Soap Creek Valley · 1989 Auto Tour

STOP #5 TAMPICO [Towns]

Stop 5 of the 1989 Historic Soap Creek Valley Auto Tour, printed page 15.

16.1 miles from the Peavy Arboretum entrance on the 1989 route. Open these pages in the original PDF · Read the text below

Original illustrated spread for STOP #5 TAMPICO [Towns], printed pages 14–15. The transcribed text and picture captions follow below. — Bob Zybach, *Historic Soap Creek Valley Auto Tour* (1989), pp. 14–15. Enlarge the pages.

More Tampico illustrations, printed pages 16–17

Additional Tampico illustrations and captions, original printed pages 16–17 — Enlarge these pages · Read their captions.

The text, as printed

p. 15

It is hard to imagine that an entire town was once located in this quiet valley. Tampico was officially a town for less than three years. Yet, despite its short existence, tales of rowdiness and general lawlessness have survived to this day. Perhaps it was the proximity of Fort Hoskins and the newly-formed Siletz Indian Reservation; or else the character of the local settlers; or maybe just the condition of pre-statehood Oregon in general; but for whatever reason, Tampico seems to hold a particular degree of infamy in the memories of its citizens and their descendents. Colorful tales of fist fights, gambling, stagecoach robberies, murder, horse racing, tent revivals, drunken sprees, and hangings persisted in the stories of former residents and neighbors until the land was finally purchased by the U.S. Army during World War II. Modern research seems to place a certain amount of credibility in these stories. This is not to say that the area was completely lawless; most residents were honest and hardworking citizens who supported healthy and productive families. Many held prominent positions in local government, taught school, or otherwise figured positively in the affairs of their community. Perhaps it was the nostalgia of these people, passing away hours in the comfort of one another's company, that most encouraged and nourished the tales of long-ago Tampico.

Find this stop and nearby places on the map

Locations are approximate; the booklet describes 1989 conditions.

Tour stop
Other place named

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On this map

Auto Tour stops(1)

STOP #5 TAMPICO [Towns]Towns

fort(1)

Fort HoskinsNamed at this stop

town (former)(1)

TampicoNamed at this stop

Named at this stop

Places. Tampico · Fort Hoskins · Siletz Indian Reservation · Oregon

Narrators who speak of this place

Pages recorded in the collection index where a narrator names one of the places this stop stands on. Each number opens that page of the transcript.

#1 Lorna Grabe Narrator: Lorna Grabe p. 12
#3 Donald Dickey Narrator: Donald M. Dickey and Maxine Dickey p. 15, p. 25, p. 43
#5 John Jacob & Wilma Rohner Narrator: John Jacob "Jake" Rohner and Wilma "Willie" Rohner p. 11, p. 13, p. 27, p. 28, p. 42, p. 51, p. 53, p. 83, p. 84
#6 James Hanish Narrator: James Hanish p. 23, p. 34
#7 Charlie Olson Narrator: Charlie Olson and Mrs. Olson p. 39, p. 50, p. 83, p. 90, p. 91, p. 123, p. 124, p. 125, p. 127, p. 129
#8 Neil Vanderburg Narrator: Neil Elton Vanderburg p. 27, p. 39, p. 53, p. 63, p. 70, p. 79, p. 85, p. 86, p. 120, p. 124, p. 126, p. 127
#9 Eugene Glender Narrator: Eugene Glender p. 100, p. 102, p. 3, p. 8, p. 13, p. 38, p. 39, p. 56, p. 93, p. 111, p. 112, p. 117
#10 Velma Carter Rawie Narrator: Velma Carter Rawie p. 35, p. 57, p. 67, p. 74, p. 75, p. 84
#12 Wanda Marcks Cook Narrator: Wanda Marcks Cook, Roy Cook, and Evelyn Weigel p. 9, p. 44
#13 WILLIAM A. DAVIES Narrator: William A. Davies p. 17, p. 19
#14 Charles and Norman Hindes Narrator: Charles Hindes and Norman Hindes p. 3, p. 17, p. 19, p. 23, p. 34, p. 40, p. 52
#15 Marvin Rowley Narrator: Marvin Rowley p. 34, p. 35, p. 36

Photographs printed with this stop

Tampico was platted October 27, 1857 by William J. Crouch and shut down on January 23, 1860 by Green Berry Smith, who had purchased it earlier in the day. One tradition has it that Smith was attempting to remove a source of corruption to local residents. Printed page 14
This watercolor, painted under the direction of historian John Horner in 1925, attempts to depict Tampico about the time of the Civil War. The view is from the south, with Tampico School on the hill to the west (left) and Coffin Butte to the northeast (right). Printed page 16
By 1885, Tampico had become a "ghost town." Only the local tavern and several colorful stories remained. Printed page 17

Citation and source history

Collection source history · The complete booklet and its credits

How to cite this item

The first line is the citation as it is printed in the original. Use it when you cite the work itself. Use the second when you cite this page.

As printed: Zybach, Bob 1989. Historic Soap Creek Valley Auto Tour. Oregon State University Research Forests and College of Forestry, Corvallis, Oregon: 32 pp.
This page: Zybach 1989. America's School Trust Library, The Zybach Collection. https://schooltrusts.org/collections/zybach/soap-creek/auto-tour/stop-5/
Permalink: https://schooltrusts.org/collections/zybach/soap-creek/auto-tour/stop-5/
Original PDF: http://www.nwmapsco.com/ZybachB/Tours/Soap_Creek_Valley/Zybach_1989.pdf

More on citing this collection: How to cite the Zybach Collection.

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