Gresham

Sister cities

• Sokcho
• Owerri
• Ebetsu

History

Prior to settlement, the first documented inhabitants of the Gresham area were Kalapuya Native Americans, who lost a majority of their population to disease by the 1830s. In 1884, a local merchant petitioned for a post office from the United States Post Office Department to be established in his store, proposing to name it after Postmaster General Walter Q. Gresham if his request was granted. Concurrently, other community members secured a post office named "Campground," which referred to the area's religious camp meeting site and its convenience as a stop for travelers heading to Portland. Once the Post Office Department recognized its error, it revoked the Campground post office designation. Gresham was incorporated in 1905, the year of the Lewis and Clark Centennial Exposition; its population at the time was 365. Lewis Shattuck, a member of a pioneer family, served as the first mayor. During that period, trains operated between Gresham and Portland on an hourly schedule. Gresham's early settlers would go on to form the outlying communities of Boring, Sandy, Fairview, and Estacada. Gresham General Hospital opened in 1959 in downtown Gresham. In 1984, the hospital moved to Stark Street and became Mount Hood Medical Center.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which is land and is water. The total area includes parts of Fairview Creek and Johnson Creek. Gresham is characterized by hills on its eastern border. Northeast Gresham is also hilly, especially where the city meets Troutdale toward the Columbia River. Its elevation is . Gresham, like most of western Oregon, has a Mediterranean climate (Köppen Csb/Csa). Summers feature pleasant mornings, very warm and sunny afternoons and only very occasional rainfall, whereas winters are cloudy with cool to cold afternoons, occasional frosts, and frequent long rainy periods.

Race & ethnicity

Most-observed species

• American Crow

  Corvus brachyrhynchos C.L.Brehm, 1822 · Aves
  79,008
• Song Sparrow

  Melospiza melodia (A.Wilson, 1810) · Aves
  71,681
• Black-capped Chickadee

  Poecile atricapillus (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  54,704
• Dark-eyed Junco

  Junco hyemalis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  53,009
• American Robin

  Turdus migratorius Linnaeus, 1766 · Aves
  51,392
• House Finch

  Haemorhous mexicanus (P.L.Statius Müller, 1776) · Aves
  49,894
• Anna's Hummingbird

  Calypte anna (R.Lesson, 1829) · Aves
  49,798
• Northern Flicker

  Colaptes auratus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  47,992

Largest nearby schools

• David Douglas High School
  High · Portland · 2,698 students · 18.7:1 ratio
• Reynolds High School
  High · Troutdale · 2,474 students · 22.1:1 ratio
• Grant High School
  High · Portland · 2,156 students · 21.3:1 ratio
• Franklin High School
  High · Portland · 1,966 students · 18.7:1 ratio
• Centennial High School
  High · Gresham · 1,756 students · 24.1:1 ratio
• Sam Barlow High School
  High · Gresham · 1,710 students · 26.7:1 ratio
• Gresham High School
  High · Gresham · 1,666 students · 24.1:1 ratio
• Cleveland High School
  High · Portland · 1,547 students · 19.8:1 ratio

Most recent

• M 3.75 — 2026-09-05
  20 km E of Castle Rock, Washington
• M 2.61 — 2026-07-31
  18 km NE of Amboy, Washington
• M 3.18 — 2025-11-23
  5 km SE of Amity, Oregon
• M 2.66 — 2024-08-30
  14 km ESE of Molalla, Oregon
• M 3.48 — 2024-07-12
  20 km S of Morton, Washington
• M 2.5100000000000002 — 2024-03-26
  27 km S of Morton, Washington