Heppner is a city in and the county seat of Morrow County, Oregon, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 1,187, Heppner is part of the Pendleton-Hermiston Micropolitan Area. It is named after Henry Heppner, a prominent Jewish-American businessman.
History
Native American settlement
Native Americans lived and traveled along the land between the Columbia Gorge and the Blue Mountains for more than 10,000 years prior to European-American settlement. Ancient petroglyphs have been found approximately 45 miles (72 km.) north of Heppner in Irrigon and Boardman. In 1855, the U.S. Government and the predominant tribes in the region—the Cayuse, Umatilla, and Walla Walla—signed a treaty whereby the tribes gave up, or ceded, to the United States more than 6.4 million acres in what is now northeastern Oregon and southeastern Washington.
European-American settlement
Prior to Heppner's founding in 1872, European-American ranchers used the area as sheep and cattle range as early as 1858. Records suggest these early cattlemen found abundant rye grass along creek bottoms.
Heppner was originally called Standsbury Flats for George W. Standsbury, one of the first European-American settlers in the area. In 1872, Colonel (Col.) Jackson Lee Morrow, a merchant, entered into a partnership with Henry Heppner, a prominent Jewish businessman, and they built a store on the crossing of the present May and Main streets.
Col. Jackson Lee Morrow was later elected to the Oregon legislative assembly and was instrumental in helping to carve out a new county for Heppner from neighboring Umatilla County and a portion of Wasco County. The assembly named the new county in Morrow's honor. Heppner was incorporated in the following year on February 9, 1887. In 1985, the courthouse was listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
thumb|Historic Morrow County Courthouse
Flood of June 1903
Heppner was almost destroyed by a flash flood on Sunday, June 14, 1903. The flood was precipitated by a sudden cloudburst and accompanying hail that caused a debris dam collapse and flash flooding, notably on Willow Creek. The mill was destroyed by fire in 1949, but was rebuilt and sold to Kinzua Lumber Company, which ultimately relocated its headquarters to Heppner. dealing a significant blow to Heppner's economy
Geography
Heppner is in central Morrow County, between the Columbia River to the north and the Blue Mountains to the southeast. The city is along Oregon Route 74, about southwest of Pendleton and east of Portland.
Route 74 forms part of the Blue Mountain Scenic Byway, a set of roads connecting Interstate 84 (I-84) along the Columbia River with the North Fork John Day River in the Blue Mountains. Part of the route follows the Willow Creek drainage through Heppner.
Heppner is upstream of Lexington, Ione, and Arlington along Willow Creek.
|source 2 = National Weather Service
Demographics
2020 census
As of the 2020 census, Heppner had a population of 1,187. The median age was 46.0 years. 21.5% of residents were under the age of 18 and 25.5% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 98.2 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 95.8 males age 18 and over.
There were 533 households in Heppner, of which 22.7% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 44.7% were married-couple households, 22.0% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 26.5% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 36.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 19.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
{| class="wikitable"
|+ Racial composition as of the 2020 census
! Race !! Number !! Percent
|-
| White || 1,039 || 87.5%
|-
| Black or African American || 3 || 0.3%
|-
| American Indian and Alaska Native || 10 || 0.8%
|-
| Asian || 4 || 0.3%
|-
| Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander || 0 || 0%
|-
| Some other race || 36 || 3.0%
|-
| Two or more races || 95 || 8.0%
|-
| Hispanic or Latino (of any race) || 94 || 7.9%
|}
2010 Census
As of the census of 2010, there were 1,291 people, 559 households, and 370 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 647 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 92.5% White, 0.2% African American, 1.2% Native American, 0.3% Asian, 2.6% from other races, and 3.3% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.7% of the population. The city also hosts the annual Blue Mountain Century Bikeway, a scenic bicycle ride loop of approximately 108 miles starting and ending in Heppner.
Economy and education
As of 2002, the five largest employers in Heppner were Morrow County, the Morrow County Health District, the Morrow County School District, the Heppner Ranger District, and the Bank of Eastern Oregon. Heppner is also served by the Heppner Branch of the Oregon Trail Library District, part of Oregon's Sage Library System.
Government
Local
Heppner is a municipal corporation with the official name City of Heppner per the 1996 Heppner Charter. The powers of the city are vested in the city council which consists of a mayor and six council members each nominated and elected from the city at large or, in case of one or more vacancies in the council, the council members whose offices are not vacant. The mayor serves two-year terms and the council members serve four-year terms. Heppner also maintains a city manager who is appointed by, and may be removed by, a majority of the entire city council. The appointment of city manager is made without regard to political considerations and solely on the basis of administrative qualifications. The mayor votes as a council member with no appointive powers.
As of 2023, Corey Sweeney serves as mayor. Council members include Ralph Klock, Ian Murray, Cody High, Dale Bates, Sharon Inskeep, and Adam Doherty. John Doherty serves as the City Manager.
State
Heppner is part of Oregon State House District 57 which includes Gilliam, Morrow, Sherman, Umatilla, and Wasco counties and of Oregon State Senate District 29 which includes Gilliam, Morrow Sherman, Umatilla, Union, Wallowa, and parts of Wasco counties. As of September 2017, Representative Greg Smith (R) serves Heppner in the Oregon State House and Senator Bill Hansell (R) serves Heppner in the Oregon State Senate.
Federal
Heppner is part of Oregon's Second Congressional District. As of January 2023, Heppner is represented by U.S. Rep. Cliff Bentz (R). Separately, congressional senators for Oregon include Jeff Merkley (D) and Ron Wyden (D).
Notable people
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- John Kilkenny, Judge, U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon and Judge, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
- Greg Smith, Oregon State Representative, District 57