Salem, Oregon

Salem is the capital city of the U.S. state of Oregon, and the county seat of Marion County. It is located in the center of the Willamette Valley alongside the Willamette River, which runs north through the city. The river forms the boundary between Marion and Polk counties, and the city neighborhood of West Salem is in Polk County.
The population was 175,535 at the 2020 census, and was estimated to be 180,406 in 2024, making it the second-most populous city in the state after Portland and before Eugene.
Salem is the principal city of the Salem metropolitan area that covers Marion and Polk counties and had a combined population of 433,353 at the 2020 census and was estimated to have a population of 443,416 in 2024. This area is, in turn, part of the Portland–Vancouver–Salem Combined Statistical Area.
The city is home to Willamette University, Corban University, and Chemeketa Community College. The State of Oregon is the largest public employer in the city, and Salem Health is the largest private employer. Transportation includes public transit from Cherriots, Amtrak service, as well as limited commercial and non-commercial air travel at McNary Field. Major roads include Interstate 5, Oregon Route 99E, and Oregon Route 22, which connects West Salem across the Willamette River via the Marion Street and Center Street bridges.

History

Salem was founded in 1842, became the capital of the Oregon Territory in 1851, and was incorporated in 1857.

Origin of name

The Native Americans who inhabited the central Willamette Valley at first European contact, the Kalapuya, called the area Chim-i-ki-ti, which is thought to mean "meeting or resting place" in the Central Kalapuya language. When the Methodist Mission moved to the area, they called the new establishment Chemeketa; although it was more widely known as the Mill, because of its situation on Mill Creek. When the Oregon Institute was established, the community became known as the institute.
When the institute was dissolved, the trustees decided to lay out a town site on the Institute lands. Some possible sources for the name "Salem" include William H. Willson, who in 1850 and 1851 filed the plans for the main part of the city, and suggested adopting an Anglicized version of the Biblical Hebrew word "שָׁלוֹם, Shalom", meaning "peace". The Reverend David Leslie, President of the town's Trustees, also wanted a Biblical name, and suggested using the last five letters of "Jerusalem". Or, the town may be named after Salem, Massachusetts, where Leslie was educated. There were many names suggested, and even after the change to Salem, some people, such as Asahel Bush, believed the name should be changed back to Chemeketa. The Vern Miller Civic Center, which houses the city offices and library, has a public space dedicated as the Peace Plaza in recognition of the names by which the city has been known.

Europeans

The first people of European descent arrived in the area as early as 1812; they were animal trappers and food gatherers for the fur trading companies in Astoria, Oregon.
The first permanent American settlement in the area was the Jason Lee Methodist mission located in the area north of Salem known as Wheatland. In 1842, the missionaries established the Oregon Institute in the area that was to become the site of Salem. In 1844, the mission was dissolved and the town site established.
In 1851, Salem became the territorial capital after it was moved from Oregon City. The capital was moved briefly to Corvallis in 1855, but was moved back to Salem permanently that same year. Salem incorporated as a city in 1857, and with the coming of statehood in 1859, it became the state capital.

Capitol buildings

Oregon has had three capitol buildings in Salem. A two-story state house, which had been occupied for only two months, burned to the ground in December 1855. Oregon's second capitol building was completed in 1876 on the site of the original. The Greek Revival-style building was based in part on the U.S. Capitol building. The building received its distinctive copper dome in 1893. On April 25, 1935, this building was also destroyed by fire. The third and current Oregon State Capitol was completed on the same site in 1938. It faces north instead of west like its predecessor, and is recognizable by its distinctive pioneer statue atop the capitol dome that is plated with gold-leaf and officially named the Oregon Pioneer.

State fair and cherry festival

Agriculture has always been important to Salem, and the city has historically recognized and celebrated it in a number of ways. In 1861, Salem was chosen as the permanent site of the Oregon State Fair by the Oregon State Agricultural Association. Salem is nicknamed the "Cherry City", because of the past importance of the local cherry-growing industry. The first cherry festival in Salem was held in 1903 and was an annual event, with parades and the election of a cherry queen, until sometime after World War I. The event was briefly revived as the Salem Cherryland Festival for several years in the late 1940s.

Geography and climate

Salem is located in the north-central Willamette Valley, in Marion and Polk counties. The 45th Parallel passes through Salem's city limits.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of, of which is land and is water.
Although the Willamette River flows through Salem, the North Santiam River watershed is Salem's primary drinking water source. Other important streams that pass through Salem are Mill Creek, the Mill Race, Pringle Creek, and Shelton Ditch. Smaller streams in the southern and southeastern parts of the city include Clark Creek, Jory Creek, Battle Creek, Croisan Creek, and Claggett Creek, while Glen Creek and Brush Creek flow through West Salem.
Elevation within the city limits ranges from about. Salem contains the volcanic Salem Hills in the south and is sandwiched by the Eola Hills directly to the west and the Waldo Hills to the east. Northern and eastern Salem are less hilly. South and West Salem contain some canyons and are the hilliest areas. The coast range and the Cascades—including Mount Hood, Mount Jefferson, and on the clearest of days, Mount St. Helens and Mount Adams in Washington—can be viewed from throughout the city.
Like most of the Willamette Valley area, Salem has a mediterranean climate. Rain is heaviest in late fall and throughout winter, and almost all of the annual precipitation falls between October and April, with a dry season from May through September. Light snowfall occurs in winter, but major snows are rare. Mostly cloudy skies and low cloud ceilings are commonplace during the rainy season.
Salem's mean annual temperature is ; its annual precipitation is, with an average of snow included. However, over a quarter of years receive no snowfall. The state capital is about south of Portland, but actually has a lower average temperature than that of Portland, due in part to the lower daily minima.
All-time extremes in Salem range from. The coldest afternoon of the year usually falls to on the freezing point, whereas the coldest recorded maximum temperature was in three separate months and years. The warmest night on record was in July 2006 and the warmest annual night averages.

Demographics

According to realtor website Zillow, the average price of a home as of July 31, 2025, in Salem is $437,062.
As of the 2023 American Community Survey, there are 68,817 estimated households in Salem with an average of 2.46 persons per household. The city has a median household income of $72,827. Approximately 14.6% of the city's population lives at or below the poverty line. Salem has an estimated 63.6% employment rate, with 31.5% of the population holding a bachelor's degree or higher and 88.0% holding a high school diploma.
The top five reported languages were English, Spanish, Indo-European, Asian and Pacific Islander, and Other.

Racial and ethnic composition

Race / ethnicity	Pop. 1990	Pop. 2000	Pop. 2010		% 1990	% 2000	% 2010
White alone	95,484	106,331	109,352	111,430	88.59%	77.66%	70.72%	63.48%
Black or African American alone	1,572	1,621	2,081	2,812	1.46%	1.18%	1.35%	1.60%
Native American or Alaska Native alone	1,580	1,692	1,750	1,776	1.47%	1.24%	1.13%	1.01%
Asian alone	2,482	3,268	4,134	5,446	2.30%	2.39%	2.67%	3.10%
Pacific Islander alone	—	617	1,429	2,293	—	0.45%	0.92%	1.31%
Other race alone	80	195	214	838	0.07%	0.14%	0.14%	0.48%
Mixed-race or multiracial	—	3,227	4,318	9,638	—	2.36%	2.79%	5.49%
Hispanic or Latino	6,588	19,973	31,359	41,302	6.11%	14.59%	20.28%	23.53%
Total	107,786	136,924	154,637	175,535	100.00%	100.00%	100.00%	100.00%

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, Salem had a population of 175,535, 64,289 households, and 41,287 families. The median age was 36.3 years; 23.0% of residents were under the age of 18, 6.2% were under five, and 15.8% were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 99.6 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 97.8 males age 18 and over.
99.9% of residents lived in urban areas, while 0.1% lived in rural areas.
There were 64,289 households, of which 31.8% had children under the age of 18 living in them, 44.4% were married-couple households, 17.7% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 29.0% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 27.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
There were 67,411 housing units, of which 4.6% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 55.4% were owner-occupied and 44.6% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.2% and the rental vacancy rate was 4.9%.

Race	Number	Percent
White	121,266	69.1%
Black or African American	3,049	1.7%
American Indian and Alaska Native	2,924	1.7%
Asian	5,598	3.2%
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander	2,373	1.4%
Some other race	19,141	10.9%
Two or more races	21,184	12.1%
Hispanic or Latino	41,302	23.5%