Kerby, Oregon
Unincorporated community in the state of Oregon, United States
title: "Kerby, Oregon" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["ghost-towns-in-oregon", "unincorporated-communities-in-josephine-county,-oregon", "census-designated-places-in-oregon", "census-designated-places-in-josephine-county,-oregon", "1850s-establishments-in-oregon", "unincorporated-communities-in-oregon", "1856-establishments-in-oregon-territory", "former-county-seats-in-oregon"] description: "Unincorporated community in the state of Oregon, United States" topic_path: "general/ghost-towns-in-oregon" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kerby,_Oregon" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0
::summary Unincorporated community in the state of Oregon, United States ::
::data[format=table title="Infobox settlement"]
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| name | Kerby, Oregon |
| settlement_type | Census-designated place |
| pushpin_map | Oregon#USA |
| pushpin_label | Kerby |
| pushpin_label_position | |
| subdivision_type | Country |
| subdivision_name | United States |
| subdivision_type1 | State |
| subdivision_name1 | Oregon |
| subdivision_type2 | County |
| subdivision_name2 | Josephine |
| leader_title | |
| unit_pref | Imperial |
| area_footnotes | |
| area_total_km2 | 6.77 |
| area_land_km2 | 6.68 |
| area_water_km2 | 0.09 |
| population_as_of | 2020 |
| population_footnotes | |
| population_total | 628 |
| population_density_km2 | 93.96 |
| timezone | Pacific (PST) |
| utc_offset | -8 |
| timezone_DST | PDT |
| utc_offset_DST | -7 |
| elevation_ft | 1267 |
| coordinates | |
| postal_code_type | ZIP code |
| postal_code | 97531 |
| area_codes | 458 and 541 |
| blank_name | FIPS code |
| blank_info | 41-38900 |
| blank1_name | GNIS feature ID |
| blank1_info | 1144563 |
| area_total_sq_mi | 2.62 |
| area_land_sq_mi | 2.58 |
| area_water_sq_mi | 0.04 |
| population_density_sq_mi | 243.32 |
| :: |
|name = Kerby, Oregon |official_name = |settlement_type = Census-designated place |nickname = |motto =
|image_skyline = |imagesize = |image_caption = |image_flag = |image_seal =
|pushpin_map = Oregon#USA |pushpin_label = Kerby |pushpin_label_position = |pushpin_map_caption = |pushpin_mapsize = |image_map = |map_caption = |image_map1 = |mapsize1 = |map_caption1 =
|subdivision_type = Country |subdivision_name = United States |subdivision_type1 = State |subdivision_name1 = Oregon |subdivision_type2 = County |subdivision_name2 = Josephine |government_footnotes = |government_type = |leader_title = |leader_name = |leader_title1 = |leader_name1 = |established_title = |established_date =
|unit_pref = Imperial |area_footnotes = |area_magnitude = |area_total_km2 = 6.77 |area_land_km2 = 6.68 |area_water_km2 = 0.09
|population_as_of = 2020 |population_footnotes = |population_total = 628 |population_density_km2 = 93.96
|timezone = Pacific (PST) |utc_offset = -8 |timezone_DST = PDT |utc_offset_DST = -7 |elevation_footnotes = |elevation_ft = 1267 |coordinates =
|postal_code_type = ZIP code |postal_code = 97531 |area_codes = 458 and 541 |blank_name = FIPS code |blank_info = 41-38900 |blank1_name = GNIS feature ID |blank1_info = 1144563 |website = |footnotes = |pop_est_as_of = |pop_est_footnotes = |population_est = |area_total_sq_mi = 2.62 |area_land_sq_mi = 2.58 |area_water_sq_mi = 0.04 |population_density_sq_mi = 243.32 Kerby is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Josephine County, Oregon, United States, north of Cave Junction on U.S. Route 199. As of the 2010 census the population was 595. Despite its population and numerous businesses, it is often listed in tourist guides as a ghost town, because of the number of historic buildings left from its days as a gold-mining town. Kerby came into existence between 1854 and 1857.{{cite book | last=Pfefferle | first=Ruth | title= Golden Days and Pioneer Ways | publisher=Josephine County Historical Society | year=1977 | pages=136}}
History
Kerby was named for James Kerby (or Kerbey, as he sometimes spelled his name). The community was founded during the heyday of Josephine County gold mining and went through numerous name changes (and various spellings) in its early years.{{cite book | last = McArthur | first = Lewis A. | author-link = Lewis A. McArthur | author2 = Lewis L. McArthur | author2-link = Lewis L. McArthur | title = Oregon Geographic Names | orig-year = 1928 | edition = Seventh | year = 2003 | publisher = Oregon Historical Society Press | location = Portland, Oregon | isbn = 0-87595-277-1
An act of the territorial legislature of December 18, 1856, changed the name from "Kirbeyville" to "Napoleon", possibly because of the association of Napoleon with the name Josephine. The new name was not popular, and a bill was introduced in the next legislature that would change it back. The bill passed the House but was then held up in the Senate judiciary committee. Though the county commissioners used the name "Napoleon" for a short time, they reverted to calling the place "Kerbyville" in about April 1860. The name "Kerbyville" was used officially for many years despite the failure of the legislature to restore it. The name was finally changed to "Kerby" for the sake of simplicity. Grants Pass became the county seat in 1886.
The history of the name of the post office in this locale is simpler: Kerby post office was established in September 1856; it was later made a rural station of Cave Junction. The post office was proposed to be closed in 2009.
Geography
Kerby is in southwestern Josephine County, along U.S. Route 199 on the east side of the valley of the Illinois River, a north-flowing tributary of the Rogue River. Kerby is bordered to the south by the city of Cave Junction. US 199 leads northeast 27 mi to Grants Pass and south through Cave Junction 55 mi to Crescent City, California.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the Kerby CDP has an area of 6.7 sqkm, all of it recorded as land.
Demographics
|2020= 628 |footnote=U.S. Decennial Census
Points of interest
- Kerbyville Museum, established in 1959
Climate
This region experiences warm (but not hot) and dry summers, with no average monthly temperatures above 71.6 F. According to the Köppen climate classification system, Kerby has a warm-summer Mediterranean climate, abbreviated "Csb" on climate maps.
References
http://www.ohs.org/education/oregonhistory/narratives/index.cfm?nar_ID=4E8A6F47-0060-3C44-777DD60AA3513C34 http://www.cavejunctionoregon.com/new_page_5.htm
References
- "ArcGIS REST Services Directory". United States Census Bureau.
- "Geographic Identifiers: 2010 Census Summary File 1 (G001): Kerby CDP, Oregon". U.S. Census Bureau.
- "Josephine County History". [[Oregon State Archives]].
- "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov.
- "Census Population API". United States Census Bureau.
- (February 2020)
- [http://www.weatherbase.com/weather/weather-summary.php3?s=844153&cityname=Kerby%2C+Oregon%2C+United+States+of+America&units= Climate Summary for Kerby, Oregon]
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