McKenzie Highway Historic District (Linn County, Oregon)
- Title
- McKenzie Highway Historic District (Linn County, Oregon)
- LC Subject
- Architecture, American Architecture--United States
- Creator
- Oregon. Department of Transportation
- Photographer
- Sell, David Chapman, Judith A.
- Creator Display
- Oregon Department of Transportation (builder/contractor)
- Description
- National Register of Historic Places (Listed, 2011) National Register of Historic Places Registration Form. Completed by Judith A. Chapman, M.A., Archaeological Investigations Northwest, Inc.; reviewed and revised by Robert W. Hadlow, Ph.D., Oregon Department of Transportation, August 21, 2009
- Temporal
- 1910-1919 1920-1929
- Work Type
- architecture (object genre) built works views (visual works) exterior views buildings, transportation open spaces roads
- Location
- Linn County >> Oregon >> United States Lane County >> Oregon >> United States Deschutes County >> Oregon >> United States United States
- Date
- 1917 1924
- View Date
- 2006
- Identifier
- pna_2
- Rights
- In Copyright
- Rights Holder
- University of Oregon
- Source
- Pacific Coast Architect, March 1913
- Type
- Image
- Format
- application/pdf
- Set
- Building Oregon
- Primary Set
- Building Oregon
- Institution
- University of Oregon
- Note
- The road that would become the McKenzie Highway was first constructed in 1862 as a wagon route across the middle Cascade Mountains to link the Willamette Valley with the Bend area. Recognizing the importance of the route, the Oregon Highway Commission indentified the road as one of five included in the first highway plan in 1914 and subsequently improved the route in 1917. Increasing traffic lead to the construction of a modern highway starting in 1921 and which was finished in 1924. Built by the Forest Service and the US Bureau of Public Roads in Oregon, the McKenzie Highway was specifically designed to encourage tourism by offering motorists sweeping views of forests and mountain and volcanic vistas from McKenzie Pass as they travelled through National Forest lands. Upon completion, the highway carried a large amount of local traffic, as well as tourists from all over the United States, and was known for its scenery and recreational opportunities such as hunting and fishing, hot-spring resorts, hotels, and campgrounds. Seeking to further encourage tourism, the Civilian Conservation Corps constructed the Dee Wright Observatory at the pass in 1935. Constructed of volcanic rock, the building offers visitors breath-taking views of the surrounding mountains and volcanic lava flows. Source: Oregon State Historic Preservation Office.