Wendling, Oregon | |
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![]() Wendling Bridge, a covered bridge over Mill Creek | |
Coordinates: 44°11′25″N122°47′54″W / 44.19028°N 122.79833°W | |
Country | United States |
State | Oregon |
County | Lane |
Elevation | 646 ft (197 m) |
Time zone | UTC-8 (Pacific (PST)) |
• Summer (DST) | UTC-7 (PDT) |
ZIP code | 97454 |
Area code(s) | 458 and 541 |
GNIS feature ID | 1136886 [1] |
Wendling is an unincorporated community in Lane County, Oregon, United States, located northeast of Marcola. [1] Wendling's post office operated from 1899 to 1952. [2] The town was named for George X. Wendling, a San Francisco investor, who was the largest investor in Booth-Kelly's expansion into the Mohawk. [3] Wendling was created as a company town for the Booth-Kelly Lumber Company.
Initially, Booth-Kelly had no intention of building Wendling, The original plan was use the Mohawk River to float logs to a new mill near Coburg. Lane County granted them a 90 year franchise for movement on the river. [4] [5] This met with harsh resistance from the other valley mills, loggers and farmers. [6]
Booth-Kelly then decided to build a mill and supporting elements near the timber. To do this they needed to acquire the right-of-way for the Southern Pacific railroad from Springfield to their proposed site on the former homestead of William McCullough. [7] It was secured and Wendling mill and supporting structures were built in the fall of 1899 while railroad construction was underway. [8] [9] The railroad was finished and the first train came into Wendling on September 3, 1900. [10]
On the night of August 24-25, 1910 embers falling from a nearby forest fire destroyed all but three homes in the company-owned residential section of Wendling, the church, school, cookhouse and bunkhouse. The mill, store, and company offices were saved. [11] Booth-Kelly rebuilt within two months and kept the mill and camps running during that time. [12]
In the morning hours of September 26, 1917, the planer mill and dry sheds were burned to the ground. The sawmill and other structures were saved. [13]
During the forenoon of July 6, 1922, the saw mill and nearby kilns were destroyed by fire. [14]
Months after the mill was closed at Wendling and nearly all equipment was stripped from its interior, the mill superstructures and the powerhouse burned in a fire on September 29, 1946. No other buildings were lost. [15]
Wendling Bridge, a covered bridge, carries Wendling Road over Mill Creek at Wendling. [16] Built in 1938, the bridge was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1979. [17]