Happy Birthday, Oregon!

Today is the anniversary of Oregon being admitted to our United States of America.

Date of Admittance: February 14, 1859

Parentage: The name is said to be based on the French word "ouragon,"  which means "hurricane."  The state name came from the Oregon River.  

Place in the Family

Number 33

Oregon came in a year after Minnesota (May 1858)

and two years before Kansas (Jan 1861)

Motto

"She Flies With Her Own Wings"

As opposed to leeching off of some other flying creature? 

Nick-Name

The Beaver State

aka New Canada?

On the License Plate

I couldn't find any picture of a twin mountain
like shown here...anybody know? 

 

State Flag

A blue flag with the state symbol in the center, 
the name "Oregon," and the year it became a state

I've officially cut and pasted this from the Kansas page: 
"As I've said too many times already, 
I don't mind the seal so much,

but WHY do we need the name?! 
If you have to put your state's name on your

flag, you're doing something wrong."

First City You Probably Think of 

When You Think "Oregon" 

Portland

Actual State Capital:Salem
(does anybody besides me see the New England envy?

State Size (Area) is 9th of 50
Population is closer to 28th of 50

(per 2000 Census figures)

Oregon Sports: 
NBA (Portland Trailblazers)

Anybody From Oregon
Ever Grow Up To Be President?
Nope!

Oregon Celebrities

Chief Joseph

Native American leader

Carl Barks

cartoonist, created Uncle Scrooge McDuck

Beverly Cleary

author, Ramona Quimby, Age 8

Johnnie Ray

singer, "Cry"

Sally Struthers

actress, "All in the Family"

Phil Knight

co-founder of NIKE

Dave Cockrum

artist, "The Legion" and "The X-Men"

created "Wildfire" and "Nightcrawler" etc

Howard Hesseman

actor, "WKRP in Cincinnati"

Ahmad Rashad

All-American football star, sportscaster
 

River Phoenix

actor, "Stand By Me"

Matt Groening

"The Simpsons," "Futurama"

Tonya Harding

Olympic ice-skater

Mitch Pileggi

actor, "The X-Files"

Alex Ross

artist-writer, "JUSTICE"

Justin Kirk

actor, "Weeds"

Ty Burrell

actor, "Modern Family"

A Song For You....
"Cry"
by Churchill Kohlman
performed by Johnnie Ray

I couldn't find any songs *about* Oregon,
so I went with a song by someone *from* Oregon.
He also sings, "Soliloquy of a Fool" 
which I've never heard of, sorry!