Yachats

State Park In Yachats

Yachats, Oregon

July 9, 2021

Yachats (/ˈjɑːhɑːts/ YAH-hahts) is a small coastal city in the southernmost area of Lincoln County, Oregon. According to Oregon Geographic Names, the name comes from the Siletz language and means "dark water at the foot of the mountain". There is a range of differing etymologies, however. William Bright says the name comes from the Alsea placename yáx̣ayky (IPA: /ˈjaχajkʲ/).

Its motto is “Gem of the Oregon Coast.”

The stars show the location of the benches I photographed.

At the 2010 census, the city's population was 690. In 2007, Budget Travel magazine named Yachats one of the "Ten Coolest Small Towns of the U.S.A.", and Yachats was chosen among the top 10 U.S. up-and-coming vacation destinations by Virtualtourist. In 2011, Arthur Frommer, founder of Frommer’s Travel Guides, listed Yachats number seven among his ten favorite vacation destinations in the world.

[My several visits to the town confirm it is a popular destination. “Teeming with tourists” would be an accurate description. Not too many but bordering on that. I agree with Chuck that the town is special.]

History

Archeological studies have shown that the Yachats area has been inhabited for at least 1,500 years. Remains of a pit-house in Yachats have been radiocarbon dated at approximately 570 AD. Yachats is built on seashell middens and numerous graves left by its past inhabitants. Excavations for construction of buildings and U.S. Route 101 uncovered a great many skeletons and artifacts. Most of these became part of the fill dirt forming the base of the current highway and city.

For many centuries the Native Americans in this area were hunter-gatherers who migrated between summer camps and winter residences. The Alsea Tribe had as many as 20 permanent villages (used on an annually rotating basis) on the Alsea River and the central Oregon coast. Archeological and linguistic evidence support the existence of a southern Alsea village known as the Yahuchband, located on the coast at the Yachats River. By 1860, the Yahuch band was extinct, many having succumbed to European diseases such as smallpox and tuberculosis.

In order to open up land in the Coos Bay area for homesteading in the early 1860s, the U.S. Army forcibly marched the Coos and Lower Umpqua Indians 80 miles north over rugged terrain to the Alsea Sub-Agency reservation in Yachats where the peaceful Indians, treated by the Army as though they were prisoners of war, were incarcerated. Amanda's Trail, named for a blind Indian woman who suffered greatly on the march, was dedicated on July 19, 2009. The trail climbs 800 feet from downtown Yachats to the summit of Cape Perpetua where it links with the extensive trail system of the Siuslaw National Forest.

In Yachats the hunter-gatherer tribes were forced to learn to make a living by agriculture. Crops planted near the ocean failed, resulting in many deaths from starvation. Approximately 300 Indians died in just 10 years. Twelve years after the Alsea Sub-Agency had opened, the Indians were allowed to establish a trail and develop agricultural plots up the Yachats River Valley, where they were able to grow potatoes, oats, wheat, and corn. They were also allowed to return to hunting. Once the Indians had built a new life there, the U.S. government opened up the area for homesteading in 1875, and once again, forced the Indians to move—some returned to their ancestral homelands, others went 40 miles north to the Siletz Reservation. Many of the Indians died during this relocation.

Homesteaders used the Indian farms and trails to develop the Yachats area. In 1892 the first post office was established in Yachats (called Oceanview until it was renamed Yachats in 1917). Until Yachats could be reached by a macadam road, rains made it impossible for the mail to be carried by car. The Roosevelt Memorial Highway (now Highway 101), carved out of the rock of Cape Perpetua in 1931, changed all this by opening up a route from the town of Florence. Despite the early difficulties of reaching Yachats, the tourist industry began in 1905 with the conversion of a chittum bark warehouse into the first hotel. Today tourism is the city's main industry.

Yachats was part of the war effort in both World Wars I and II. Spruce was needed for airplanes during World War I, and in 1918 the U.S. Army Signal Corps undertook logging at Camp 1, an area about 2 miles north of Yachats. A railroad needed for transporting logs to a mill was completed just three days before the war ended. A private company continued the logging operations, however.

Note: I spoke with the man above, asking him how his ride was going (his bike gave away that he was riding on a trip). He is from Utah and headed from Seattle to LA. Said he had covered 550 miles in 10 days -- that the highway was busier with traffic than he cared for. I gave him the information for my friends in Bandon in case he is there and looking for a place to stay. I saw him later pedalling away as I was at Windy Way taking photos of "my" bench.

Early in World War II the West Shelter built by the Civilian Conservation Corps near the top of Cape Perpetua was used as an observation site and radar station for the detection of enemy submarines and aircraft. In Yachats, foxholes and gun emplacements were installed along the ocean drive. Military personnel were housed in a local skating rink and the Ladies Club was rented for recreation. After the war, the U.S. Coast Guard discovered Japanese mines that had floated onto the beaches. These were hauled out to sea and destroyed.

The Little Log Church is a historical museum displaying many artifacts relating to Yachats's past. The church, built in 1926, was designed in the shape of a cross. Sir Robert Perks, who owned most of Yachats at the time, provided the property; the logs were donated as well and the work was contributed by local citizens. The museum is now owned by the city.

Demographics

2010 census

As of the United States Census of 2010, there were 690 people, 400 households, and 198 families residing in the city. There were 807 housing units at an average density of 886.8 per square mile. The racial makeup of the city was 95.2% White, 0.1% African American, 1.7% Native American, 0.6% Asian, 0.7% from other races, and 1.6% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race were 4.8% of the population.

There were 400 households, of which 5.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.8% were married couples living together, 7.5% had a female householder with no husband present, 1.3% had a male householder with no wife present, and 50.5% were non-families. 42.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 22.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 1.72 and the average family size was 2.22.

The median age in the city was 62.3 years. 4.9% of residents were under the age of 18; 3.4% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 10.8% were from 25 to 44; 39.5% were from 45 to 64; and 41.4% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 46.7% male and 53.3% female.

Economy

The principal industries of Lincoln County are lumber, fishing, tourism and recreation, and food products manufacturing. Tourism is Yachats's main industry. As of 2002, two of the top employers in Yachats were the Adobe Resort (still open) and the Landmark Restaurant & Lounge (now closed).

Geography and climate

Yachats is the southernmost city in Lincoln County. It is bounded by the Central Oregon Coast Range on the east and the Pacific Ocean on the west. To the south is a rugged portion of highway around and just south of Cape Perpetua, connecting the city to Lane Countyon U.S. Route 101. Yachats is almost exactly halfway between the 2 most populous coastal cities in Lincoln and Lane Counties respectively, being 23 miles north of Florence, 8 miles south of Waldport, and 23 miles south of Newport. The city straddles the Yachats River and estuary.

The climate of Yachats is relatively mild throughout the year because of the moderating effects of the ocean currents. Temperatures rarely drop below 30 °F (−1 °C) in the winter or rise above 75 °F (24 °C) in the summer. The highest recorded temperature, however, was 100 °F (38 °C) in July 1961 and the record low was 1 °F (−17 °C) in December 1972. Snow is uncommon and only occurs in rare offshore flow events with deformation banding in Arctic fronts and overrunning low pressure systems that move inland to the south, but rainfall is quite heavy through the winter months and several storms come out of the Gulf of Alaska each winter.

Infrastructure

Yachats is on U.S. Route 101. Renovation of Hwy 101 shoulders in 2017 has caused some problems, and due to pedestrian ability to stop traffic at will some local residents have dubbed Yachats, "the biggest little traffic jam on the Oregon coast." The closest airport is Wakonda Beach State Airport R33, a 2000' x 30' grass airstrip near Waldport. Yachats has no rail service, but local bus transportation is provided by Lincoln County Transit.

The City of Yachats provides water and sewer services. Drinking water comes from Salmon and Reedy creeks. Electricity is provided by Central Lincoln Public Utility District and telephone service by Pioneer Telephone Cooperative. Solid waste disposal and cable are provided by private businesses.

The closest hospitals are Samaritan Pacific Communities Hospital in Newport and Peace Harbor Hospital in Florence. Health care is available in Waldport at Waldport Family Medical Center, Samaritan (Waldport) Clinic, and Waldport Physical Therapy and Sports Medicine.

Yachats Rural Fire District has three fire stations. Law enforcement is provided by the Lincoln County Sheriff's Department and the Oregon State Police.

A few more photos from downtown Yachats

Along US 101 between Yachates and Waldport.

I drove back to Yachats around 7 pm and took these photos.