Orenco, Oregon facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Orenco, Oregon
Neighborhood
Former store in the older section of Orenco
Etymology: OREgon Nursery COmpany
Orenco, Oregon Location in Hillsboro Beaverton OR Show map of Hillsboro Beaverton OR Orenco, Oregon Location in Oregon Show map of Oregon Orenco, Oregon Location in the United States Show map of the United States
Country	United States
State	Oregon
County	Washington County
City	Hillsboro
Elevation	190 ft (58 m)
Time zone	Pacific
ZIP code	97124
Area code(s)	503 and 971

Orenco is a neighborhood in Hillsboro, located in Washington County. It used to be a special kind of town called a "company town." This means it was built and run by a single company. Orenco is found between the cities of Hillsboro and Aloha. Today, the area is well-known for the modern housing development called Orenco Station.

The community of Orenco began in 1905. It was created by the Oregon Nursery Company on a large piece of land they owned. The name "Orenco" comes from the first letters of the company's name: OREgon Nursery COmpany. In 1908, the Oregon Electric Railway opened a train stop there, which they called Orenco Station. The town even had its own post office from 1909 until 1963. The Oregon Nursery Company closed during the Great Depression, a time when many businesses struggled. Later, Orenco became part of Hillsboro. The company was also famous for creating a type of apple called the Orenco Apple in the early 1900s.

Exploring Orenco's Location

Orenco is located in the Tualatin Valley, a flat area surrounded by hills. Small streams like Rock Creek flow through this region. Important roads in the area include U.S. Route 26, Cornelius Pass Road, and Cornell Road.

The original town of Orenco was in northeast Hillsboro. It was generally south of Cornell Road and north of Baseline Road. Today, the Orenco neighborhood is a bit larger. It now includes the Orenco Station area, which extends north of Cornell Road.

A Look Back at Orenco's History

The first European American settlers arrived in the Orenco area around the mid-1850s. They came because of a law called the Donation Land Claim Act of 1850, which encouraged people to move to Oregon. Chinese laborers helped clear the land for local farmers in the Orenco area.

Around 1900, Archibald McGill and Malcolm McDonald started the Oregon Nursery Company. In 1906, the company bought a large piece of land in Washington County to build their nursery. The town of Orenco was officially founded in 1908. That same year, the Oregon Electric Railway started passenger train service. This line connected Forest Grove to Portland. The Orenco school district was also created in 1908. Many of the first families in Orenco were from Hungary. In 1909, the Orenco Presbyterian Church was founded. By 1910, the town had grown to over 500 people. They even started a volunteer fire department.

In 1914, H. V. Meade began printing the town's newspaper, the Orenco Herald. The next year, Orenco built its city hall, which housed both the fire department and a jail. By 1913, the school had 169 students. On January 6, 1913, the people of Orenco voted to officially become a city. At this time, the city had many businesses. These included a dry goods store, a hotel, two grocery stores, and a hardware store. The town also had modern services like water, sewer, telephones, and electricity.

In 1924, a film studio from Beaverton even made a movie in Orenco! However, things started to change. The Oregon Electric Railway closed its freight station in Orenco in 1928. Then, in 1929, the Great Depression hit. This caused the Oregon Nursery Company to close down. When the main company closed, many other businesses in Orenco also shut down. Many residents moved away. In 1932, the passenger train service to Orenco stopped. Only freight trains used the line until 1977. In 1938, the residents voted to officially dissolve the city government.

The home of Malcolm McDonald, who helped start the Oregon Nursery Company, is still in the area. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. His home is located on land that used to be The Orenco Woods Golf Course. This golf course opened in 1953. It was owned by the Hillsboro Elks Lodge until 2006. The land was then sold, but due to a tough economic time, it wasn't developed. In 2013, it became the beautiful Orenco Woods Nature Park.

Cool Places to See in Orenco

Orenco Station community

• Orenco Station is a modern community in Hillsboro. It's designed to be a "smart growth" area, meaning it's easy to walk around and has lots of services nearby. It gets its name from the old community of Orenco.
• The Orenco MAX station is a stop on the MAX Blue Line light rail system. It's named after the historic community.
• If you look at the east-west streets in the old part of Orenco, you'll notice something cool! They are all named after trees, and they are in alphabetical order, starting with Alder and ending with Fir.
• The Imbrie Farm, which is on the National Register of Historic Places, is just north of Orenco.
• The neighborhood has two elementary schools that are part of the Hillsboro School District. These are Orenco Elementary, in the older part of town, and Quatama Elementary, in the newer Orenco Station area.
• The Hillsboro Elks Lodge is also located in Orenco.
• Nearby, you can find some big technology companies like Intel's Ronler Acres and Hawthorn Farm facilities. Hillsboro Stadium is also close by.