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History · McKay

McKay’s post office opened in 1900, and 36% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1953 on.

1900first post office
0on the National Register
36%homes built before 1940
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Quick answers

How McKay began, and where its name came from

When was McKay founded?

1900

The McKay post office opened in 1900, the earliest record of the town by name.

2020 census: 95126 years

How did McKay get its name?

McKay’s name accompanies McKay Creek, which is named for Dr. William Cameron McKay, located in Umatilla County at North McKay Creek Road (County 1050 Rd.) on Ross Road.

Founding year: the first McKay post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Name: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

What stands out about McKay’s past

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

A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of McKay are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.
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Start McKay’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how McKay’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
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The story so far

McKay, in brief

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of McKay yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

McKay is an unincorporated community in Umatilla County, Oregon, United States. Its name accompanies McKay Creek, which is named for Dr. William Cameron McKay, located in Umatilla County at North McKay Creek Road (County 1050 Rd.) on Ross Road. As of the 2020 census, McKay had a population of 95. It has been the site of discovery of ancient bird fossils.

Its first post office opened in 1900.

Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.

Timeline

McKay, 1900 to 1953

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

  1. 20th century
  2. 1900Post officeThe McKay post office opens
  3. 1930Post officeThe McKay post office closes
  4. 1953On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

No old photos in the archives yet

Weddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.

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On the map

McKay on the map, 1953 to 1973

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

McKay on the 1953 USGS mapMcKay on the 1973 USGS map1953Pendleton sheet · 1:250,000

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

Places that used to be

Lost post offices and places now gone

McKay had its own post office from 1900 to 1930.

McKay
1900–1930
19001960today
Gone or out of use
McKay Post Officepost office

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Questions about McKay’s history

What year was McKay founded?

The McKay post office opened in 1900, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

Memory lane

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

Town Square →
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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 U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, 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.