Today’s Oregon counties did not always exist in the present form. They went through many different changes in the space of a few short years.

Oregon Territorial Counties

In 1843 the first Oregon counties were formed.

The State of Oregon entered the union as the 46th state on February 14, 1859.

Oregon Counties Today

Today, Oregon currently has 36 Counties. States bordering Oregon are CaliforniaIdahoNevada and Washington.

Fun Facts about Oregon Counties

Counties by Year

County Size Facts

County Population Facts

Oregon City Facts

Oregon’s 10  largest cities (2018 est.) are:

  1. Portland (653,115) is in Multnomah County, Washington County and Clackamas County
  2. Salem (173,442) is in Marion County and Polk County
  3. Eugene (171,245) is in Lane County
  4. Gresham (110,158) is in Multnomah County
  5. Hillsboro (108,389) is in Washington County
  6. Beaverton (98,962) is in Washington County
  7. Bend (97,590) is in Deschutes County
  8. Medford (82,347) is in Jackson County
  9. Springfield (62,979) is in Lane County
  10. Corvallis (58,641) is in Benton County

Boundary Changes of Oregon Counties from 1843-1975

This Interactive Map of Oregon Counties show the historical boundaries, names, organization, and attachments of every county, extinct county and unsuccessful county proposal from 1843 to 1975.

List of Oregon Counties

List of Old Former / Extinct Oregon Counties

Oregon contains some counties that no longer exist because they were discontinued, renamed or merged with another county. These are important for genealogy research purposes.

The below counties formerly within the area of the State of Oregon no longer exist:

Umpqua County, Oregon

Created in 1851, gradually reduced in size until 1862, when what remained was incorporated into Douglas County.

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