Oregon Almanac: Hydropower Projects to State Motto
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Hydropower (2021)
8,888 Megawatts Total Capacity
94 hydropower facilities
Smallest: 0.025 megawatt
Largest: 2,160 megawatts (John Day Dam, Columbia River)
31,920,334 Megawatt Hours Generated (2020)
Oregon is the second highest hydropower-producing state in the nation, behind only Washington.
Insect, State
In 1979, the Legislature designated the Oregon Swallowtail Butterfly (Papilio oregonius) as the state insect. A true native of the Northwest, the Oregon Swallowtail is at home in the lower sagebrush canyons of the Columbia River and its tributaries, including the Snake River watershed. This strikingly beautiful butterfly has a wingspan of 2-1/2 to 3 inches and is bright yellow and black with a reddish-orange hindspot.
Judicial Districts
Lake, Deepest
Crater Lake: 1,943' (deepest in the United States)
Lakes, Largest
Upper Klamath Lake, 61,543 surface acres
Malheur Lake, 49,700 surface acres
Note: Size may vary depending on seasons and precipitation. At times, Malheur Lake may have a larger surface area than Upper Klamath Lake.
Legal Holidays and Days of Special Observance
New Year’s Day (observed) 1/2/23, 1/1/24, 1/1/25; Martin Luther King, Jr.’s Birthday (observed) 1/16/23, 1/15/24, 1/20/25; Presidents’ Day 2/20/23, 2/19/24, 2/17/25; Memorial Day 5/29/23, 5/27/24, 5/26/25; Juneteenth 6/19/23, 6/19/24, 6/19/25; Independence Day (observed) 7/4/23, 7/4/24, 7/4/25; Labor Day 9/4/23, 9/2/24, 9/1/25; Indigenous Peoples’ Day 10/9/23,10/14/24, 10/13/25 ; Veterans Day (observed) 11/10/23, 11/11/24, 11/11/25; Thanksgiving Day 11/23/23, 11/28/24, 11/27/25; Christmas Day (observed) 12/25/23, 12/25/24, 12/25/25
Yaquina Head Lighthouse north of Newport. (Oregon Scenic Images collection) Whenever a holiday falls on a Sunday, the following Monday shall be observed as the holiday. Whenever a holiday falls on a Saturday, the preceding Friday shall be observed as the holiday.
Lighthouses
Cape Arago Lighthouse, Coos Bay: lighted 1934; deactivated 2006 (not accessible to the public)
Cape Blanco Lighthouse, Port Orford: lighted 1870
Cape Meares Lighthouse, Tillamook: lighted 1890; deactivated 1963
Cleft of the Rock Lighthouse, Yachats (privately owned, not open to the public): lighted 1976
Coquille River Lighthouse, Bandon: lighted 1896; deactivated 1939
Heceta Head Lighthouse, Florence: lighted 1893
Port of Brookings Lighthouse, Brookings
(privately owned, not open to the public): lighted 1999
Tillamook Rock Lighthouse, Cannon Beach: lighted 1881; deactivated 1957 (privately owned, not open to the public)
Umpqua River Lighthouse, Reedsport: lighted 1894
Yaquina Bay Lighthouse, Newport: lighted 1871–74; reactivated 1996
Yaquina Head Lighthouse, Newport: lighted 1873
Marriages
Marriages: 24,256 (2021)
Microbe, State
In 2013, the Oregon Legislature designated
Saccharomyces cerevisiae as the state microbe. The yeast converts sugar into carbon dioxide and ethanol, an essential process for leavening bread and brewing alcoholic beverages, making Oregon an internationally recognized hub of craft brewing.
Motto, State
“She Flies With Her Own Wings” was adopted by the 1987 Legislature as the Oregon state motto. The phrase originated with Judge Jessie Quinn Thornton and was pictured on the territorial seal in Latin:
Alis Volat Propriis. The new motto replaced “The Union,” which was adopted in 1957.