Main Street, Northeastern Oregon details the early development of a fascinating variety of communities in one of this country's most remote and spectacular regions. Collectively and through case studies, the author follows their growth, adaptation to changing economies and social patterns, and frequently their failure - out of 52 towns founded between 1862 and 1915, only 23 have survived to the 1980s. Northeastern Oregon's earliest towns grew up along the Oregon Trail and stage routes, others soon appearing along newly built railroads and adjacent to rivers, in mining districts, agricultural valleys and timbered areas. Founded for a variety of reasons - to make their founders money, to serve passing traffic, or to supple surrounding districts - they developed at different rates, and each took on a unique character. As the economic and social hub of these towns, and their architectural showpiece, northeastern Oregon's main streets exhibit a wide, though not unpredictable, range of personalities. --- excerpt from book's back cover