North Bend

History

Before Europeans visited the Oregon coast, Native American tribes claimed the Coos Bay region as their homeland for thousands of years. Members of the Coos, Lower Umpqua, Siuslaw and Coquille tribes lived, fished, hunted and gathered along Coos Bay and its estuaries, along rivers, and in meadows and forests. Trader and explorer Jedediah Smith was in the region seeking furs and the Hudson's Bay Company sent Alexander Roderick McLeod to search for an inland passage. Empire City was established and was the county seat of government until 1896. However, when the bank reopened and the city appealed for people to bring their myrtlewood money in to redeem it, many opted to keep their tokens as collector's items. After several appeals, the city gave up and announced that the tokens would remain legal tender in the city of North Bend in perpetuity. Until the 1960s, people occasionally did cash in their tokens, but the remaining pieces have become very valuable through scarcity and historical interest. Fewer than 10 full sets are believed to exist.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which is land and is water. The climate in North Bend and surrounds can be described as a very humid version of the Mediterranean climate or a dry-summer version of an oceanic climate. There is very little temperature variation throughout the year, with monthly means ranging from in December to in August, though on the rare occasions continental air masses penetrate they can be much more extreme, with the lowest on record being on December 21, 1990. Conversely, the record high is , set in July 1925. Cool breezes off the Pacific moderate the city's climate year round. Rain is abundant in winter, due to moist low pressure troughs from the Pacific Ocean. The city's annual rainfall is about , but totals are less than an inch in July and August. Fog often blankets the coastal fringe in summer due to the temperature gradient between the cool Pacific Ocean and the warm inland, which serves to keep temperatures markedly cooler than in Eugene or even Seattle. Snow almost never falls in the city, but can be heavy in the adjacent Oregon Coast Range. Nearby Cape Blanco is one of the windiest places on Earth, with gusts of or more achieved during severe winter storms. Annually, the city sees 25 days that fail to reach and just 12 days with a temperature at or below freezing. The most recent temperature numbers show North Bend to be the northernmost subtropical climate weather station in North America according to the Trewartha climate classification. This is despite the station being higher in latitude than Milwaukee, Wisconsin. There are now eight months averaging above 50 °F (10 °C.)

Race & ethnicity

Largest nearby schools

• Evergreen Virtual Academy
  Other · North Bend · 1,295 students · 19.3:1 ratio
• Marshfield Senior High School
  High · Coos Bay · 835 students · 19.9:1 ratio
• North Bend Senior High School
  High · North Bend · 731 students · 19.2:1 ratio
• North Bend Middle School
  Middle · North Bend · 494 students · 19.8:1 ratio
• Hillcrest Elementary School
  Elementary · North Bend · 489 students · 18.1:1 ratio
• Millicoma School
  Elementary · Coos Bay · 485 students · 22:1 ratio
• North Bay Elementary School
  Elementary · North Bend · 443 students · 15.8:1 ratio
• Marshfield Junior High
  Middle · Coos Bay · 436 students · 24.2:1 ratio