Encina is an

unincorporated Unincorporated may refer to: * Unincorporated area, land not governed by a local municipality * Unincorporated entity, a type of organization * Unincorporated territories of the United States, territories under U.S. jurisdiction, to which Congress ...

community in Baker County,

Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...

, United States. Encina is about southeast of

Baker City Baker City is a city in and the county seat of Baker County, Oregon, Baker County, Oregon, United States. It was named after Edward Dickinson Baker, Edward D. Baker, the only United States Senate, U.S. Senator ever killed in military combat. The p ...

near exit 313 of

U.S. Route 30 U.S. Route 30 or U.S. Highway 30 (US 30) is an east–west main route in the system of the United States Numbered Highways, with the highway traveling across the northern tier of the country. With a length of , it is the third longest ...

/ Interstate 84. ''Encina'' is

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Cana ...

for "

evergreen oak Live oak or evergreen oak is any of a number of oaks in several different sections of the genus ''Quercus'' that share the characteristic of evergreen foliage. These oaks are not more closely related to each other than they are to other oaks. ...

". The

railroad siding A siding, in rail terminology, is a low-speed track section distinct from a running line or through route such as a main line, branch line, or spur. It may connect to through track or to other sidings at either end. Sidings often have lighte ...

of the

Union Pacific Railroad The Union Pacific Railroad , legally Union Pacific Railroad Company and often called simply Union Pacific, is a freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Paci ...

mainline at this locale was named "Oak Cut" at the time of its construction, but the name was "cumbersome" so it was renamed by railroad agent J. C. Mayo, who had lived in Mexico. Encina is the place of Johnson Spring. Named for the first owner of what is now Alder Grove Ranch that sits on Alder Creek with water rights from 1883. The Johnson's are buried in Pleasant Valley Cemetery on Dry Creek Cutoff between Alder Creek Road and Dry Creek Road.

Railway history

Encina is the summit of the Huntington Subdivision mainline. The tracks that go through Encina were originally owned by the

Oregon Railway & Navigation Company The Oregon Railroad and Navigation Company (OR&N) was a railroad that operated a rail network of running east from Portland, Oregon, United States, to northeastern Oregon, northeastern Washington, and northern Idaho. It operated from 1896 as a ...

that built the railroad from 1882 to 1884.

References

External links

Images of Encina
from Flickr Unincorporated communities in Baker County, Oregon Unincorporated communities in Oregon {{BakerCountyOR-geo-stub