The gazette-times. [volume] (Heppner, Or.) 1912-1925, 1915-05-06
Productive Rogue River Valley
and Jackson County, Oregon

the Cascades, a low altitude, the Valley
mas the same mild climate found along
the Coast, from Puget Sound to Southern
Caii1ornia, due to the Influence of the
warm Japan ocean currents. The Win
ter months are mild, with little snow.
which usually melts rapidly. The 2S
inches of rain comes from October TO
april, with occasional showers during the
Summer.
Ihere Is an average of 270 days of sun
shlne and there is always an evening
breeze. The humidity is very low. The
hottest days in Summer the humidity is
between 10 and 20. The nights are cool.
Inc average minimum temperature dur
Ing the Winter is just below freezing or
81 degrees.
Damaging winds are not experienced.
Water Resources.
water available for irrigation and
power is one Of Jackson County's valua-
BILE resources. Rogue River and its tribu-
taries drain the entire area, and accord
ing to the State Engineer, has 800, 900
horsepower, with a total annual run-off
OF $1,000 0 acre-feet Of water, so Jack
son County has an abundance of water for
all purposes. The large planned irriga-
ton projects started are yet uncompleted.
1t is estimated that 1000 acres of land
Is irrigated by means of electric pump
ing and alfalfa fields of 100 or more
acres are irrigated. The cost of pumping
varies, according to the lift and size OF
plant. The cost to raise one acre-foot
100 feet by electricity is $3.50 per year,
and the cost Of the plant, IS to SO per
acre.
Water Power Development.
One of the large prospective uses for
electric power is for electric roads. The
largest developed power plant is at Pros
pect, where 1000 horsepower is gener-
ated. This is capable of expension to
10000. One hundred and twenty-five
families in the Valley cook with electric
ity, 80 per cent of the total county popu-
lation use electricity for lighting, as the
service is extended into all rural districts.
Timber Resources.
Two-thirds of the acreage of Jackson
County is classified as timber land, $780,
900 acres is privately owned, 427, 900
acres in natural forests. The estimate Of
merchantable timber has a total of 49,
000, 900 900 feet and contains som of
the largest standing bodies of sugar pine
found in the United States. Compare
lively little use has been made OF the TIM
Der resources up to this time, as only
a few small mills have operated.
Minerals.
The mineral resources of Jackson Coun-
ty are first among all the counties of the
state, according to special investigators
of the Oregon Bureau Of Mines and Geol-
ogy. The placer gold fields of Southern
Oregon have yielded $150,00O 900 since
their discovery.
Large coal deposits are now being thor
oughly tested. These veins range from s
to IL feet in thickness.
Building stones offer an inviting field
to the developer, which include granite,
sandstone and marble from pure white to
black, with grain rivaling Vermont quar-
ries.
The great need toward the development
Is a road to the coast, only 100 miles,
where it could be loaded upon transports
with wide market possibilities.
Special opportunities might be summar-
ICED and emphasized as: Lumber mills
and box factories, alfalfa meal mills, ad-
ditional fruit and by-product plants,
creameries and beet sugar factories.
Good Roads.
September, 1913, Jackson County voted
tOUU,VUU lOI the COAoNi lAo VI q HUI
ern, first-class, hard-surfaced highway
more than so miles in length, through the
Rogue River Valley. A unit of the Pa
cific Highway from British Columbia into
Mexico-Jackson County was the first
county in the state to improve this unit
of the Highway leader in the agitation
of good roads in Oregon. We have II
miles of the Highway completed and 10
miles over the Siskiyou Mountains graded
and will be hard-surfaced early this Sum-
mer.
For the Tourist.
Jackson County offers many varieties
of mineral springs, mountain streams
with unrivaled fishing, w~ildernesses with
deer. bear and cougar, historic Table
Rock. Mill Creek Falls and Crater Lake,
one of the scenic wonders of the world,
with Medford the gateway, and just across
the line in Josephine County are the
Marble Caves, promising when fully ex-
plored, to equal the caves of Kentucky.
Rogue River offers royal sport In fly
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