Nonpareil, Oregon
Encyclopedia
Nonpareil is an unincorporated
historic locale in Douglas County
, Oregon
, United States. It is located about eight miles east of Sutherlin
, near Calapooya Creek. The population of the area was about 202 in 2000. Nonpareil was the birthplace of novelist H. L. Davis
.
Nonpareil was named for the nearby Nonpareil quicksilver
(mercury) mine, discovered between 1865 and 1870, which at one time was very productive. The mine is no longer in operation, having closed in 1932. "Nonpareil" is French
for "unrivaled" or "unique". Nonpareil post office ran from 1882 to 1884. During the height of the mining era, the short-lived town also had a dance hall and a school. The nearby Bonanza Mine also contributed to the town's economy. As of 1990, Nonpareil had a store and no other amenities. Author Ralph Friedman
noted that the store's name was misspelled "Nonpariel". By 2003, the store, which at one time had a gas station, was closed.
The area of the mining operations is now owned by Swanson Superior Forest Products of Noti
who purchased the land from Weyerhaeuser
in 1990. Besides rural residential use, grazing and timber production take place in the Nonpareil area. An abandoned logging railroad grade passes through the town. The roadbed was built beginning in the early 1900s by the Roach Timber Company using mine tailings
from the Bonanza mercury mine. Weyerhaeuser bought the railroad in 1949 and lengthened the railroad grade, also using mine tailings. The railroad was decommissioned in 1966, the ties and tracks removed, and portions of the grade, now known as the "Red Rock Road" were sold. Weyerhaeuser is now working with the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality
to mitigate the effects of the arsenic
-laced soil of the roadbed on local residents.
43.4076189°N 123.1681256°W
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...
historic locale in Douglas County
Douglas County, Oregon
-National protected areas:* Crater Lake National Park * Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest * Siuslaw National Forest * Umpqua National Forest * Willamette National Forest -Adjacent counties:* Lane County, Oregon -...
, 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 eight miles east of Sutherlin
Sutherlin, Oregon
Sutherlin is a city in Douglas County, Oregon, United States. The population was 6,669 at the 2000 census. Nearby features include Cooper Creek Reservoir, the Umpqua River, a few golf courses, and numerous vineyards.-Geography:...
, near Calapooya Creek. The population of the area was about 202 in 2000. Nonpareil was the birthplace of novelist H. L. Davis
H. L. Davis
Harold Lenoir Davis , also known as H. L. Davis, was an American novelist and poet. A native of Oregon, he won the Pulitzer Prize for his novel Honey in the Horn, the only Pulitzer given to a native Oregonian...
.
Nonpareil was named for the nearby Nonpareil quicksilver
Mercury (element)
Mercury is a chemical element with the symbol Hg and atomic number 80. It is also known as quicksilver or hydrargyrum...
(mercury) mine, discovered between 1865 and 1870, which at one time was very productive. The mine is no longer in operation, having closed in 1932. "Nonpareil" is French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
for "unrivaled" or "unique". Nonpareil post office ran from 1882 to 1884. During the height of the mining era, the short-lived town also had a dance hall and a school. The nearby Bonanza Mine also contributed to the town's economy. As of 1990, Nonpareil had a store and no other amenities. Author Ralph Friedman
Ralph Friedman
Ralph Friedman was an American author best known for his books about Oregon.Ralph Friedman was born and raised in Chicago. He hitchhiked to Oregon in 1933 at the age of 16. He wrote 10 books, and contributed to many other books, magazines, and newspapers...
noted that the store's name was misspelled "Nonpariel". By 2003, the store, which at one time had a gas station, was closed.
The area of the mining operations is now owned by Swanson Superior Forest Products of Noti
Noti, Oregon
Noti is an unincorporated community in Lane County, Oregon, United States, located in the foothills of the Central Oregon Coast Range between Eugene and Florence. Per the 2000 census, Noti had a total population of 699.-History:...
who purchased the land from Weyerhaeuser
Weyerhaeuser
Weyerhaeuser is one of the largest pulp and paper companies in the world. It is the world's largest private sector owner of softwood timberland; and the second largest owner of United States timberland, behind Plum Creek Timber...
in 1990. Besides rural residential use, grazing and timber production take place in the Nonpareil area. An abandoned logging railroad grade passes through the town. The roadbed was built beginning in the early 1900s by the Roach Timber Company using mine tailings
Tailings
Tailings, also called mine dumps, slimes, tails, leach residue, or slickens, are the materials left over after the process of separating the valuable fraction from the uneconomic fraction of an ore...
from the Bonanza mercury mine. Weyerhaeuser bought the railroad in 1949 and lengthened the railroad grade, also using mine tailings. The railroad was decommissioned in 1966, the ties and tracks removed, and portions of the grade, now known as the "Red Rock Road" were sold. Weyerhaeuser is now working with the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality
Oregon Department of Environmental Quality
The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality is the chief regulatory agency of the government of the U.S. state of Oregon responsible for protecting and enhancing the state's natural resources and managing sanitary and toxic waste disposal. The agency employs approximately 700 scientists,...
to mitigate the effects of the arsenic
Arsenic
Arsenic is a chemical element with the symbol As, atomic number 33 and relative atomic mass 74.92. Arsenic occurs in many minerals, usually in conjunction with sulfur and metals, and also as a pure elemental crystal. It was first documented by Albertus Magnus in 1250.Arsenic is a metalloid...
-laced soil of the roadbed on local residents.
External links
- Image of the Nonpareil Store from Pbase
43.4076189°N 123.1681256°W