The Unadvertised Beauty of La Grande

The Unadvertised Beauty of La Grande

Cory Richards

Eastern Oregon University

La Grande Oregon, located on the eastern side of the state, has served as the hub of northeastern Oregon for many years.  Dating back to the mid to late 1800’s, the town was built and centered around what would later become the Union Pacific Railroad.  Currently the town has about 13000 residents according to the 2010 census.  This seemingly low figure is screaming for both validation and clarification.  Why is this number so low?   For a town that is supposedly rich in beauty, nature, history, mild climates, and home to a state university, one would think that the desire to be a part of, or at least visit, La Grande would be on a much higher level.  It is for this reason that I will be determining the steps that need to be taken in order for La Grande to become the largest and most important city in eastern Oregon.  Let us begin with geographic resources of this fair city.

        La Grande sits resides in the Grande Ronde Valley, a once long standing waypoint for the famous Oregon Trail.  The first permanent settler here was Ben Brown.  Several families followed Ben’s lead and eventually built the town known as Brownsville.  However later they realized that there was another Brownsville in Linn County, and thus had to change the name.  The name became “La Grande”, a term used by Frenchman Charles Dause to describe the scenic splendor of the valley.  Our book tells us that people will naturally want to travel to places with an abundance of scenic beauty.  With the town literally being named after scenic beauty, I can’t imagine it would be too hard to create an advertising campaign that could highlight the great outdoor life of eastern Oregon.  Originally I am from Spokane in eastern Washington, so I am familiar with the topographical features of the east side of the Cascades.  Before I moved away Spokane had started an ad campaign to bring in residents.  The slogan they created was “Spokane: Near Nature, Near Perfect”.   The point of this ad was of course to draw attention to the fact that nature was abundantly accessible when choosing a life in Spokane.  Personally I think they were trying to steal away a few Oregonians in the process.  The ads worked, and suddenly there was an influx of people into the region.  La Grande could easily create such a campaign highlighting the natural beauty of the area.  

        Beauty isn’t everything, however.  Tourists want to be entertained, and the prospect of a small community in a somewhat remote location is not the epitome of exciting.  I believe La Grande needs to draw in new tourists by advertising all there is to do in this city.  After all it is the hub of eastern Oregon, and there is actually plenty to do.  After doing some research I actually learned that there are several well reviewed restaurants in La Grande.  Anyone who loves to experience new food on a vacation can actually do so here.  Of course there are plenty of outdoor activities to enjoy such as hiking and camping, and there is even a lake as well.  However I think the city could expand on these outdoor activities.  With a little development, La Grande could become a hot camping or RVing destination.  Hood River is a town similar to the size of La Grande, and they capitalized on their natural environments by making the town a kite surfing hot spot.  Whatever the case may be, I feel that La Grande is not utilizing its natural activities to their fullest potential, and if they are they are not telling anyone about it.  

        Next we can look at the historical value of La Grande.  This city used to be a part of the historic Oregon Trail.  This is an asset worth capitalizing on.  A proper and exciting museum dedicated to the men and women who lost their lives trying to discover the west should be stationed here.  An attraction like this could easily bring people in from the interstate 84, a freeway that has done nothing but detract from the city of La Grande.  I for one would be very interested in stopping in to the only Oregon Trail museum in eastern Oregon.  An attraction like this could bring in people, jobs, money, and permanent residents.  La Grande was also a gold mining town decades ago.  Perhaps this could also be incorporated into the museum to add some variety in content.  Attractions like these are the very same that grow a town from interstate drive by to tourist destination.