Bandon is an adorable little town of about 3,300 people on the southern Oregon coast. Originally Coquille Indian land, it was first settled by people of European decent in 1853. The town was established in 1873 by four men from Bandon, Ireland in County Cork and named for their old world home. Cranberries were introduced into Bandon in 1885 by Charles McFarlin of Massachusetts and have been grown and harvested successfully in the area ever since. Tragically the whole town burned to the ground in 1936 in a fire that claimed eleven lives. It has risen from the ashes and rebuilt as a charming coastal town with a lot to offer.
Bandon was probably my favorite town on the whole Oregon coast. The Old Town area was full of art and color and I loved just walking up and down the waterfront. The beaches were absolutely stunning with so much more to see than just the famous Face Rock and an evening stroll proved to be an excellent choice. The history museum, housed in the old City Hall, was one of the best local history museums I’ve ever been to in a town this size. Of course I loved the hand-painted signs around town, the beautiful carved wooden sculptures and the Coquille River Lighthouse. Of all the towns I visited in my first week along the coast, this was the one that stood out and a town I will definitely return to. Thank you, Bandon, for a wonderful stay. I hope you enjoy these photos from Bandon, Oregon.
Originally a Pomo Indian settlement, a lumber town was established on this site in 1852. The town was originally called Meiggsville, and then Big River before finally settling on Mendocino, named after Spanish navigator Antonio de Mendoza. Many of Mendocino’s early non-native settlers were from New England which is definitely evident in the architecture. In fact, several episodes of the TV show Murder, She Wrote were filmed here, and Mendocino stood in for the fictional town of Cabot Cove, Maine. Quite a few films were made here as well, perhaps the most memorable of which was James Dean’s 1955 classic East of Eden. Today, Mendocino is one of the most charming little towns along the California coast and attracts a wonderful mix of artists, tourists and small-town enthusiasts like myself. I thought it was cool that the town still has many of the original wooden water towers, built before the town had a central water supply. My favorite places to photograph were definitely the stunning old Masonic Hall with it’s beautiful statue called Time and the Maiden, the old Mendocino Beacon Building, the unique water towers and of course the gorgeous coastline. I hope you enjoy these photos from stunning Mendocino, California.
The area around what’s now Patagonia, Arizona was once a Tohono O’odham village called Sonoitac. It may take its current name from the southern region of South America, christened by Welsh miners who had moved north for work. Another theory is that early settlers found a large footprint, perhaps from a grizzly bear (or Sasquatch himself), and called it “Land of the Bigfeet”. However it got its name, Patagonia is a wonderful little town that’s big on art and seems to have sought to beautify even the smallest details of their town.
When the Spanish moved north into the area, they established the Mission Los Reyes de Sonoitac. The region became part of the United States through the Gadsden Purchase of 1853 and lead and silver mines were quickly opened. Fort Buchanan was established to provide protection for the settlers from Apache raiders, later to be joined by Forts Crittenden and Huachuca.
