Great runs of salmon and steelhead populated our rivers. Beavers were abundant and created complex wetland systems in the river valleys. With plenty of space and abundant resources, knowing who owned our waterways did not seem important.
Waterways are also boundaries.
They separate states, counties, cities and individual properties. With increasing population, the demands placed upon our waterways are becoming far greater than in the past. This page attempts to give clear answers to some of the complex and perplexing questions about waterway ownership. According to the courts, and with few exceptions, the people of Oregon own the bed and banks of all navigable streams, rivers, and lakes up to the ordinary high water line. Therefore, when Oregon was admitted to the Union in 1859, it became the owner of all land underlying both the navigable waterways and tidal waters within its borders as a part of its sovereignty.