1942: Oregon

Area and Population.

Oregon ranks ninth in size among the states, with an area of 96,981 sq. mi. The population as enumerated in the census of 1940 was 1,089,684, an increase of 14.2 per cent over the figure for 1930. Nearly 90 per cent of the population is composed of native-born white persons, and whites, both native and foreign-born compose more than 98 per cent of the total population. The leading 'other races' are Indians, Negroes, Chinese, and Filipinos. The Japanese were in the lead until their evacuation early in the war. Canada, Germany, Scandinavia and England are the leading home countries of the foreign-born.

Nearly one-third of the people of Oregon live in Portland, the one large city in the state, with a population of 305,394 in the census of 1940. At the close of the year 1942 the population of Portland and immediate environment had been greatly increased by the large influx of workers to the shipyards and other war industries of the area. The capital city (Salem) comes next in size with 30,908; after which follow Eugene (20,838), Klamath Falls (16,497), Medford (11,281), Astoria (10,389), and Bend (10,021).

Education.

In the main, public education held its own during the year ending in June, 1942. The school census showed a total of 266,352 of school age, an increase of about 1,000 over the preceding year. In the elementary schools the enrollment was 154,137, an increase of 9,345; while 60,337 were enrolled in standard high schools, a decrease of nearly 1,600, due, no doubt, to the lure of defense industries. When schools opened in the fall of 1942 the educational facilities were strained to the limit, and at the close of the year plans were still under way to provide new schools for the large number of children of workers in the shipyards and other war production plants who had come into the state. Standard high schools in the state in June 1942, numbered 256, and the average cost of maintaining these schools for the school year was $138.34, an increase of nearly $14 over the preceding year. The total number of public-school teachers was approximately 8,000. In the fall of the year a shortage of available teachers caused serious concern in many school systems.

Industrial Gains.

Industry and agriculture both showed marked gains during the year, largely due to the effort to meet war needs. The industrial payroll was nearly twice that of 1941, and in the Portland area it was nearly triple. There was an increase of 30 per cent in farm products, explained partly by increased production and partly by higher prices. Railroad freight traffic at Portland was from 40 to 50 per cent higher, and exports to foreign countries showed a gain of about 500 per cent over recent years. Retail trade in Portland was from 25 to 50 per cent greater than in 1941, and there were similar gains in other cities of the state. Bank clearings for the year in Portland were $3,248,513,562 on December 27, as compared with $2,508,723,490 on the same day in 1941. Street car and bus traffic in Portland strained facilities to the limit, with an increase of more than 50 per cent in passengers. Receipts from the state income tax for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1942, amounted to $11,965,000, as compared with $7,285,000 for the preceding year.

Legislative Matters.

The Legislature did not meet in 1942, but seven measures, four of which were constitutional amendments, were submitted to the voters at the general election in November. Four of these measures were adopted, namely: increase in the compensation of legislators from $3 a day for forty days to $8 a day for 50 days; repeal of the rural credits amendment to the state constitution; a constitutional amendment to prevent diversion of the gasoline tax; and a law transferring a surplus in the treasury to the public-school fund. The three measures which were defeated were: a tax on cigarettes, a law regulating fishing, and a constitutional amendment relating to the voting privileges of idiots and persons convicted of crimes punishable by imprisonment in the state penitentiary.

The recently created fourth Congressional district of Oregon now brings to four the number of Representatives in Congress from Oregon.

Defense.

The most notable war industry in Oregon was to be found in the Henry J. Kaiser shipyards in the Portland area. In one of these yards a Liberty ship was launched in ten days after the laying of the keel. Two large army cantonments, a blimp base, and several other units for the training and supplying of the armed forces were constructed in Oregon during the year. During 1942 the people of Oregon purchased more than $100,000,000 worth of war bonds. The war was brought close to home when a Japanese submarine shelled the coast near the mouth of the Columbia River on July 23, and in September when a bomb was dropped from a Japanese airplane in southwestern Oregon.

State Officers.

Governor, Earl Snell; Secretary of State, Robert S. Farrell, Jr.; Treasurer, Leslie M. Scott; Attorney General, K. H. Van Winkle; Superintendent of Public Instruction. Rex Putnam.

United States Senators:

Charles L. McNary, Rufus C. Holman.