Coos Bay

Coos Bay sits on the Pacific coast of Oregon and includes a deep-water port with piers and facilities serving marine traffic between California and Washington. The city follows a natural bay, where quays, warehouses, and harbor basins mix with neighborhoods and shops on the rising slopes inland.

The settlement was founded in 1853 as Marshfield and grew quickly into a regional trade hub through timber export and shipping. The name changed to Coos Bay in 1944 to emphasize the link to the waterway and harbor.

The Coos Art Museum maintains Oregon's third oldest art collection, while the Marshfield District contains numerous theaters and galleries displaying regional artworks.

Visitors can pick up information and orientation maps at the center on Central Avenue, which also offers public restrooms. Walking through the town itself is easy on foot, while a vehicle helps for trips to the surrounding dunes and beaches.

East of the city, the national recreation area dunes stretch along the coast, where sand formations rise up to 500 feet (150 meters) above sea level. These moving sand hills form the longest coastal dune landscape in North America and lie just minutes away by car.

Location: Coos County

Inception: 1853

Elevation above the sea: 7 m

Website: http://coosbay.org

GPS coordinates: 43.36722,-124.21333

Latest update: December 12, 2025 23:22