LOCAL HISTORY

     Wamic is named for first settlers Asa and Levi Womack, who along with their nephew Crawford, lived here in the 1800's. Originally named Prattville, Mr. Pratt was Justice of the Peace for the Tygh Valley Precinct in 1877. The first Wamic Post office was established November 25, 1884, and J.W. Stanford was it's Postmaster. The Barlow road had opened in 1846 ,near here, allowing a land route avoiding the treacherous Columbia River rapids. Where the Oregon Trail ended at the Dalles, Emigrents could travel south on old Native American trails to Tygh valley. From Tygh they would follow the Barlow Toll Road (@ $5 wagon and 10c per animal) along to the final destination, Oregon City. It was known as the Old Emigrent Road and entered the forest east of Wamic just north of Smock Prairie, the original location of the Historical Schoolhouse #44 when opened in 1906. The Schoolhouse remains one of the best examples of the one room shool so common among the rural areas of the great American west. It sits proudly in downtown, smalltown, Wamic Oregon.  A true representitive of a bye gone era, the one room 8 to12 grade school.

     Rendezvous Days, a local Wamic Festival over the Labor Day weekend, celebrates the historical contributions of the Pioneers that travelled and settled along the legendary Barlow Road/Old Emigrent Trail in the early days. The Wamic Community Historical Society are the caretakers of the Historical Smock Prairie Schoolhouse #44 ,  Museum. Many artifacts are always on display in the old one room schoolhouse along with the desks, stove, items and equipment of the day. The Wamic Community Historical Society celebrates and preserves the rich heritage of the area along the Old Barlow trail in eastern Oregon, gathering the stories and artifacts of the people that have made this place their home. The Society welcomes any and all relevent contributions, and encourages people and their families to document the verbal histories passed along by their generations. The tales and artifacts of every day life are the greatest  contributions we preserve. Your financial contributions, thank you, make it possible at all. Please come visit, we'd love to see you!

Join us at the Tygh Valley Fall Fest, Saturday Oct. 8, 2016 down at the Fairgrounds in Tygh Valley Oregon. Music all day, drawings , raffles, arts & crafts, great family fun, dance at night. It will be a blast ! We'll be there !