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 Songs
Written by Locals
Prior to the settlement of Camas County the Bannock
Indians utilized the Camas Prairie as their summer camping area. Here they
gathered the Camas and Yampus roots and hunted wild game.
Goodale's Cutoff, a heavily used emigrant trail route
was utilized beginning in the early 1850's. This route traversed the length
of the Camas Prairie. Following the Bannock War of 1878 the summer gathering
of roots by the Indians tapered off dramatically, but, still continued into
the 1950's.
In 1877 the government opened the area for settlement
and within two years the first land filings were recorded in Boise. In
addition to the homestead filings on the prairie there were numerous mining
operations of various sizes working in the timbered foothills to the
north. By 1883 the first local school was established. Eventually a total
of 27 small schools dotted the prairie serving the educational and social
purposes of the scattered communities. By 1948 most schools had
consolidated with the Fairfield system. The last rural school closed in
1953.
 At one time nine small towns thrived in what is now
Camas County. The town of Soldier, located two miles north of Fairfield,
was a bustling center of commerce, culture and social activity. Soldier's
decline, however, began during the formation of Fairfield in 1911 occasioned
by the arrival of the Oregon Short Line Railroad. Hill City, the
terminus of the railroad, at one time shipped more sheep than any other
point in the world. The railroad served the Camas Prairie for a period
of seventy years. A remnant of this bygone era and many of the daily
items from the pioneer days to the present still remain within the historic
Railroad Depot/Museum building located in Fairfield.
The Camas Historical Society manages the museum, to be
come a member and receive updated information anyone is invited to
become a
member.
Excerpts credited to Jeff Rast, John Ryan as well as
several other source.
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