Antelope, Oregon

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Antelope (known as Rajneesh from 1984 to 1986) is a city in rural Wasco County, Oregon, United States. Antelope had an estimated population of 47 people in 2012.<ref name="2012 Pop Estimate">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name=AntelopeOfficial>Template:Cite web</ref>

The city was established in 1872 at a stage and freight wagon road stop on the old Dalles to Canyon City Trail. It was incorporated as the City of Antelope in 1901.

In the early 1980s, hundreds of members of the Rajneesh movement moved in and built a small city in previously unoccupied land they purchased. The Rajneeshees effectively took over the government of the city by outnumbering the original residents with new voter registrations. On September 18, 1984, a vote was held, and the city was renamed Rajneesh, Oregon. By 1985, after several of the Rajneesh movement leaders were discovered to have been involved in criminal behavior (including a mass food poisoning attack and an aborted plot to assassinate a U.S. Attorney), leader Rajneesh left the country as part of a plea deal for federal immigration fraud charges, and the Rajneesh commune collapsed. On November 6, 1985, the city voted to revert to the name Antelope.

History

The Antelope Valley was probably named by European-American members of Joseph Sherar's party, who were packing supplies to mines in the John Day area.<ref name="OGN">Template:Cite book</ref> Sherar became known as the operator of a toll bridge across the Deschutes River, on a cut-off of the Barlow Road.<ref name=OHS>Template:Cite web</ref> In the early 19th century, the area supported many pronghorns, which are not true antelopes, but are often called "pronghorn antelopes".<ref name="OGN"/>

19th century beginnings

In the mid-19th century, Antelope began as a station along the wagon road connecting The Dalles on the Columbia River with gold mines near Canyon City. After about 1870, the wagon road became known as The Dalles Military Road.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The road crossed the Deschutes River on Sherar's Bridge.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

File:Antelope Schoolhouse (Wasco County, Oregon scenic images) (wascDA0063).jpg

The historic Antelope School building, which currently houses municipal offices and various community functions including the annual harvest dinner event

The Antelope post office was established in 1871, with Howard Maupin, founder of Maupin, Oregon, as the first postmaster.<ref name="OGN"/> The town's population peaked around 1900,<ref name="Moffatt"/> shortly after the Columbia Southern Railway completed a Template:Convert rail line from Biggs, on the Columbia River, to Shaniko, a few miles north of Antelope.<ref name="Culp">Template:Cite book</ref> The railroad timetable for September 9, 1900, lists a daily stagecoach run from the train terminal in Shaniko to Antelope and beyond.<ref name="Culp"/> Antelope was incorporated by the Oregon Legislative Assembly on January 29, 1901.

Rajneesh movement

File:AntelopePlaque.jpg

A plaque at the Antelope post office commemorates local resistance to the Rajneeshee movement

Rajneeshpuram, a farming and meditation commune founded by the Rajneesh movement, followers of Bhagwan Shri Rajneesh, was established near the town in 1981. The town attempted to disincorporate in April 1982 to avoid a takeover by the Rajneesh followers, who registered to vote in Antelope en masse and rejected the measure. The Rajneeshees gained a majority on the town council following the November 1982 elections and resignation of two other members.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> On September 18, 1984, the city was renamed "Rajneesh".<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

The organization collapsed in 1985 following the discovery by the authorities of criminal activities, such as a bioterror attack a year prior that exposed non-Rajneeshees in Wasco County to salmonella to prevent them from voting. On November 6, 1985, the remaining residents, which included both original residents and some remaining Rajneeshees, voted 34 to 0 to restore the original name, and it was subsequently restored in 1986.<ref name=AntelopeOfficial/> The U.S. Postal Service had never recognized the change of name.<ref name="OGN" />

Subsequent to the collapse of the commune, the property reverted to ownership by the State of Oregon for non-payment of taxes, and was sold to Montana billionaire Dennis Washington in 1991 for $3.65 million.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Currently, the ranch, Template:Convert from Antelope,<ref>Template:Cite encyclopedia</ref> is operated by Young Life, a Christian parachurch organization, as a Christian youth camp known as "Washington Family Ranch".<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

The events of the mid-1980s that involved the Rajneesh group were the subject of the 2003 Forensic Files TV series episode "Bio Attack", and the 2018 Netflix documentary Wild Wild Country.

Geography

File:2017-07-15 Antelope 07.jpg

The closed Antelope Café

Antelope, in Wasco County in north-central Oregon, is along Oregon Route 218 just north of its intersection with Oregon Route 293.<ref name="DeLorme">Template:Cite book</ref> By highway, the city is Template:Convert northeast of Madras and Template:Convert east of Portland.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Antelope Creek, in the Deschutes River watershed, flows by Antelope.<ref name="DeLorme"/>

The city is Template:Convert above sea level.<ref name="gnis"/> According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of Template:Convert, all of it land.<ref name="Gazetteer files">Template:Cite web</ref>

Climate

According to the Köppen climate classification system, Antelope has a warm-summer Mediterranean climate (Köppen Csa).

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Demographics

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File:Rajneesh City (Antelope).jpg

Sign on the entrance to Antelope reading "City of Rajneesh", circa 1985

2010 census

As of the census of 2010, there were 46 people, 28 households, and 10 families residing in the city. The population density was Template:Convert. There were 43 housing units at an average density of Template:Convert. The racial makeup of the city was 91.3% White (42 people), 2.2% Native American (1 person), 2.2% Asian (1 person), and 4.3% from two or more races (2 people).<ref name="wwwcensusgov"/>

There were 28 households, of which 11% (3 households) had children under the age of 18 living with them, 21% (6 households) were married couples living together, 4% (1 household) had a female householder with no husband present, 11% (3 households) had a male householder with no wife present, and 64% (18 households) were non-families. About 61% (17 households) of all households were made up of individuals, and 46% (13 households) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 1.64 and the average family size was 2.70.<ref name="wwwcensusgov"/>

The median age in the city was 62 years. About 15% of residents (7 people) were under the age of 18; 2% (1 person) were between the ages of 18 and 24; 11% (5 people) were from 25 to 44; 30.3% (14 people) were from 45 to 64; and 41% (19 people) were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 52% (24 people) male and 48% (22 people) female.<ref name="wwwcensusgov"/>