TPL Acquires, Donates 137 Acres

TILAMOOK, OR-The Trust for Public Land last week acquired 137 acres near the mouth of the Kilchis River along Tillamook Bay and promptly donated it to the Tillamook County Pioneer Museum Foundation. The $970,000 purchase price for the Kilchis Point parcel was paid by an anonymous donor.

-”With increasing development along the Oregon coast, it was essential that we ensure its historic beauty remain intact,” said Chris Beck, TPL project manager. Before conveying the property to the museum, TPL placed permanent deed restrictions on the site to prevent residential development while still allowing some existing, non-threatening uses such as grazing.

For a thousand years, the Tillamook Indians lived a hearty and peaceful life on Tillamook Bay. Kilchis Point was the location of the largest settlement of Tillamook Indians, and was named after Chief Kilchis, one of the most respected members of the Tillamook Tribe. The first Americans to land on the West Coast (Captain Robert Gray and crew) came ashore near Kilchis Point in 1788.