Twickenham, Oregon

Twickenham is an unincorporated community in Wheeler County, in the U.S. state of Oregon.[2] It is located along the John Day River between Service Creek and Mitchell, Oregon. A bridge at Twickenham carries North Twickenham Road over the river.[3]

Twickenham, Oregon
Unincorporated community
Twickenham along the John Day River
Twickenham, Oregon
Location within the state of Oregon
Twickenham, Oregon
Twickenham, Oregon (the United States)
Coordinates: 44°44′37″N 120°10′19″W
CountryUnited States
StateOregon
CountyWheeler
Named forTwickenham, a suburb of London, England[1]
Elevation
1,562 ft (476 m)
Time zoneUTC-8 (PST)
 • Summer (DST)UTC-7 (PDT)
Area code(s)541
Coordinates and elevation from United States Geological Survey[2]

The locality was originally named Contention after a quarrel between two of its prominent residents. The Contention post office opened in 1886. A daughter of one of the residents involved in the quarrel suggested that the name Twickenham, after the London suburb in England, would be more dignified than Contention. As it happened, the Contention post office closed in 1895, and a Twickenham post office opened in 1896 in the same general vicinity. It closed in 1917, and mail to Twickenham thereafter has been sent via Fossil, about 20 miles (32 km) to the north.[1]

After formation of Wheeler County in 1899, Twickenham was suggested as a possible county seat. A county-wide election held in 1900 produced 436 votes for Fossil, 267 for Twickenham, and 82 for Spray.[4] At the time, Twickenham had a store, hotel, blacksmith shop, and a ferry across the river.[5]

References
  1. McArthur, Lewis A.; Lewis L. McArthur (2003) [1928]. Oregon Geographic Names (7th ed.). Portland, Oregon: Oregon Historical Society Press. pp. 976–77. ISBN 0-87595-277-1.
  2. "Twickenham". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey. November 28, 1980. Retrieved April 6, 2015.
  3. Oregon Atlas & Gazetteer (7th ed.). Yarmouth, Maine: DeLorme. 2008. p. 76. ISBN 978-0-89933-347-2.
  4. Stinchfield, Janet L.; Stinchfield, McLaren E., eds. (1983). The History of Wheeler County, Oregon. Dallas, Texas: Taylor Publishing Company. pp. 5–6. OCLC 10948544.
  5. Fussner, F. Smith, ed. (1975). Glimpses of Wheeler County's Past: An Early History of North Central Oregon. Portland, Oregon: Binford & Mort. pp. 57–59. ISBN 0-8323-0249-X.CS1 maint: extra text: authors list (link)
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