History Of The Rogue River

The Rogue River in the southwestern part of the U.S. state of Oregon flows about 215 miles (346 km) from the Cascade Range to the Pacific Ocean. Known for its salmon runs, whitewater rafting, and rugged scenery, it was one of the original eight rivers included in the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act of 1968. Many public parks, hiking trails, campgrounds, and boat launches lie along or near the river, which flows largely through national forest lands.

People have lived along the main stem and its tributaries for at least 8,500 years. European explorers made first contact with the native people toward the end of the 18th century and soon began beaver trapping and other activity in the region. Clashes, sometimes deadly, occurred between the natives and the trappers. More intense and frequent clashes with European-American miners and settlers in the late 1840s and early 1850s led to a series of treaties that expanded white control of the land and restricted movement of native groups like the Takelma. The short intervals of relative peace stemming from these treaties did not last and led to the Rogue River Wars of 1855-56, at the end of which nearly all the natives in the Rogue River basin were removed to reservations well north of their homeland. After the war, settlers built cabins and established small farms along the Rogue River Canyon. They were relatively isolated from the outside world until 1895, when the Post Office Department added mail-boat service along the lower Rogue. As of 2009, it is one of the two remaining rural mail-boat routes in the United States.

Although the Rogue River supports large runs of sea-going fish such as salmon, their migration was blocked or partly blocked in the 20th century by five dams on the river's middle and upper reaches as well as dams on tributaries. Dam removal in the late 20th and early 21st centuries has generated controversy in part because the dams are used to generate electricity, to control stream flow and reduce flooding, to impound lakes for recreation, and to divert water for irrigation and other purposes. As of 2009, compromises had led to removal or planned removal of three of the downstream dams as well as removal of a partly-completed dam on a major tributary.