7
CULTURE & HERITAGE
CELEBRATING THE HISTORY
OF EASTERN OREGON
OCTOBER 20�27, 2021
Take an autumn stroll through history
By Lisa Britton
Go! Magazine
THE DETAILS
S
UMPTER — Although the
trails at Sumpter Dredge
State Heritage Area are open
all year, autumn is an especially
nice time for a stroll.
About 1.5 miles of trails
wind through this park, which is
dedicated to the mining his-
tory of the area. At the center is
the Sumpter Dredge, a hulking
contraption used to dig rocks
that passed through several
sorting layers to extract flakes
of gold. This particular dredge
441 S. Mill St.
Sumpter
Hours: 7 a.m.-7 p.m.
The dredge is open May-
October
Trails are open all year
https://stateparks.oregon.
gov/
mined the Sumpter Valley from
1935 to 1954, operating 24
hours a day, seven days a week.
During that stint, the dredge
unearthed an estimated $4 mil-
lion in gold.
Lisa Britton/Go! Magazine
The Sumpter Dredge dug up $4 million in gold during its operation from 1935 to 1954.
After closing, the dredge sat,
neglected, until the early 1990s
when local residents took an
interest in preserving this part of
history. The Sumpter Valley State
Heritage Area opened to the pub-
lic in 1994.
You can tour the dredge
through Oct. 31. It closes after
Lisa Britton/Go! Magazine
About 1.5 miles of trails wind through the Sumpter Valley Dredge State
Heritage Area in Baker County.
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Benches are located throughout
the park, and sometimes you’ll
see wildlife that has made homes
among the ponds and tailings.
The park is also the headwa-
ters of the Powder River, which
fl ows into Phillips Reservoir then
through Baker City and along
Highway 86 to the Snake River.
SATURDAY
OCTOBER 30
3-5:30
3-5:30 PM
PM
STOP SAYING
‘SO-and-SO SHOULD DO THIS’ ...and DO IT YOURSELF!!!!
Accepting applications for the Union County
Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors
If you’re passionate about the vibrancy of your
community and want to get involved - then apply today!
Contact the Chamber (541.963.8588 or
Director@VisitUnionCounty.org) for an application and more info!
Applications due by October 25th!
www.VisitUnionCounty.org
that date, but the trails remain
open. (If you visit in the next two
weeks, you’ll see the handiwork
of local residents who have deco-
rated for the Haunted Dredge
experience on the evening of
Oct. 29.)
The trails are easy to follow
because all are lined with rocks.
At Heritage
Station Museum
IN PENDLETON
ENTER
THROUGH
THE GATE
BY THE
CABOOSE
www.HeritageStationMuseum.org
O