Meacham was a station on the Union Pacific Railroad, near the summit of the Blue Mountains. Major Henry A. G. Lee established a troop encampment, called Lee's Encampment, there in 1844. Meacham was named for Harvey J. and Alfred B. Meacham, who operated Meacham Station, a stage station, in the 1860s and 1870s. The first post office in the locality, established in 1862, was named "Encampment". The name was changed to "Meacham" in 1890.[6][7]
On July 3, 1923, Meacham was visited by President Warren G. Harding, who stopped for the day during his Voyage of Understanding and participated in the exercises commemorating the eightieth anniversary of the Oregon Trail.[8] Harding gave a speech in Pendleton on July 4, commemorating the Oregon Trail, at which time his wife, Florence Harding was presented with a Pendleton blanket shawl in a design that became popular as the "Harding design".[9][10]
According to local tradition, Harding in his speech said (or, as a historic marker tells it, "reporters noted") [11] that the little town of Meacham was the nation's capital "all day long".[12][13] However, the transcript of the event contains no such declaration.[14]
Climate
Meacham has a dry-summer humid continental climate (KöppenDsb) with cold snowy winters and mild summers. It was widely reported that Meacham set the state record for lowest recorded temperature in February 1933 at −52 °F (−47 °C). Seneca, in Grant County, however, was colder at −54 °F (−48 °C).[7]
Climate data for Meacham, Oregon, 1991–2020 normals, extremes 1948–present
