Thousands of miners flooded the area in search of this precious metal. Today gold-panning is a favorite occupation of many visitors as each year gold is washed down from the mountains in the streams and lodges in gravel and between boulders. Gradually, however, the gold dwindled. Since the rugged character of the Rogue prevented it from becoming a highway of commerce and most of the valuable pelts had been trapped out, agriculture became the major industry for the Rogue Valley. Although commercial salmon fishing was once popular, it was outlawed in 1962 when state legislation banned the use of gill-nets.
Game fishing remains the major fishing industry today.
In the 1930's the Rogue enjoyed a surge of Hollywood glitter as it became the watchword in fishing for such luminaries as Clark Gable, Ginger Rogers, Zane Grey and Herbert Hoover. Nowadays movies are produced by the score using the dramatic backdrop of the Rogue River, and many big Hollywood names such as Ginger Rogers and Kirstie Alley make the Rogue Valley their home away from home. A Recreational Paradise T he Rogue is one of eight rivers in the United States designated as wild and scenic. Its beauty will always be protected for our visitors. It remains a bird and wildlife watchers delight.