SALEM IS MOPO HISTORY & HERITAGE Ron Cooper history in the salem region Surrounded by a 21-acre state park, Oregon’s Capitol is a National Historic Landmark and one of only five Art Deco state capitals in the nation. After an educational tour, explore its rotating exhibits and impressive art collection. Then take a stroll through the landscaped Capitol Mall grounds — also known as Willson Park — where roses, cherry trees, and dozens of statues and monuments honor Oregon’s history. Pick up a self-guided walking-tour map and discover historic fountains, the Oregon Vietnam Veterans Memorial, the 33-foot Oregon World War II Memorial, and the Tribal Walk of Flags, which honors Oregon’s nine federally recognized tribes. Just east of the Capitol, the Salem Downtown Historic District showcases more than 40 preserved buildings from the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Wander this seven-block area and admire architectural details forged from bricks made at the state prison between 1880 and 1930. As the original home of pioneer entrepreneur Asahel Bush and his family from 1878 to 1953, the Bush House Museum at Bush’s Pasture Park preserves the cultural diversity of Salem’s history. The 100-acre farmstead is a portion of the donation land claim established on the ancestral lands of the Kalapuya Tribe in the early 1840s. Visitors can explore the Bush Conservatory and its surrounding nature trails and gardens. Just next door is Deepwood Museum & Gardens, a historic Queen Anne home situated on a 5-acre public park with formal gardens, nature trails, a greenhouse and an original carriage house. Visitors can hike the easy Rita Steiner Frye Nature Trail, which leads to Pringle Creek and separates Deepwood from Bush’s Pasture Park. Popular tours offer an engaging look at Salem’s past, weaving together stories of early families with insights into the home’s architecture. Immerse yourself in regional history at the 5-acre Willamette Heritage Center, home to 14 historic structures and rotating exhibits that illuminate the lives of Euro-American missionaries and immigrants who settled in the Mid-Willamette Valley in the 1840s. Explore the research library, step inside what was once one of Oregon’s leading textile mills, and climb aboard the newest exhibit, Caboose 507 — a beautifully restored 1909 wooden railcar. The Oregon State Hospital Museum of Mental Health in Salem may be known to many as a filming location for the 1975 movie “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest,” but more Deepwood Museum TravelSalem.com 14
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