31. Umpqua Discovery Center Museum
City: Coastal Oregon, OR
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (541) 271-4816
Address: 409 Riverfront Way
Description: Visit this museum to learn about the culture of the Umpqua Indians and early explorers and the natural history of the Umpqua River Valley. The center is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily from June 1 through September 30 and from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. the rest of the year. Call for current admission prices.
32. Coos County Historical Museum
City: Coastal Oregon, OR
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (541) 756-6320
Address: 1220 Sherman Ave.
Description: This museum contains a diverse collection of artifacts and exhibits that tell the history of the Coos tribe as well as those who originally settled here. You’ll find intricately beaded aprons, ceremonial robes, baskets, and shells, as well as finely chiseled arrowheads. You will also find pioneer implements and artifacts from the area’s prominent shipping past. The museum is open 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. Closed on holidays. Admission is $2 for adults and $1 for children ages 7 to 11.
33. Oregon Connection House Of Myrtlewood
City: Coastal Oregon, OR
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (541) 267-7804, (800) 255-5318
Address: 1125 South 1st St.
Description: If you want to see how myrtlewood souvenirs and other products are produced, stop by the House of Myrtlewood, take a free factory tour, and view a 12-minute video that shows the production of bowls, clocks, and other myrtlewood souvenirs. A gift shop sells the items made in the factory as well as other Oregon-made products. Business hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday.
34. The Wool Company
City: Coastal Oregon, OR
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (541) 347-2912
Address: 990 2nd St.
Description: You’ll be impressed by the inventory of wool products in this unique spinning, knitting, and weaving shop. You’ll find natural fiber yarns, books, equipment, dyes, fibers, buttons, and patterns. The shop also offers classes and individual lessons. The Wool Company is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday.
35. Hughes House
City: Coastal Oregon, OR
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (541) 332-6774
Address: 91814 Cape Blanco Rd.
Description: Built in 1898 by Patrick Hughes, the 11-room, two-story Victorian-style house was built out of old-growth Port Orford cedar at a cost of $3,800. This Victorian mansion is open for tours from 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday during the summer and is filled with delightful antique furniture and old photos depicting the life of the former 1,000-acre dairy ranch that the house sits on. The Hughes House also features a gift shop that carries cranberry glass and teapots, in addition to other unique items.
36. Curry County Museum
City: Coastal Oregon, OR
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (541) 247-6113
Address: 920 South Ellensburg Ave.
Description: Here you’ll find out about the gold fever that struck this area during the late 1880s. You’ll also learn about what the interior of a gold miner’s cabin looked like and other interesting gold rush trivia. In addition, you’ll learn about the history of the Native Americans and other settlers who came to this area. The museum is open 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. Admission is $2 for adults and 50 cents for children under age 16.
37. Chetco Valley Historical Society
City: Coastal Oregon, OR
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (541) 469-2753
Address: 15461 Museum Rd.
Description: To see an ancient cypress tree with a trunk diameter of 27 feet, be sure to stop by the Chetco Valley Historical Society Museum. The 100-foot-tall tree is adjacent to the museum and is thought to be one of the oldest cypress trees in the world. This museum is located inside the old stagecoach station and trading post and has displays of 20th-century Japanese swords and a dugout canoe in addition to late 19th-century furniture, tools, and arrowheads. The museum is open 1 to 5 p.m. Friday through Sunday. Admission is free but donations are encouraged.
38. Astoria’S Riverfront
City: Coastal Oregon, OR
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (503) 325-6311
Address: Starts At 1700 Block Of Marine Dr.
Description: Astoria’s riverfront promenade has 2.8 miles of shoreline where you can walk along plank docks and watch freighters heading for the Columbia Bar or out to sea to Japan and China. There are also chances to watch fishing boats bringing in their catch. A nifty Sixth Street Pier viewing tower is a fun spot to observe the ships and boats as well as climb high enough to look down at the crowds.
39. Columbia River Maritime Museum
City: Coastal Oregon, OR
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (503) 325-2323
Address: 1792 Marine Dr.
Description: At this terrific museum, there’s lots of interactive stuff, including a replica of a steamboat pilothouse in which kids can man the helm, operate a 5-foot-high wheel, and send commands to the engine room through a voice tube. The navigation bridge from the USS Knapp, a World War II destroyer, is also a great place to scramble about. Near this intriguing museum with its professionally presented exhibits is the lightship Columbia, which once served as a floating lighthouse near the river of the same name. Kids can also climb about the Columbia. The museum is open 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily. The admission fee is $10 for adults; $8 for seniors 65 and up; $5 for children ages six to 17; and children under six are free. The museum is closed Thanksgiving and Christmas.
City: Coastal Oregon, OR
Category: Tours & Attractions
Address: 92343 Fort Clatsop Rd.
41. Fort Stevens State Park
City: Coastal Oregon, OR
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (503) 861-1671
Description: Named for a Union General killed in the Civil War, this fortification dates from that era. Located 10 miles west of Astoria off US 101, it was used to keep a lookout for Confederate warships. There was also concern that British ships-of-war would appear as a response to Britain’s possible alliance with the Southern Confederacy. During World War II, Japanese submarines shelled the area, making it the only spot in the continental United States that received fire. Shortly after World War II, the battery was dismantled but there is still enough for kids to clamber about on. There are 6 miles of bike trails, guided tours, and summer reenactments of the Civil War. There is a $3 day use fee for this park.
42. Uppertown Firefighters Museum
City: Coastal Oregon, OR
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (503) 325-2203
Address: 30Th And Marine Dr.
Description: This 1890s fire station houses a horse-drawn fire engine built in 1878 and a 1912 fire truck that was America’s first motorized fire engine. Also at the museum are other examples of fire fighting equipment. The museum is open 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Saturday and noon to 3 p.m. on Sunday mid-March through October 31. From November 1 through mid-March, the museum is open noon to 3 p.m. daily. The admission charge is $3 for adults, $2 for seniors age 62 and older, $1 for students, and children under the age of six are admitted free. This admission includes entrance to the Flavel House and the Heritage Center Museum.
43. The Saltworks
City: Coastal Oregon, OR
Category: Tours & Attractions
Address: Lewis And Clark Way
Description: This monument, reproduced from descriptions in the journals of the Lewis and Clark expedition and located 8 blocks south of Broadway, between Beach Drive and the Promenade, commemorates the work of boiling seawater into salt. It took seven weeks to make four bushels of salt. Kids will learn about some of the difficulties the Lewis and Clark expedition faced out west.
44. Seaside Aquarium
City: Coastal Oregon, OR
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (503) 738-6211
Address: 200 North Promenade
Description: An old-time building that served as a swimming pool (natatorium) more than 60 years ago, this aquarium is home to seals that the kids can feed. There are also sea stars, wolf eels, a sand shark, and many other types of marine life. Open daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. in summer; 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday from November through February.
45. Town Center Carousel
City: Coastal Oregon, OR
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (503) 738-6728
Address: 300 Broadway
Description: Seaside’s antique carousel was exchanged for a newer model in 1990. Located near the beach at the center of Seaside Town Center, the carousel is a real kid pleaser. This wild ride has a dozen horses, a flying pig, and a huge rabbit.