The 'Calapooya Mountains' are a short
mountain range in southwestern
Oregon in the
United States. The range runs for approximately
60 miles (97 km) west from the
Cascade Range between
Eugene (N) and
Roseburg (S). The range separates the basins of the
Willamette River to the north with that of the
Umpqua River to the south. The highest peaks in the range include
Scott Mountain (
el.
4,250 feet (1,295 m)) approximately
20 miles (32 km) northeast of Roseburg. The
North Umpqua River flows along the southern edge of the range. The crest of the range is sometimes called the 'Calapooya Divide'.
The mountains have been an important
timber source in the
20th century. The eastern end of the mountains are largely within the
Umpqua National Forest and
Willamette National Forest.
Throughout the history of the region the range has provided a geographic and cultural barrier between the
Willamette Valley and the
South Umpqua Valley, effectively separating
Western Oregon from
Southern Oregon. In the
19th century, it separated the tribal domains of the
Kalapuya and
Coquille tribes of
Native Americans, both of which ceded their lands to the U.S. government in the
1854 Kalapuya Treaty. During the
1840s the mountains became an inconvenient barrier for white settlers seeking to move into southern Oregon or to move southward to the
California gold fields. The
Applegate Trail, blazed in the late
1840s provided the first reliable path for white settlement through the western end of the mountains.
Interstate 5 essentially follows the route of the trail between Eugene and Roseburg.