Oregon is an

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 ...

in Manheim Township, Lancaster County, in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

. It is located near the intersection of PA 722 and the Oregon Pike ( PA 272, formerly US 222), between Lancaster and

Ephrata Ephrata may refer to: Places * Ephrata, Suriname * Ephrata, Pennsylvania, U.S. *Ephrata, Washington, U.S. * Ephrata Township, Pennsylvania, U.S. Other uses *Ephrata Cloister, a religious community in Ephrata, Pennsylvania See also * * Efrata or E ...

Lititz Run Lititz Run is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed March 24, 2019 tributary of the Conestoga River in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania in the United States. The creek flows ...

passes through the village and joins the

Conestoga River The Conestoga River, also referred to as Conestoga Creek, is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed August 8, 2011 tributary of the Susquehanna River flowing through the cente ...

by the former Pinetown lumber mill and

covered bridge A covered bridge is a timber-truss bridge with a roof, decking, and siding, which in most covered bridges create an almost complete enclosure. The purpose of the covering is to protect the wooden structural members from the weather. Uncovered woo ...

. There are a few dozen houses in the village and a handful of small businesses, not including the surrounding farms. Oregon is served by

Red Rose Transit The Red Rose Transit Authority (RRTA) is a transit agency serving Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. RRTA is headquartered in downtown Lancaster. The South Central Transit Authority owns RRTA and the Berks Area Regional Transportation Authority ...

Route 11.

History

A post office called Oregon was established in 1846, and remained in operation until 1912. The community, formerly known as "Catfish", was renamed after the

Oregon Territory The Territory of Oregon was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from August 14, 1848, until February 14, 1859, when the southwestern portion of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Oregon. Ori ...

. Oregon was a significant center of commerce in this area of the county in the 1700s and 1800s, being the site of a large mill run by Jacob Bear, a tavern, and the neighboring Bushong's Mill at Pinetown. The location here of Bear's mill was the original reason for the construction of a road between Lancaster, Ephrata, and Reading in 1734 (known as the Oregon or Catfish Pike, after the village) and between Oregon and Gap. A Mennonite meeting and schoolhouse was built in the village in 1792, and there is also a

United Methodist The United Methodist Church (UMC) is a worldwide mainline Protestant denomination based in the United States, and a major part of Methodism. In the 19th century, its main predecessor, the Methodist Episcopal Church, was a leader in evangelic ...

Church there that remains today. A large and historically significant "Great Meeting" occurred in the Isaac Long Barn outside Oregon in 1767, leading to the founding of the

Evangelical United Brethren The Evangelical United Brethren Church (EUB) was a North American Protestant church from 1946 to 1968. It was formed by the merger of the Evangelical Church (formerly the Evangelical Association, founded by Jacob Albright) and the Church of the ...

. This is commemorated by a historical marker. The Oregon Dairy, Supermarket, and Restaurant was opened in the village in 1974. A limited access highway for US 222, parallel to the old turnpike, was completed in 1977, causing significant alteration of the roads and landscape around Oregon.

References

Unincorporated communities in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania Unincorporated communities in Pennsylvania {{LancasterCountyPA-geo-stub