Editing Columbia County, Oregon (section)

==History==
{{Unreferenced section|date=September 2022}}
The [[Chinookan peoples|Chinook]] and [[Clatskanie, Oregon|Clatskanie]] [[Native Americans in the United States|Native American peoples]] inhabited this region for centuries prior to the [[Gray Sails the Columbia River|arrival]] of [[Robert Gray (sea-captain)|Robert Gray]], captain of the ship ''[[Columbia Rediviva]]'', in 1792. The [[Lewis and Clark Expedition]] traveled and camped along the Columbia River shore in the area later known as Columbia County in late 1805 and again on their return journey in early 1806.

Columbia County was created in 1854 from the northern half of [[Washington County, Oregon|Washington County]]. [[Milton, Columbia County, Oregon|Milton]] served as the county seat until 1857 when it was moved to St. Helens.

Columbia County has been afflicted by numerous flooding disasters, the most recent in December 2007. Heavy rains caused the Nehalem River to escape its banks and flood the city of Vernonia and rural areas nearby. Columbia County received a presidential disaster declaration for this event.

In the 1910s the [[Socialist Party of Oregon (Columbia County, Oregon)|Socialist Party of Oregon]] won a handful of votes. This party was distinct from the better-known [[Socialist Party of Oregon|SPO]] which operated throughout the twentieth century.
[[File:Columbia County.svg|alt=Map of Columbia County|thumb|Map of Columbia County]]