Lewis and Clark's Columbia River
Lewis & Clark's Columbia River - "200 Years Later"
"Moffett Creek, Oregon"
Includes ... Moffett Creek ... Moffett Creek Bridge ... Wahe Falls ...
Image, 2004, Moffett Creek drainage from Hamilton Island, click to enlarge
Click image to enlarge 		Moffett Creek drainage, Oregon, from Hamilton Island, Washington. Image taken August 1, 2004.


Moffett Creek ...
Moffett Creek merges with the Columbia River at River Mile (RM) 144, just downstream of Tanner Creek and Munra Point, and upstream of McCord Creek and the Oregon community of Warrendale. Directly across from the mouth of Moffett Creek is Hamilton Island, Washington. The mouth of Moffett Creek lies within the John B. Yeon State Park.

Wahe Falls ...
Wahe Falls, often known as "Moffett Falls" or "Moffett Creek Falls", plunges 80 feet over basalt. It is located less than a mile upstream from the where Moffett Creek merges with the Columbia River.

"Moffett" or "Moffatt" ...
Both "Moffett Creek" and "Moffatt Creek" variants of the name were used until 1915, when the U.S. Board of Geographic Names made official "Moffett Creek". According to Oregon Geographic Names (McArthur and McArthur, 2003):

"Investigation by H.H. Riddell of Portland indicated that the family for which this stream is named spelled its name Moffett and not Moffatt. The Historic Columbia River Highway crossed Moffett Creek on a remarkable concrete arch. At the time it was built, it was said to have been the longest three-hinged, flat-arch bridge in America. This bridge, now unused, is still standing just north of I-84."

The U.S. Bureau of Land Management's General Land Office (GLO) Records database shows a Walter Moffett being granted title to 69.5 acres of T1S R1E Section 21, on April 15, 1864 (1820 Sale-Cash Entry).


Early Moffett Creek ...
Robert A. Habersham's 1889 Multnomah County map has Moffett Creek labeled "Beaver Cr.". Nearby McCord Creek us unnamed, while upstream "Tanner Cr." and "Eagle Cr." are shown.

Moffett Creek in 1940 ...

From the Oregon State Archives "A 1940 Journey Across Oregon":

"... At MOFFET CREEK, 151.4 m., the highway crosses a large flat-arch cement bridge. The span, 170 feet long, is 70 feet above the stream. ..."


Historic Columbia River Highway ...
The Moffett Creek Bridge was built in 1915 as part of the Columbia River Highway and was known as an engineering feat of the time. The 170-foot-long arch rises only 17 feet at the center. Today the bridge is a part of the Historic Columbia River Highway State Trail.

[More Historic Columbia River Highway]
[More HCRH Route]
[More HCRH State Trail]

Penny Postcard, Moffett Creek Bridge, Oregon, ca.1920, click to enlarge
Click image to enlarge 		Penny Postcard: Moffett Creek Bridge, Columbia River Highway, Oregon, ca.1920. Penny Postcard, ca.1920, "Moffats Creek Bridge, Columbia River Highway.". Published by Pacific Novelty Co., San Francisco, California. Card #O-106. In the private collection of Lyn Topinka.
Image, 2005, Moffett Creek from Hamilton Island, click to enlarge
Click image to enlarge 		Moffett Creek, Oregon, from Hamilton Island, Washington. Image taken April 2, 2005.
Image, 2005, Moffett Creek from Hamilton Island, click to enlarge
Click image to enlarge 		Bridges across Moffett Creek, Oregon, with train. View from Hamilton Island, Washington. Image taken April 2, 2005.
Image, 2005, Moffett Creek from Hamilton Island, click to enlarge
Click image to enlarge 		Bridges across Moffett Creek, Oregon, with train. View from Hamilton Island, Washington. Image taken April 2, 2005.


"The Golden Age of Postcards" ...

The early 1900s was the "Golden Age of Postcards", with the "Penny Postcard" being a popular way to send greetings to family and friends. Penny Postcards today show us a snapshot of history.


From the Journals of Lewis and Clark ...

Clark, November 2, 1805 ...



Columbia River GorgeReturn to
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*River Miles [RM] are approximate, in statute miles, and were determined from USGS topo maps, obtained from NOAA nautical charts, or obtained from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers website, 2003

Sources:
  • "Historic MapWorks" website, 2014;
  • McArthur, L.A., and McArthur, L.L., 2003, Oregon Geographic Names, Oregon Historical Society;
  • Oregon State Archives website, 2005;
  • U.S. Bureau of Land Management's General Land Office (GLO) Records database, 2011;
  • U.S. Geological Survey's Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) database, 2006;


All Lewis and Clark quotations from Gary Moulton editions of the Lewis and Clark Journals, University of Nebraska Press, all attempts have been made to type the quotations exactly as in the Moulton editions, however typing errors introduced by this web author cannot be ruled out; location interpretation from variety of sources, including this website author.
/Regions/Places/moffett_creek.html
September 2011