Wallowa Lake is a

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counterparts of incorporated places, such ...

(CDP) and

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...

Wallowa County Wallowa County () is the northeastern most county in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2020 census, the population was 7,391, making it Oregon's fifth-least populous county. Its county seat is Enterprise. According to ''Oregon Geographic Name ...

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. It is located on the south end of

Wallowa Lake Wallowa Lake is a ribbon lake south of Joseph, Oregon, United States, at an elevation of . Impounded by high moraines, it was formed by a series of Pleistocene glaciers. On the south end of the lake is Wallowa Lake, Oregon, a small community made ...

, and is a small community made up of vacation homes, lodging, restaurants, as well as other small businesses.

History

Wallowa Lake gained popularity among gold miners and soon began attracting guests from other areas. Seeing an emerging tourism market, entrepreneurs began building businesses at the lake. Among those built was the Wonderland Inn, now known as the Wallowa Lake Lodge. The Wonderland Inn was developed in 1923 as an amusement park at the south end of the lake. The park contained a restaurant, store, bowling alley, dance hall, outdoor movie theater, horse drawn carousel and cabins for those wishing to stay overnight. An 18-passenger boat carried the guests who arrived in Joseph (which lies at the north end of the lake) down the entire four mile stretch of Wallowa Lake, finally arriving at the inn and amusement park. The amusement park operated until 1940, when snowfall from an unusually harsh winter crushed most of the buildings and rendered the park inoperable. However, the inn survived the winter and still remains in operation, though renamed the Wallowa Lake Lodge. The area at the south end of the lake continued to be developed commercially. Several more stores, lodges, restaurants, and rental cabins were built in the following years, turning the south end of the lake into a tourist community. The businesses at the south end of Wallowa Lake are members of a non-profit tourism association. This association maintains a website, supports tourism in the area and works to solve issues across the lake community. There are 2,000 to 3,000 people residing at the south end of Wallowa Lake in summer with all businesses open. However, from October through March there are less than 40 year-round residences at the south end of the lake, and only a few lodging businesses remain open.

Demographics

As of the

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses incl ...

of 2010, there were 62 people, 37 households, and 19 families residing in the CDP. The racial makeup of the CDP was 96.8%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...

(95.2%

non-Hispanic White Non-Hispanic whites or Non-Latino whites are Americans who are classified as "white", and are not of Hispanic (also known as "Latino") heritage. The United States Census Bureau defines ''white'' to include European Americans, Middle Eastern Amer ...

) 1.6% Native American, and 1.6% from two or more races (

and

Asian Asian may refer to: * Items from or related to the continent of Asia: ** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia ** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia ** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to Vic ...

Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...

of any race were 1.6% of the population. There were 37 households, of which 0.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.6% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between t ...

living together, 2.7% had a female householder with no husband present, 0.0% had a male householder with no wife present, and 48.6% were non-families. 43.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 29.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 1.68 and the average family size was 2.21. The median age in the city was 64.5 years. 0.0% of residents were under the age of 18; 0.0% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 4.8% were from 25 to 44; 45.2% were from 45 to 64; and 50.1% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the CDP was 46.8% male and 53.2% female.

References

{{authority control Census-designated places in Oregon Census-designated places in Wallowa County, Oregon Unincorporated communities in Oregon