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HuntORnorthPhoto: Watchwolf49z · CC BY-SA 3.0
–Not graded
History · Huntington

Huntington’s post office opened in 1882, and 37% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: 5 old photos and papers, maps from 1951 on, and the census since 1880.

1882first post office
0on the National Register
37%homes built before 1940
5old photos & papers
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Huntington’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Huntington began

When was Huntington founded?

1882

The Huntington post office opened in 1882, the earliest record of the town by name. Wikidata gives 1891.

First census: 200 in 18802020 census: 502144 years
Founding year: the first Huntington post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Wikidata: 1891.The full story ↓

What stands out about Huntington’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

Boom and bustPeaked at 821 in 1900; 502 people lived here in 2020.Old housesHalf of Huntington’s homes were built before 1951.
★ What stands out · People over time

Huntington, census by census

020040060080018801900192019401960198020002020Peak: 821

Peaked at 821 in 1900; 502 people lived here in 2020.

15 censuses, 1880–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Huntington’s Wikipedia page.

The story

How Huntington came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Huntington.

Read it all →

Henry Miller settled in the area in August 1862. In 1870, Miller's Stagecoach Station was established before the coming of the Oregon Railway and Navigation Company rail line in 1884, and was platted in 1885 or 1886. It soon became the primary shipping point for the cattle country to the south. Miller built the Stage Tavern, known for many years as "Miller Station". It was on the overland route that had been established in the valley, and had become well known to all who traveled in pioneer days. According to Oregon Geographic Names, Huntington was named for J.B. and J.M. Huntington, brothers who purchased Miller's holdings in 1882.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Huntington, 1882 to 1951

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 19th century
  2. 1882Post officeThe Huntington post office opens
  3. 1890In the archiveHuntington, Oregon (circa 1890)
  4. 20th century
  5. 1900CensusPopulation peaks at 821
  6. 1910In the archiveBela S. Huntington Oregon state representative
  7. 1951On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

Huntington, decade by decade

2 decades in the archive, from the 1890s to the 1910s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1890s–1910s5 items
Huntington, Oregon (circa 1890)c. 1890Huntington, Oregon (circa 1890)Norma (sternwheeler) inspection certificate 18921892Norma (sternwheeler) inspection certificate 1892DocumentBela S. Huntington Oregon state representative1910Bela S. Huntington Oregon state representativeBird's-eye view of Huntington, Oregon, between 1906 and 1916c. 1911Bird's-eye view of Huntington, Oregon, between 1906 a…Wagons parked in front of businesses including the West Hotel on Main Street, Huntington, Oregon, circa 1911c. 1911Wagons parked in front of businesses including the We…
1920s–1990snothing yet
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Add from your album
Today1 recent
ORMap-doton-Huntington2004ORMap-doton-Huntington
On the map

Huntington on the map, 1951 to 1988

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Huntington. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Huntington on the 1951 USGS mapHuntington on the 1988 USGS map1951Huntington sheet · 1:62,500

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Huntington.

Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

Huntington, Oregon (circa 1890)
Retake this viewHuntington, Oregon (circa 1890), c. 1890

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Huntington’s page.

Retake this view · +15
Famous people

Famous people close to Huntington

Nobody well known was born in Huntington itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

See all →
Harmon KillebrewProfessional baseball player · b. 1936
James A. McClureAmerican attorney, Idaho State Senator and U.S.… · b. 1924
P
Phyllis McGinleyAmerican writer and poet · b. 1905
Herman WelkerAmerican politician · b. 1906
Denny SmithAmerican politician · b. 1938
Dave WilcoxAmerican football player · b. 1942
Help out

Finish Huntington’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
1 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewHuntington, Oregon (circa 1890): stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10

Questions about Huntington’s history

What year was Huntington founded?

The Huntington post office opened in 1882, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1891.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikimedia Commons (6), Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.