Wheeler County, Oregon facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Wheeler County
U.S. county
Wheeler County Courthouse in Fossil
Location within the U.S. state of Oregon
Oregon's location within the U.S.
Country	United States
State	Oregon
Founded	February 17, 1899
Named for	Henry H. Wheeler [Wikidata]
Seat	Fossil
Largest city	Fossil
Area
• Total	1,715 sq mi (4,440 km2)
• Land	1,715 sq mi (4,440 km2)
• Water	0.5 sq mi (1 km2)  0.03%%
Population  (2020)
• Total	1,451
• Estimate  (2023)	1,436
• Density	0.8/sq mi (0.3/km2)
Time zone	UTC−8 (Pacific)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−7 (PDT)
Congressional district	2nd

     U.S. Forest Service land      Bureau of Land Management land      National Park Service land      Wilderness area

Wheeler County is a special area called a county in the state of Oregon. In 2020, only 1,451 people lived here. This makes it the county with the fewest people in all of Oregon!

The county is named after Henry H. Wheeler. He was an early settler who had a farm near Mitchell. The main town and county seat is Fossil. Wheeler County is famous for having the biggest collection of fossils in Oregon.

History of Wheeler County

Wheeler County was officially created on February 17, 1899. It was formed from parts of three other counties: Grant, Gilliam, and Crook Counties. The borders of Wheeler County have not changed since it was first made.

When the county was created, Fossil was chosen as the temporary county seat. This meant it was the main town for government business. In 1900, the people voted to pick a permanent county seat. Fossil won the election against the other towns in the county.

Henry H. Wheeler, who the county is named after, was born in Pennsylvania in 1826. He came to Oregon in 1862 and later settled near Mitchell. He passed away in 1915.

Geography of Wheeler County

Wheeler County covers a total area of about 1,715 square miles. Almost all of this area is land. Only a tiny bit, about 0.5 square miles, is water.

Counties Nearby

Wheeler County shares its borders with several other counties:

• Gilliam County to the north
• Morrow County to the northeast
• Grant County to the east
• Crook County to the south
• Jefferson County to the west
• Wasco County to the northwest

Special Protected Areas

Parts of these important natural areas are found in Wheeler County:

• John Day Fossil Beds National Monument
• Ochoco National Forest
• Umatilla National Forest

Main Roads

These are the major highways that go through Wheeler County:

• U.S. Route 26
• Oregon Route 19

People of Wheeler County

In 2010, there were 1,441 people living in Wheeler County. This means there were less than one person per square mile. Most people in the county were white (92.4%). A small number were American Indian (1.2%) or Asian (0.6%). About 4.3% of the population was of Hispanic or Latino background.

The average age of people in Wheeler County was 53 years old. About 11.4% of all people, and 12.0% of those under 18, lived below the poverty line.

Economy of Wheeler County

The main ways people make a living in Wheeler County are through:

• Agriculture (farming)
• Raising livestock (like cows and sheep)
• Lumber (cutting down trees for wood)

Towns and Communities

Cities

• Fossil (This is the county seat)
• Mitchell
• Spray

Unincorporated Communities

These are smaller communities that are not officially cities:

Former Communities

These places used to be communities but are not anymore:

• Antone
• Kinzua
• Wetmore

Education in Wheeler County

Students in Wheeler County attend schools in these districts:

• Condon School District 25J
• Dayville School District 16J
• Fossil School District 21J
• Mitchell School District 55
• Spray School District 1

Wheeler County is not part of a community college district.

See also

In Spanish: Condado de Wheeler (Oregón) para niños