Oregon State Board of Control. Oregon: End of the Trail. Portland, Oregon: Binfords & Mort, 1940.

This 1940 tour of the Oregon coast represents only a taste of many tours described in Part III of Oregon, End of the Trail entitled "All Over Oregon." Ten tours crisscross the backroads of the state weaving a tapestry of history, geography, culture, economy and legend.

These tours are enhanced by a reading of Part I entitled "Past and Present." 1940 vintage descriptions of the natural settings, history, agriculture, commerce, architecture, tall tales and legends, and literature of Oregon highlight the offerings of Part I.

Part II, "Cities and Towns," includes city maps, points of interest, and facts about life in the towns and cities circa 1940. For example, it would cost you 25¢ to golf 9 holes in Eugene and it would cost 7¢ to get to the golf course on a city bus.

When possible, images are placed close to associated text. The original Highway Department photograph identification numbers are in parentheses after each description. These are some of the thousands of tourism photographs and negatives dating from the mid-1930s to about 1980 in the Oregon State Archives holdings. Contact us for original photographs or negatives.

For color photographs of areas shown in this tour, see the following:

These websites may be useful in exploring the route along the Oregon Coast.

​ Oregon Parks and Recreation

National Park Service: Oregon Lighthouses

Oregon Coast Visitors Association

Original research and text provided by the workers of the Writers' Program of the Works Projects Administration for the American Guide Series publication Oregon, End of the Trail.

Web design and layout; image scanning and cataloging; and additional text by Gary Halvorson, Oregon State Archives.

Text editing, updating, and photograph selection by John Ferrell.

Additional assistance provided by Layne Sawyer and Dan Cantrall of the Oregon State Archives.

We hope you enjoyed your trip down the Oregon Coast. A 1940 Journey Across Oregon companion tour uses the same sources for text and images. But instead it follows a path from Ontario on the Idaho border; travels through the Blue Mountains; meets up with the Columbia River and heads west to Astoria.