| Official Name: | Mitchell, Oregon |
| Settlement Type: | City |
| Mapsize: | 250px |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Name: | United States |
| Subdivision Type1: | State |
| Subdivision Name1: | Oregon |
| Subdivision Type2: | County |
| Subdivision Name2: | Wheeler |
| Leader Title: | Mayor |
| Leader Name: | Jake Crawford |
| Established Title: | Incorporated |
| Area Total Sq Mi: | 1.28 |
| Area Footnotes: | [1] |
| Area Total Km2: | 3.31 |
| Area Land Sq Mi: | 1.28 |
| Area Land Km2: | 3.31 |
| Area Water Sq Mi: | 0.00 |
| Area Water Km2: | 0.00 |
| Population As Of: | 2020 |
| Population Total: | 138 |
| Population Density Km2: | 41.70 |
| Population Density Sq Mi: | 107.98 |
| Timezone: | Pacific |
| Utc Offset: | -8 |
| Timezone Dst: | Pacific |
| Utc Offset Dst: | -7 |
| Coordinates: | 44.5672°N -120.1536°W |
| Elevation M: | 846.4 |
| Elevation Ft: | 2777 |
| Postal Code Type: | ZIP code |
| Postal Code: | 97750 |
| Area Code: | 541 |
| Blank Name: | FIPS code |
| Blank Info: | 41-49150 |
| Blank1 Name: | GNIS feature ID |
| Blank1 Info: | 1146370[2] |
| Unit Pref: | Imperial |
Mitchell is a city in Wheeler County, Oregon, United States. The population was 130 at the 2010 census. It was founded in 1873 and was named after John H. Mitchell, a politician.
The Painted Hills unit of the John Day Fossil Beds National Monument is about 9miles northwest of Mitchell. Mitchell School, a public school with an enrollment of about 70 students, is in Mitchell.[3]
At the request of William "Brawdie" Johnson, a blacksmith, a post office was established at Mitchell in 1873. Johnson, the first postmaster, suggested the name Mitchell after John Hipple Mitchell, a U.S. Senator from Oregon. Senator Mitchell held the office in 1873−1879, 1885−1897, and 1901−1905. Platted in 1885, the community was incorporated in 1893.[4]
In 1872 the first school in Wheeler County was established near Mitchell, and in 1874 it was relocated into the town itself.
Over the next two decades, Mitchell grew to include a store, assay office, two churches, two hotels, livery stable, three houses of ill-repute (one of which is still standing), five saloons, a flour mill, a livery stable, and an apothecary. There were also two newspapers: The Sentinel and The News.
The business district, including the saloons, grew up along Bridge Creek and became known locally as "Tiger Town". The church and most of the city's homes were built at higher elevation on a bench overlooking the creek; this part of town was known locally as "Piety Hill". About half the town was destroyed by fire in 1899, but it was later rebuilt.[5]
Since its founding, Mitchell has experienced three catastrophic flash floods along Bridge Creek, which runs through the center of the city. Flooding caused great damage to the city in 1884 and 1904.[6]
The third flood occurred on July 13, 1956, shortly after an intense thunderstorm in the hills to the south. Bridge Creek is usually less than 12inches deep during July, but minutes after the thunderstorm a 50feet wall of water surged through Mitchell, destroying or heavily damaging 20 buildings in the city and several bridges over the creek. Eight people were killed including a family of four who were swept away and never recovered.
An observer from the United States Geological Survey estimated that about 4inches of rain had fallen in about 50 minutes at the storm's center.[7] Total damage from the flood, which also caused extensive damage to crops and roads in a nearby valley, was .[8]
In 2018, a geologist from the University of Oregon found a fossilized toe of a plant-eating dinosaur near Mitchell, where the Pacific Ocean coast lay 100 million years ago. This discovery has been billed as the first dinosaur fossil found in Oregon.[9]
A competing claim involves fossil fragments of a hadrosaur or duck-billed dinosaur found in the Otter Point Formation near the mouth of the Rogue River.[10]
Mitchell, in southwestern Wheeler County, is on U.S. Route 26 just east of its intersection with Oregon Route 207. By highway, the city is 47miles east of Prineville and 60miles west of John Day.[11] To the city's south lie the Ochoco Mountains, the source of Bridge Creek. It flows through Mitchell and then north through the Painted Hills to the John Day River.[12]
Eroded remnants of ancient stratovolcanoes, once the size of Mount Hood are nearby; these include Black Butte and White Butte, visible from town.[13]
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 1.26sqmi, all of it land.[14]
Precipitation in the region is limited by the rain shadow effect of the Cascade Range and the Ochoco Mountains to the west.[15] In winter, much of the precipitation arrives as snow.[15]
As of the census of 2010, there were 130 people, 61 households, and 39 families residing in the city. The population density was 103.2PD/sqmi. There were 83 housing units at an average density of 65.9/sqmi. The racial makeup of the city was 92.3% White, 0.8% Native American, and 6.9% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.5% of the population.[16]
There were 61 households, of which 18.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.8% were married couples living together, 4.9% had a female householder with no husband present, 8.2% had a male householder with no wife present, and 36.1% were non-families. 26.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.8% had someone living alone who was age 65 or older. The average household size was 2.13 people and the average family size was 2.56 .[16]
The median age in the city was 51.7 years. 15.4% of residents were under age 18; 4.6% were ages 18–24; 16.1% were ages 25–44; 33.1% were ages 45–64; and 30.8% were aged 65 years or older. The gender makeup of the city was 46.2% male and 53.8% female.[16]
As of the census of 2000, there were 170 people, 75 households, and 42 families residing in the city. The population density was 144.6 people per square mile (55.6/km). There were 91 housing units at an average density of 77.4sp=usNaNsp=us. The racial makeup of the city was 90.00% White, 2.35% Native American, 1.18% Asian, 1.18% from other races, and 5.29% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 7.65% of the population.[16]
There were 75 households, out of which 25.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.7% were married couples living together, 9.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 42.7% were non-families. 38.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 22.7% had someone living alone aged 65 years or older. The average household size was 2.27 people and the average family size was 2.79 .[16]
In the city, the population was spread out, with 28.8% under age 18, 2.9% ages 18–24, 19.4% ages 25–44, 28.2% ages 45–64, and 20.6% aged 65 years or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 107.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.1 males.[16]
The median income for a household in the city was $20,417, and the median income for a family was $20,833. Males had a median income of $21,250 versus $23,125 for females. The per capita income for the city was $13,906. About 26.9% of families and 28.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 43.5% of those under age 18 and none of those age 65 or over.[16]
Mitchell School District is the local school district.
The county is not a part of a community college district.[17]
Mitchell holds two festivals each year:
In the novel World War Z, by Max Brooks, the people of Mitchell are almost entirely infected and turned into zombies. Instead of being cleared, the town is sealed and is turned into the K-9 Urban Warfare school, where military dogs are trained with live zombies.[18]