Kernville - Oregon Ghost Town

KERNVILLE

NAME: Kernville
COUNTY: Lincoln
ROADS: 2WD
GRID: 4
CLIMATE: Mild winter and summer.
BEST TIME TO VISIT: Anytime.

COMMENTS: Near new Kernville.
REMAINS: Many buildings.

There are two Kernvilles, the old and the new. The man who started it all was a Daniel Kern who, along with his brother John, built a large fish cannery on the north bank of the coastal river called Siletz in 1896. The site became the first white settlement in North Lincoln County. In time, a number of other industries including a sawmill were built on the south side of the river, the crossing being made by boat. Kernvilles’s busiest years were during World War I when it was discovered Oregon’s coastal spruce was found to be the best material for making airplanes. A sawmill, the Kernville Spruce Division Mill, had a capacity of 30,000 feet a day and maintained an excellent schedule despite many production problems. The north side of the Siletz River had no year round dependable roads and wet weather made a quagmire of the only road there was. A drawbridge was finally completed in 1926 and became a major link in the coastal highway system. The new bridge hastened the removal of all the remaining residents and machinery to the new Kernville on the highway. SUBMITTED BY: Henry Chenowith	Kernville Circa 1910 Courtesy Rick Rader

There are two Kernvilles, the old and the new. The man who started it all was a Daniel Kern who, along with his brother John, built a large fish cannery on the north bank of the coastal river called Siletz in 1896. The site became the first white settlement in North Lincoln County. In time, a number of other industries including a sawmill were built on the south side of the river, the crossing being made by boat. Kernvilles’s busiest years were during World War I when it was discovered Oregon’s coastal spruce was found to be the best material for making airplanes. A sawmill, the Kernville Spruce Division Mill, had a capacity of 30,000 feet a day and maintained an excellent schedule despite many production problems. The north side of the Siletz River had no year round dependable roads and wet weather made a quagmire of the only road there was. A drawbridge was finally completed in 1926 and became a major link in the coastal highway system. The new bridge hastened the removal of all the remaining residents and machinery to the new Kernville on the highway. SUBMITTED BY: Henry Chenowith

Kernville Circa 1910
Courtesy Rick Rader

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