Newport is a city in Lincoln County,

Oregon Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...

, United States. It was incorporated in 1882, though the name dates back to the establishment of a post office in 1868. Newport was named for

Newport, Rhode Island Newport is a seaside city on Aquidneck Island in Rhode Island, United States. It is located in Narragansett Bay, approximately southeast of Providence, Rhode Island, Providence, south of Fall River, Massachusetts, south of Boston, and nort ...

. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 9,989, an increase of nearly 5% over its 2000 population; as of 2019, it had an estimated population of 10,853. It is also home of the

Oregon Coast Aquarium The Oregon Coast Aquarium is an aquarium in Newport, Oregon, Newport in the U.S. state of Oregon. Opened in 1992, the facility sits on along Yaquina Bay near the Pacific Ocean. The aquarium was home to Keiko (orca), Keiko, the orca who starred ...

, Hatfield Marine Science Center, Nye Beach,

Yaquina Head Light The Yaquina Head Light, also known early in its existence as the Cape Foulweather Lighthouse (Cape Foul Weather is to the north) is a lighthouse on the Oregon Coast of the United States, established in 1873. It is located in Lincoln County, nea ...

Yaquina Bay Light The Yaquina Bay Light is a lighthouse that was built in 1871, soon after the founding of the city of Newport, Oregon, in the United States. It is located on the north side of Yaquina Bay. In 1871–1874, it was the busiest and most populated ...

, Newport Sea Lion Docks, Pacific Maritime Heritage Center, and

Rogue Ales Rogue Ales is a brewery founded in 1988 in Ashland, Oregon. Rogue has pub locations in Oregon. History Rogue Ales was founded in Ashland, Oregon in 1988 by three Nike, Inc. executives: Jack Joyce (businessman), Jack Joyce, Rob Strasser, and Bob ...

. The city is the western terminus of U.S. Route 20, a cross-country highway that originates in

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

and is the longest road in the United States.

History

The area was originally home to the

Yacona tribe The Yaquina or Yaqo'n people were a tribe of Native Americans. There were 19 Yaquina in 1910. Their language was one of the Yakonan languages. The Yaquina lived around the Yaquina River and Yaquina Bay, both of which have been named after them. ...

, whose history can be traced back at least 3000 years. White settlers began homesteading the area in 1864. The town was named by Sam Case, who also became the first postmaster. Newport has been the

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...

of Lincoln County since 1952, when voters approved a measure to move the center of government from nearby Toledo to Newport.

Geography

According to the

U.S. Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The U.S. Census Bureau is part of the U ...

, the city has a total area of , of which is land and is water. It is located 3,365 miles (5,415.44 km²) west of Boston, Massachusetts on road signs for US-20.

Climate

Newport has mild, wet weather throughout the year with the heaviest precipitation falling during the winter months. The city averages 29 mornings with minimum temperatures of or lower, whilst only four afternoons have exceeded on record. Historic extreme temperatures have varied between on December 8, 1972 and again on December 21, 1990, up to on October 2, 1980. The average annual precipitation between 1961 and 1990 was , with the wettest period being from July 1968 to June 1969 with and the driest, like most of Oregon, from July 1976 to June 1977 with . There are an average of 187 days a year with precipitation equalling or exceeding . Average annual snowfall is only . In October 1962, wind gusts at Newport reached before the

wind gauge Wind is the natural movement of air or other gases relative to a planet's surface. Winds occur on a range of scales, from thunderstorm flows lasting tens of minutes, to local breezes generated by heating of land surfaces and lasting a few ...

stopped working. This occurred during the Columbus Day Windstorm, which the

National Weather Service The National Weather Service (NWS) is an Government agency, agency of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government that is tasked with providing weather forecasts, warnings of hazardous weather, and other weathe ...

has named one of Oregon's top 10 weather events of the 20th century. Another top-10 event affecting Newport occurred in December 1964, when a rainstorm caused severe flooding in many parts of the state. The Weather Service rated the storm among the most severe in western Oregon since the 1870s. About of rain fell on Newport. This was almost twice the normal amount expected in December and set a new record for the city. Also in the Weather Bureau's top-10 list for Oregon are the snowstorms of January 1950. Newport saw a total of about fall during the month, four times its normal annual snowfall.

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, there were 10,256 people, and 4,559 households in the city. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geog ...

was about 1,028 people per square mile. The racial makeup of the city was 80.9%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 1.0%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 1.8% Native American, 1.7% Asian, 0.0%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

, and 5.8% two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 15.8% of the population. There were 4,559 households, and the average household size was 2.2 persons. Around 16.6% of people living in Newport were under 18, with a further 4.1% of people under 5. 27.6% of the population were older than 65. The gender makeup for Newport was 51.9% female and 48.9% male. The median household income was $52,897, and the per capita income was $30,060. 14.1% of the population were in poverty.

2010 census

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2010, there were 9,989 people, 4,354 households, and 2,479 families living in the city. The

was about . There were 5,540 housing units at an average density of about . The racial makeup of the city was 84.1%

, 0.6%

, 2.1% Native American, 1.6% Asian, 0.2%

, 7.5% from other races, and 3.9% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 15.3% of the population. There were 4,354 households, of which about 25% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 41% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 11% had a female householder with no husband present, 5% had a male householder with no wife present, and 43% were non-families. About 35% of all households were made up of individuals, and about 15% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was about 2.2 and the average family size was about 2.8. The median age in the city was about 43 years. About 20% of residents were under the age of 18, 8% were between the ages of 18 and 24, 24% were from 25 to 44, 29% were from 45 to 64, and 19% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 49.1% male and 50.9% female.

Economy

In August 2011, the

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA ) is an American scientific and regulatory agency charged with Weather forecasting, forecasting weather, monitoring oceanic and atmospheric conditions, Hydrography, charting the seas, ...

moved its base for research ships from

Seattle Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...

to Newport. The base boasts about 110 marine officers and a total of 175 employees. It bases four ships, including the NOAAS ''Bell M. Shimada'' and the NOAAS ''Rainier'', and it provides support for up to two itinerant vessels. NOAA has personnel at the Hatfield Marine Science Center which support the fisheries science centers for Alaska and the Northwest. The ships join the R/V ''Oceanus'' and R/V ''Elakha'' research vessels based at the center. Newport is home to the largest fishing fleet on the Oregon Coast.

Education

The public schools in Newport are part of the Lincoln County School District, which covers the entire county, and include Newport High School, Newport Preparatory Academy, Newport Intermediate School, and Sam Case Primary School. Lincoln County voters established Oregon Coast Community College in 1987, in which year the college held its first classes. The county is in the Oregon Coast Community College district. Newport is also home to the Hatfield Marine Science Center, operated by

Oregon State University Oregon State University (OSU) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Corvallis, Oregon, United States. OSU offers more than 200 undergraduate degree programs and a variety of graduate and doctor ...

in collaboration with state and federal agencies. The center conducts research and educational programs associated with the marine environment and serves as a primary field station for the university's College of Oceanic and Atmospheric Sciences.

Government

Newport is a charter city (also called a home rule city) and has a council-manager form of government. The city council consists of a Mayor who chairs the meetings, and 6 councilors. The mayor and city council served staggered terms, between two and four years. Live and archived video of city council and committee meetings is available anytime on at https://newportoregon.gov/citygov/comm/cc.asp

Media

Radio stations

Newport has several locally based stations: * KPPT 100.7FM (Classic Hits) * KNPT 1310AM (News/Talk) * KYOR 88.9FM (Religious) * K210CW/KLOV 89.9FM (Christian Contemporary) * KLCO 90.5FM (Public Radio/Lane Community College) * K217FZ/KWAX 91.3FM (Classical) * KNCU 92.7FM (Country) * K239BO/KRLZ 93.7FM (Hot AC) * KWPB/LPFM 98.7FM (Religious) * K295BJ/KOGL 106.9FM (Public Radio)

Newspaper

The '' Lincoln County Leader'' is published once a week

Sister city

Newport has one

sister city A sister city or a twin town relationship is a form of legal or social agreement between two geographically and politically distinct localities for the purpose of promoting cultural and commercial ties. While there are early examples of inte ...

: * Monbetsu,

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

Notable people

* Sam Adams, former mayor of

Portland, Oregon Portland ( ) is the List of cities in Oregon, most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon, located in the Pacific Northwest region. Situated close to northwest Oregon at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, ...

* Scott Baker, marine biologist at the Marine Mammals Institute * Nathan Ball, mechanical engineer, entrepreneur, TV host, and author * Rick Bartow, artist * Ernest Bloch, composer and humanist * Alan Brown, member of the Oregon House of Representatives * Joel Hedgpeth, marine biologist * David Ogden Stiers, actor

References

External links

*
Listing for Newport
in the '' Oregon Blue Book''
Greater Newport Chamber of CommerceNewport Tourism WebsitePort of Newport International Terminal Project web page
{{Authority control Cities in Oregon County seats in Oregon Cities in Lincoln County, Oregon Populated places established in 1882 Port cities in Oregon 1882 establishments in Oregon Populated coastal places in Oregon