Macleay 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 hav ...

in Marion County,

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

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...

. It is about nine miles east of downtown Salem in the

Waldo Hills The Waldo Hills are a range of hills in the Willamette Valley of Oregon, United States. Encompassing an area of around , the hills are located east of Salem.Corning, Howard M. ''Dictionary of Oregon History''. Binfords & Mort Publishing, 1956. The h ...

near the Little Pudding River. This locale was originally named "Stipp" for local settler John L. Stipp, whose

land claim A land claim is defined as "the pursuit of recognized territorial ownership by a group or individual". The phrase is usually only used with respect to disputed or unresolved land claims. Some types of land claims include aboriginal land claims, ...

was just west of present-day Macleay. Stipp donated the land for what is now known as the Stipp Memorial Cemetery. Stipp post office was established in 1880, and the name changed to "Macleay" in 1882.

Donald Macleay Donald Macleay (August 1834 – July 26, 1897) was a prominent 19th century merchant and banker in Portland in the U.S. state of Oregon. A native of Scotland, he emigrated at the age of 16 with his parents to the Canadian province of Queb ...

was a prominent merchant of

Portland Portland most commonly refers to: * Portland, Oregon, the largest city in the state of Oregon, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States * Portland, Maine, the largest city in the state of Maine, in the New England region of the northeas ...

, and along with fellow

Scot The Scots ( sco, Scots Fowk; gd, Albannaich) are an ethnic group and nation native to Scotland. Historically, they emerged in the early Middle Ages from an amalgamation of two Celtic-speaking peoples, the Picts and Gaels, who founded ...

William Reid, was one of the investors in the

narrow-gauge A narrow-gauge railway (narrow-gauge railroad in the US) is a railway with a track gauge narrower than standard . Most narrow-gauge railways are between and . Since narrow-gauge railways are usually built with tighter curves, smaller structu ...

Oregonian Railway Company The Oregonian Railway was a narrow gauge railroad in the Willamette Valley in the U.S. state of Oregon. History A group of Scot capitalists formed the Oregonian Railway Company, Limited after purchasing the bankrupt Dayton, Sheridan and Grande Ro ...

, which was built through the area. Macleay gave money to build a schoolhouse in the Stipp area, near the new railroad station, so the post office was renamed in his honor. Macleay was

plat In the United States, a plat ( or ) (plan) is a cadastral map, drawn to scale, showing the divisions of a piece of land. United States General Land Office surveyors drafted township plats of Public Lands Surveys to show the distance and bea ...

ted in 1884. Macleay post office ran until 1939. Ownership of the railroad line passed on to Southern Pacific and today it is owned by

Union Pacific 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 Pac ...

. The Macleay Country Store has been in operation since 1916. The community also has an active

Grange hall The Grange, officially named The National Grange of the Order of Patrons of Husbandry, is a social organization in the United States that encourages families to band together to promote the economic and political well-being of the community and ...

, a fire station, and the former school currently serves as a church.

References

External links

Historic images of Macleay
from Salem Public Library Unincorporated communities in Marion County, Oregon 1880 establishments in Oregon Populated places established in 1880 Unincorporated communities in Oregon {{MarionCountyOR-geo-stub

See also

References

External links