Gearhart is a city in Clatsop County, Oregon, United States. As of the 2020 census, Gearhart had a population of 1,793.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which is land and is water.

History

The city is named for Phillip Gearhart, a settler who in 1848 set out from Independence, Missouri, with his family and arrived in Oregon City in October of that year. He rented a log cabin on Clatsop Plains. At that time, other farmers had already settled primarily on the northern Plains. The first farmer to settle there was Solomon Smith. In 1851, Gearhart bought a squatter's right in the south Plains for $1,000. He used it to create a donation land claim; the US patent was granted in 1874. Gearhart increased his holdings by in 1859 through a purchase from Obadiah C. Motley, and again in 1863 by purchased from Jefferson J. Louk. The entire parcel encompassed all of what is now called Gearhart, as well as a portion of Seaside across the Necanicum River estuary. Gearhart built a home and farm for his family near a grist mill by Mill Creek, in a sheltered area north and east of the estuary.

In 1889, a railroad was built between Astoria and Seaside. It became a means of transportation to Seaside not only for Astorians but for Portlanders disembarking from the ferry in Astoria. Gearhart began to draw attention as a pleasant landscape for wandering and picnicking. Early settlers were attracted to the Ridge Path through the dune meadows of the Phillip Gearhart land claim.

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2020 census

As of the 2020 census, Gearhart had a population of 1,793. The median age was 53.4 years. 17.2% of residents were under the age of 18 and 31.1% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 93.2 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 89.9 males age 18 and over.

99.6% of residents lived in urban areas, while 0.4% lived in rural areas.

There were 767 households in Gearhart, of which 21.8% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 57.2% were married-couple households, 12.0% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 22.8% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 23.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

! Race !! Number !! Percent

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| White || 1,578 || 88.0%

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| Black or African American || 5 || 0.3%

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| American Indian and Alaska Native || 22 || 1.2%

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| Asian || 21 || 1.2%

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| Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander || 3 || 0.2%

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| Some other race || 26 || 1.5%

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| Two or more races || 138 || 7.7%

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| Hispanic or Latino (of any race) || 111 || 6.2%

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2010 census

As of the census

Education

It is in the Seaside School District 10. The comprehensive high school of that district is Seaside High School.

Clatsop County is in the boundary of Clatsop Community College.

Notable people

  • Charles Royer, journalist and former Mayor of Seattle

References

  • Entry for Gearhart in the Oregon Blue Book