OREGON

State of Oregon

ORIGIN OF STATE NAME: Unknown; name first applied to the river now known as the Columbia. NICKNAME: The Beaver State. CAPITAL: Salem. ENTERED UNION: 14 February 1859 (33rd). SONG: "Oregon, My Oregon." DANCE: Square dance. MOTTO: She Flies With Her Own Wings. COLORS: Navy-blue and gold. FLAG: The flag consists of a navy-blue field with gold lettering and illustrations. Obverse: the shield from the state seal, supported by 33 stars, with the words "State of Oregon" above and the year of admission below. Reverse: a beaver. OFFICIAL SEAL: A shield, supported by 33 stars and crested by an American eagle, depicts mountains and forests, an elk, a covered wagon and ox team, wheat, a plow, a pickax, and the state motto; in the background, as the sun sets over the Pacific, an American merchant ship arrives as a British man-o'-war departs. The words "State of Oregon 1859" surround the whole. ANIMAL: American beaver. BIRD: Western meadowlark. FISH: Chinook salmon. INSECT: Oregon swallowtail butterfly. FLOWER: Oregon grape. BEVERAGE: Milk. TREE: Douglas fir. ROCK: Thunderegg (geode). GEM: Sunstone. LEGAL HOLIDAYS: New Year's Day, 1 January; Birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr., 3rd Monday in January; Lincoln's Birthday, 1st Monday in February; Washington's Birthday, 3rd Monday in February; Memorial Day, last Monday in May; Independence Day, 4 July; Labor Day, 1st Monday in September; Veterans Day, 11 November; Thanksgiving Day, 4th Thursday in November; Christmas Day, 25 December. Designated as commemoration days are Oregon's Admission into the Union, 14 February, and Columbus Day, 12 October. TIME: 5 AM MST = noon GMT; 4 AM PST = noon GMT.