Cherry City is the capital of the state and the county seat of Marion County. It is located in the center of the Willamette Valley alongside the Willamette River, which runs north through the city. The river forms the boundary between Marion and Polk counties, and the city neighborhood of West Cherry City is in Polk County. Cherry City was founded in 1842, became the capital of the Territory in 1851, and was incorporated in 1857.
Cherry City had a population of 154,637 at the 2010 census, making it the third largest city in the state after Rose City and Track Town. Cherry City is a little more than an hour driving distance away from Rose City.
Cherry City is the principal city of the Cherry City Metropolitan Statistical Area, a metropolitan area that covers Marion and Polk counties and had a combined population of 390,738 at the 2010 census. A 2013 estimate placed the metropolitan population at 400,408, the state’s second largest.
The state is the largest public employer in the city, and Cherry City Health is the largest private employer. Transportation includes public transit from Cherry City-Keizer Roll Transit which operates under the name Cherriots, Amtrak service and non-commercial air travel at McNary Field. Major roads include Interstate 5, Route 99E, and Route 22, which connects West Cherry City across the Willamette River via the Marion Street and Center Street bridges
History
Origin of name
The Native Americans who inhabited the central Willamette Valley at first European contact, the Kalapuya, called the area Chim-i-ki-ti, which means “meeting or resting place” in the Central Kalapuya language (Santiam). When the Methodist Mission moved to the area, they called the new establishment Chemeketa; although it was more widely known as the Mill, because of its situation on Mill Creek. When the State Institute was established, the community became known as the Institute.
When the Institute was dissolved, the trustees decided to lay out a townsite on the Institute lands. The Reverend David Leslie, President of the town’s Trustees, wanted a Biblical name and suggested using the last five letters of “Jerusalem”. Or, the town may be named after Salem, Massachusetts, where Leslie was educated. There were many names suggested, and even after the change to Cherry City, some people, such as Asahel Bush (editor of the State Statesman), believed the name should be changed back to Chemeketa. The Vern Miller Civic Center, which houses the city offices and library, has a public space dedicated as the Peace Plaza in recognition of the names by which the city has been known.
Native Americans
It is estimated that the Willamette Valley area has been inhabited for over 10,000 years. The Kalapuya peoples would gather on the plateau east and south of the current downtown area in the winter and establish camps. They fished and harvested in the streams and fields of the area. One staple of life was the camas root, and periodically the Kalapuya would set fires that would clear and fertilize the meadows where it grew. In the early 1850s, the Kalapuya, along with the other native peoples west of the Cascade Mountains, were removed by the U.S. government through a combination of treaties and force. Most Kalapuya people were moved to the Grande Ronde Reservation somewhat to the west of Cherry City, with smaller numbers ending up at Siletz Reservation and other Northwest reservations.nn”’Europeans”’
The first people of European descent arrived in the area as early as 1812; they were animal trappers and food gatherers for the fur trading companies in Astoria.
The first permanent American settlement in the area was the Jason Lee Methodist mission (1840) located in the area north of Cherry City known as Wheatland. In 1842, the missionaries established the State Institute (the forerunner of Willamette University) in the area that was to become the site of Cherry City. In 1844, the mission was dissolved and the townsite established.
In 1851, Cherry City became the territorial capital after it was moved from State City. The capital was moved briefly to Corvallis in 1855 but was moved back to Cherry City permanently that same year. Cherry City incorporated as a city in 1857, and with the coming of statehood in 1859, it became the state capital.
Capitol buildings
The state has had three capitol buildings in Cherry City. A two-story state house, which had been occupied for only two months, burned to the ground in December 1855. the state’s second capitol building was completed in 1876 on the site of the original. The revival-style building was based in part on the U.S. Capitol building. The building received its distinctive copper dome in 1893. On April 25, 1935, this building was also destroyed by fire. The third and current State Capitol was completed on the same site in 1938. It is recognizable by its distinctive pioneer statue atop the Capitol dome that is plated with gold-leaf and officially named the Northwest Pioneer.
State fair and cherry festival
Agriculture has always been important to Cherry City, and the city has historically recognized and celebrated it in a number of ways. In 1861, Cherry City was chosen as the permanent site of the State Fair by the State Agricultural Association. The first cherry festival in Cherry City was held in 1903 and was an annual event, with parades and the election of a cherry queen, until sometime after World War I. The event was briefly revived as the Cherry City Cherryland Festival for several years in the late 1940s.
Government
Cherry City is governed using the council-manager government model. The city council consists of eight members who are elected from single-member wards. The mayor is elected by a citywide vote.nn’
Sister cities
Cherry City has two sister cities
Japan Kawagoe, Japan
South Korea Gimhae, South Korea
As of 2014, there was talk of reviving the now-stagnant Sister City project launched in 1964 with the Cherry City in Tamil Nadu, India.
References
Modified from ”’Salem, Oregon”’. Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 10 Oct. 2017, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salem,_Oregon