Cecil is an unincorporated

Unincorporated area

In law, an unincorporated area is a region of land that is not a part of any municipality.To "incorporate" in this context means to form a municipal corporation, a city, town, or village with its own government. An unincorporated community is usually not subject to or taxed by a municipal government...

 community in Morrow County

Morrow County, Oregon

Morrow County is a county located in the U.S. state of Oregon, on the south side of the Columbia River. It is included in the 8 county definition of Eastern Oregon. The county is named for one of its first white settlers, Jackson L. Morrow, who was a member of the state legislature when the county...

, Oregon

Oregon

Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...

, United States. It is located about 14 miles northwest of Ione

Ione, Oregon

Ione is a city in Morrow County, Oregon, United States. The population was 321 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Pendleton–Hermiston Micropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:Ione lies along Oregon Route 74, northwest of Heppner...

, on Oregon Route 74

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...

. The Oregon Trail

Oregon Trail

The Oregon Trail is a historic east-west wagon route that connected the Missouri River to valleys in Oregon and locations in between.After 1840 steam-powered riverboats and steamboats traversing up and down the Ohio, Mississippi and Missouri rivers sped settlement and development in the flat...

 crossed Willow Creek

Willow Creek (Columbia River)

Willow Creek is a long tributary of the Columbia River, located in the U.S. state of Oregon. It drains of Morrow and Gilliam counties. Arising in the Blue Mountains, it flows generally northwest to its confluence with the Columbia River upstream of Arlington.-Course:Willow Creek's headwaters are...

 here, and it was once an important stagecoach

Stagecoach

A stagecoach is a type of covered wagon for passengers and goods, strongly sprung and drawn by four horses, usually four-in-hand. Widely used before the introduction of railway transport, it made regular trips between stages or stations, which were places of rest provided for stagecoach travelers...

 stop.

Cecil was the name of a railroad station on the Heppner

Heppner, Oregon

The city of Heppner is the county seat of Morrow County, Oregon, United States. It was originally called Standsbury Flat for George W. Standsbury, one of the first white settlers in the area. It was later renamed to honor Henry Heppner, a Jewish pioneer who opened the first general store there in...

 Branch of the Union Pacific 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 still operating but gas is no longer available.

External links

• Historic image of the Cecil store from Salem Public Library
• Historic image of voting day in Cecil circa 1910
• Images of Cecil from Flickr

45.6179092°N 119.9589226°W