 1942 when it became a s ...

, parts of Lester Road NW, Grampus Road, and Snook Road follow the meridian for a total of about two miles. *In

Whatcom County, Washington Whatcom County (, ) is a County (United States), county located in the northwestern corner of the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington, bordered by the Lower Mainland (the Metro Vancouver and Fraser Valley Regional Districts) of the ...

, near Birch Bay, Jackson Road (south of the bay) and Harborview Road (north of the bay) both follow the meridian, for a total of about five miles. *In

Jefferson County, Washington Jefferson County is a county located in the U.S. state of Washington. As of the 2020 census, the population was 32,977. The county seat and only incorporated city is Port Townsend. The county is named for Thomas Jefferson. Jefferson County ...

, near Hadlock, Cleveland Street, south of Port Townsend Bay, follows the meridian for about 3 blocks. ;Streets named because they parallel the meridian *In

, Guide Meridian Road ( State Route 539) is named after the Guide Meridian between R2E and R3E, east of the Willamette meridian. *In Newberg, Meridian Street is several miles west of the Willamette meridian.

East–West streets and the baseline

;Streets named because they follow the baseline *Baseline Road in Tillamook,

, Hood River, Gilliam, and

Morrow Morrow may refer to: Places in the United States and Canada United States * Morrow, Arkansas *Morrow, Georgia * Morrow, Louisiana * Morrow, Ohio *Morrow County, Ohio *Morrow County, Oregon Canada *Morrow Lake, Ontario *Mount Morrow, Northwest Ter ...

counties all follow or start at the Willamette baseline. ;Other streets that follow the baseline *

Stark Street Stark Street, formerly known as Baseline Road, is an east-west-running street in Portland, Oregon, in the United States. The street is named after Benjamin Stark, and is divided as Southeast Stark Street and Southwest Stark Street by the Willame ...

in east

Portland Portland most commonly refers to: *Portland, Oregon, the most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon *Portland, Maine, the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maine *Isle of Portland, a tied island in the English Channel Portland may also r ...

(formerly Base Line Road) and Washington County follows the Willamette baseline. ;Streets named because they parallel the baseline *Division Street in Portland (formerly Section Line Road) follows the division between the first and second rows of square-mile sections south of the Willamette baseline.

References

External links