Editing Coos Bay, Oregon (section)

==History==
Prior to Europeans first visiting the Oregon coast, Native American tribes claimed the Coos Bay region as their homeland for thousands of years.<ref name="chamber">[http://www.oregonsbayarea.org/community/coos-bay-north-bend-charleston-history.htm "Bay Area History"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120814000640/http://www.oregonsbayarea.org/community/coos-bay-north-bend-charleston-history.htm |date=August 14, 2012 }}. [http://www.oregonsbayarea.org Oregon Bay Area Chamber of Commerce] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101102122220/http://oregonsbayarea.org/ |date=November 2, 2010 }}. Accessed September 2010.</ref> Members of the [[Coos people|Coos]], [[Umpqua people|Lower Umpqua]], [[Siuslaw people|Siuslaw]] and [[Coquille people|Coquille]] tribes lived, fished, hunted and gathered along Coos Bay and its estuaries, along rivers, and in meadows and forests.<ref name="chamber"/> Approximately 400 years ago, British and Spanish explorers first approached the South Coast.<ref name="chamber"/> In 1579, [[Francis Drake|Sir Francis Drake]] was purported to have sought shelter for his ship, the ''[[Golden Hind]]e'', around [[Cape Arago State Park|Cape Arago]].<ref name="arago001">{{cite book |title=The Secret Voyage of Sir Francis Drake: 1577–1580 |pages=363 |author=Samuel Bawlf |isbn=0-8027-1405-6 |year=2003 |publisher=Walker & Company; 1st Edition (May 1, 2003) |location=New York }}</ref><ref name=City>[http://www.coosbayonline.com/cb/aboutcb/CBHistory.htm "History of Coos Bay"] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120207013026/http://www.coosbayonline.com/cb/aboutcb/CBHistory.htm |date=February 7, 2012 }}. City of Coos Bay. Accessed September 2010.</ref> Trader and explorer [[Jedediah Smith]] was in the region seeking furs, and the [[Hudson's Bay Company]] sent [[Alexander Roderick McLeod]] to search for an inland passage.<ref name="chamber"/>

===19th century===
[[File:Steamboat Coos.jpg|thumb|left|Steamboat Coos, sometime before 1895, probably in or near Coos Bay, Oregon]]

The earliest settlement of European Americans in the area was in January 1852 when survivors of the ''Captain Lincoln'' shipwreck established [[Camp Castaway]] until they and their cargo could be fully rescued.<ref>{{cite web |last=Wells |first=Gwen |title=Contact and Settlement: Settlement Begins |url=http://www.ohs.org/education/oregonhistory/narratives/subtopic.cfm?subtopic_ID=554 |work=The Oregon History Project |publisher=[[Oregon Historical Society]] |access-date=April 15, 2012 |archive-date=October 23, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071023200928/http://www.ohs.org/education/oregonhistory/narratives/subtopic.cfm?subtopic_ID=554 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Dodge |first=Orvil |year=1898 |title=Pioneer History of Coos and Curry Counties, Oregon |publisher=Capital Printing Company |location=Salem, Oregon |pages=115–125 }}</ref> There has been a permanent settlement on Coos Bay since 1853, when the town of Marshfield was founded there and named after the [[Marshfield, Massachusetts|Massachusetts hometown]] of its founder, J. C. Tolman.<ref name=City/> The first Methodist church in the area was established in 1857.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Our History |work=Coos Bay United Methodist Church |access-date=April 6, 2014 |url=http://www.coosbayumc.org/818775 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121221020658/http://www.coosbayumc.org/818775 |archive-date=December 21, 2012 |url-status=dead }}</ref> By 1866 the inhabitants, who were reliant on the sea for their income, had built the [[Cape Arago Light]]. The setting up of a post office in 1871 and the arrival of the [[Coos Bay Wagon Road]] in the town a year later connected Coos County with the [[Umpqua River]] valley in neighboring Douglas County, on the other side of the [[Southern Oregon Coast Range|Coast Range]] of mountains. This wagon road, although long gone in its original form, is still partially in existence since the route of [[Oregon Route 42]] roughly follows the original right of way.

1870 saw Coos Bay set up its first, and the state's 48th, chartered [[Masonic Lodge]].<ref>[http://www.oregonmasons.com/hist1.html Oregon Masons] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070109031723/http://oregonmasons.com/hist1.html |date=January 9, 2007 }}</ref> Named Blanco Lodge, this brotherhood was set up by several of the town's founding fathers. With this development, the [[Municipal corporation|incorporation]] of Marshfield came in 1874. One of the nation's oldest still-operating machine shops, the Nelson Machine Works-Coos Bay Iron Works, was founded in 1888.

===20th century===

==== Alonzo Tucker ====
[[File:Marshfield Oregon from Wireless Hill 1920.jpg|thumb|Marshfield from Wireless Hill circa 1920]]
{{main|Killing of Alonzo Tucker}}
On September 18, 1902, the only lynching ever to be documented in Oregon occurred in Coos Bay, of [[Alonzo Tucker (lynching victim)|Alonzo Tucker]], an African-American man. He was accused of raping a white woman and escaping from jail. However, there is no record of his escape from jail. According to newspaper accounts, Tucker was discovered by two young boys who began shooting him with airguns. After a brief pursuit, local miners apprehended Tucker who was hiding inside a store. The mob considering hanging him inside the store but decided to return him to the site of the alleged rape at a nearby bridge.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |url=https://oregonnews.uoregon.edu/lccn/sn2002060538/1902-09-27/ed-1/seq-1/ocr/ |title=The Corvallis times. (Corvallis, Or.) 1888-1909, September 27, 1902, Image 1 « Historic Oregon Newspapers |website=oregonnews.uoregon.edu |access-date=January 21, 2020 }}</ref> Tucker was shot twice and then hanged from the 7th Street bridge, which spanned present-day Golden Field, where high school soccer games are now held. No charges were ever brought against the mob, as officials determined "the deceased came to his death at the hands of parties unknown while resisting arrest for a felony, and that no crime was committed thereby."<ref>{{Cite news |newspaper=Crook County Journal |location=University of Oregon Libraries: Historic Oregon Newspapers |date=September 25, 1902 |title=September 25, 1902, Image 4 |url=https://oregonnews.uoregon.edu/lccn/sn00063661/1902-09-25/ed-1/seq-4/ |volume=6 |issue=41 |archive-date=March 7, 2023 |access-date=January 21, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230307082835/https://oregonnews.uoregon.edu/lccn/sn00063661/1902-09-25/ed-1/seq-4/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Despite this claim that those in the mob were unknown, the participation of multiple people, including the husband of the alleged rape victim, was noted in local newspapers. One newspaper at that time reported the mob was "quiet and orderly" and another paper wrote, "'Well done' is the consensus of public opinion."<ref name=":0" /> Alonzo Tucker's cause of death was asphyxiation.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Mclagan |first=Elizabeth |title=A Peculiar Paradise: A History of Blacks in Oregon, 1788-1940. |url=https://openlibrary.org/books/OL4110324M/A_peculiar_paradise |url-access=registration |access-date=January 22, 2024 |publisher=[[Oregon State University Press]] in Cooperation with [[Oregon Black Pioneers]] |year=2022 |isbn=9780870712210 |edition=2nd |location=Corvallis, OR |ol=4110324M |oclc=1341845615 |language=English |archive-date=January 23, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240123004716/https://openlibrary.org/books/OL4110324M/A_peculiar_paradise |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |newspaper=[[Ashland Daily Tidings]] |title=Oregon's dark hour |date=June 22, 2005 |first=Chris |last=Honore }}</ref> According to the coroner's report, cause of death was blood loss from the gunshot wound in Tucker's right thigh, in which case he died before being hanged on the Marshfield bridge.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Jensen |first=Andie |title=Hangman's Call |publisher=LAWMAN PUBLISHING |year=2008 |isbn=978-0-9819363-1-4 |location=Coos Bay, OR |pages=165 }}</ref>

===== Industry =====
Prior to around 1915, the Coos region was largely isolated from the rest of Oregon due to difficulties in crossing the [[Southern Oregon Coast Range|Coast Range]] and fording rivers, and the Pacific Ocean was used to link people to other areas, including San Francisco, which was an easier two-day trip compared to traveling inland over rugged terrain.<ref name="chamber"/> In 1916 a rail line was completed that linked the region to other interior settlements and towns, which increased commercial trade and tourism<ref name="chamber"/> Significant urban growth occurred in the 1920s, and during the 1930s to 1950s large-scale growth occurred.<ref name="chamber"/> Per the Oregon Bay Area Chamber of Commerce, during the 1930s to 1950s:

<blockquote>
''Shipyards contracted with the U.S. Government to build [[Minesweeper (ship)|minesweeper]]s and rescue [[tugboat|tugs]] for World War II defense purposes. Large national lumber companies set up operations and expanded significantly for the next two decades. Jetty improvements, commercial fishing, and crabbing shaped the development of [[Charleston, Oregon|Charleston]]. The completion of the North Bend Bridge (now [[Conde McCullough Memorial Bridge|McCullough Memorial Bridge]]) in 1936 and the [[U.S. Route 101 in Oregon|Roosevelt Highway]] significantly improved modern transportation connections and provided the final link in opening the Coos region to the outside world. The formerly remote district known as the Coos Bay country had come of age.''<ref name="chamber"/>
</blockquote>

What now makes up the central district of Coos Bay was called Marshfield until November 10, 1944. The name change, long advocated by residents, had been voted for and became effective on November 11,<ref>United Press, "New Name Taken by Marshfield, Oregon", ''The San Bernardino Daily Sun'', San Bernardino, California, Sunday November 12, 1944, Volume 51, page 10.</ref> thus matching the name of the Bay itself. The City of Marshfield was named after the Massachusetts hometown of the Cityʼs founder, J.C. Tolman, and incorporated in 1874.<ref>{{cite web |title=Historic Walking Tour of Coos Bay |url=http://www.oregonsadventurecoast.com/trip-ideas/historic-walking-tour-of-coos-bay/ |publisher=Oregon's Adventure Coast |access-date=October 17, 2012 |archive-date=August 1, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120801002618/http://oregonsadventurecoast.com/trip-ideas/historic-walking-tour-of-coos-bay/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

[[File:Carissafire.PNG|thumb|The ''New Carissa'' after catching fire]]
[[File:Carissaburns.PNG|thumb|upright|''New Carissa'' burns, while a seal looks on]]
On February 4, 1999, a Japanese ship named the ''[[New Carissa]]'' ran aground on a beach 2.75 miles (4.3&nbsp;km) north of the entrance to Coos Bay, drawing international attention to the area. The ''New Carissa'' was empty of cargo at the time, heading for the Port of Coos Bay to pick up wood chips. When the captain was told that the weather was too severe for the ship to enter port, he anchored his ship close by. The crew put out only one anchor, and it appears that this was probably on too short a chain to be effective. The subsequent US Coast Guard investigation found several other aspects of the ship's company's handling of the situation to have been poor, leading to the conclusion that human error caused the grounding. Seventy thousand US gallons (260 m3) of #6 crude oil were spilled by the vessel, with a further 165,000 to 255,000 gallons (625 to 965 m3) set alight via explosives and liquid napalm, by the Army Corps of Engineers, over the course of weeks. The explosives, the heat from the burning oil and the beating of the Pacific Ocean on the ship are what eventually caused the ''New Carissa'' to break in two.

The stern of the ship remained on the beach; the bow was towed out to sea and sunk after multiple attempts. They had to get special tow lines shipped in from overseas and had multiple tug boats pulling it out.

In 2008, the stern of the ''New Carissa'' was cut into pieces and removed from the beach.

====Consolidation====

Several votes to consolidate or merge cities around Coos Bay were held in the 20th century, beginning in 1906.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Yune |first1=Howard |last2=Richter |first2=Patti |date=May 19, 2004 |title=NB says no to consolidation; CB approves it |url=https://theworldlink.com/news/local/nb-says-no-to-consolidation-cb-approves-it/article_50c1b627-ffa0-534b-85cd-6d2e1f89bef9.html |work=The World |access-date=July 26, 2023 |archive-date=July 27, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230727060741/https://theworldlink.com/news/local/nb-says-no-to-consolidation-cb-approves-it/article_50c1b627-ffa0-534b-85cd-6d2e1f89bef9.html |url-status=live }}</ref> In May 1962 and November 1962, voters in Coos County rejected propositions that would have merged the cities of Coos Bay, North Bend, Empire, and Eastside into a single city. The second vote had been defeated in North Bend by a margin of 98 votes, while the other four cities had approved.<ref>{{cite news |date=November 7, 1962 |title=Consolidation Beaten By North Bend—Again! |page=1 |work=The World |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-world-consolidation-beaten-by-north/128945551/ |via=Newspapers.com |access-date=July 26, 2023 |archive-date=July 27, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230727063603/https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-world-consolidation-beaten-by-north/128945551/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The consolidation had been proposed to provide an equal share of services across the Bay Area and retain more tax revenue from major employers in the county.<ref>{{cite news |last=Shoemaker |first=Mervin |date=September 30, 1962 |title=Coos Bay Area Consolidators Meet North Bend Opposition |page=14 |work=The Oregonian }}</ref> Empire voted to merge with Coos Bay in December 1964 and was approved by the city council the following month.<ref>{{cite news |date=January 9, 1965 |title=CB Approves Merger With Empire |page=1 |work=The World |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-world-cb-approves-merger-with-empire/128945660/ |via=Newspapers.com |access-date=July 26, 2023 |archive-date=July 27, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230727064133/https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-world-cb-approves-merger-with-empire/128945660/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Eastside's merger was approved in November 1983 and took effect on December 29, 1983.<ref>{{cite news |last=Pokorny |first=Kym |date=December 30, 1983 |title=Birth of new city celebrated |page=1 |work=The World |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-world-birth-of-new-city-celebrated/128945606/ |via=Newspapers.com |access-date=July 26, 2023 |archive-date=July 27, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230727062100/https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-world-birth-of-new-city-celebrated/128945606/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

===21st century===
The worst loss of life for a fire department in modern Oregon history occurred in Coos Bay on November 25, 2002, when three firefighters were killed by a structural failure of the roof in an auto parts store. The accidental blaze paralyzed the city for several hours, with fire departments from several neighboring towns assisting in the effort to stop the blaze. Captain Randy Carpenter, Firefighter/Engineer Robert "Chuck" Hanners and Firefighter/Engineer Jeff Common, all from Coos Bay, died when an explosion caused the roof of the building to cave in; they were inside the structure when the roof collapsed, killing the three firefighters.<ref>11-25-2002. [http://fallenbrothers.com/community/archive/index.php/t-3145.html "Roof Collapse Takes Three Oregon Firefighters"] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110726014908/http://fallenbrothers.com/community/archive/index.php/t-3145.html |date=July 26, 2011 }}. Northwest NewsChannel 8 (report). Accessed September 2010.</ref>