Cascadia, OR

Now a secluded county park, this site was once a "health tourism" destination for wealthy Oregonians.

Cascadia State Park (recently acquired by Linn County Parks Dept) is located at the confluence of Soda Creek and the South Santiam River. This was a stage stop on the old wagon road heading east over to Sisters, Oregon. Parts of this wagon road are still in use within the current Highway 20 route.

Soda Creek was a natural source of mineral spring water and in the late 1800s, George Geisendorfin built a resort around the “healing powers” of this spring. In the early 1900s, there were formal gardens, tennis courts, and even a bowling alley. Unfortunately, the hotel burned down sometime in the 1960s, and the town of Cascadia has been reduced to some scattered houses and not much else.

The mineral spring fountain is still there, although it’s no longer functional.