Wallowa County, Oregon

Wallowa County is a county in Oregon, United States, tucked in the state’s far northeastern corner against the Washington and Idaho borders. It had a population of 7,391 at the 2020 census, making it one of Oregon’s least populous counties, and it covers 3,152 square miles (8,160 km2) — almost all of it land — centred near 45°35′N 117°10′W.

Enterprise is the county seat, and its postal code is 97828. The county has four incorporated cities, no unincorporated census-designated places, and dozens of small settlements scattered through the Wallowa and Imnaha river valleys. Wallowa County sits in the Pacific time zone and carries FIPS code 41-063.

Towns & Villages in Wallowa County

Most of Wallowa County’s people live in one of four incorporated cities strung along the Wallowa River valley. The rest of the list below is unincorporated: ranching hamlets, former rail stops, and a scattering of remote canyon and rimrock communities toward the Idaho line.

ZIP Codes

• 97828 — Enterprise (post office town, county seat)
• 97846 — Joseph
• 97885 — Wallowa
• 97857 — Lostine
• 97842 — Imnaha (also serves the lower Imnaha River canyon)
• 97836 — Minam (also serves the Wallowa River canyon toward the Grande Ronde confluence)

Flora, Troy, Wallowa Lake, and the smaller rimrock and canyon settlements have no post office of their own and are served by the nearest listed ZIP.

Geography

Wallowa County is Oregon’s most rugged northeastern corner, split between the high, glacier-carved Wallowa Mountains — locally called the “Oregon Alps” — in the south and the deep basalt canyons of the Snake and Imnaha rivers along its eastern edge, where Hells Canyon drops more than a mile below the surrounding rim. The Wallowa River valley, a broad glacial trough running from Wallowa Lake northwest through Joseph, Enterprise, Lostine, and Wallowa, holds most of the farmland and nearly all of the population. The U.S. Forest Service manages more than half the county’s land, mostly within the Wallowa-Whitman National Forest and the Eagle Cap Wilderness.

The county borders Asotin County, Washington, to the north across the Grande Ronde and Snake rivers; Nez Perce County, Idaho, to the northeast; Idaho County, Idaho, to the east across the Snake River in Hells Canyon; Adams County, Idaho, to the southeast; Union County to the south; and Umatilla County to the west.

Demographics

Wallowa County had 7,391 residents at the 2020 census. Enterprise, the seat, and Joseph, the county’s bronze-art hub, are its two largest communities, with 2,052 and 1,154 people respectively. Oregon’s 2023 ACS median household income was $80,160; Wallowa County’s rural, ranching- and tourism-based economy runs below that figure, reflecting the seasonal and small-business nature of local work. At 2.2 people per square mile, it is one of the emptiest counties in the state outside Oregon’s high desert.

Economy & Local Life

Cattle ranching, hay and grain farming, and timber have anchored the county economy for more than a century, and public-land grazing and Forest Service contracts still support many family operations. Since 1982, bronze foundries have added a second economic leg: Joseph is home to Valley Bronze of Oregon and several smaller casting studios, and the town markets itself nationally as a center for bronze sculpture. Tourism tied to Wallowa Lake, the Eagle Cap Wilderness, and Hells Canyon draws visitors each summer to lodges, outfitters, and the Wallowa Lake Tramway. The largest annual event is the Chief Joseph Days Rodeo, held in Joseph in late July, alongside the Alpenfest Swiss-Bavarian festival each September.

History

The Oregon legislature created Wallowa County on February 11, 1887, carving it out of the eastern portion of Union County. The name almost certainly comes from a Nez Perce word for a weir, a fishing structure of staked poles once used on the Wallowa River; early explorers recorded a similar term, Wil-le-wah, in the Lewis and Clark expedition journals. The Wallowa Valley was the ancestral homeland of the Wallowa band of the Nez Perce, led by Chief Joseph, before their forced removal in 1877 following the Nez Perce War. Timber and ranching drove the county’s early economy, and the decline of the timber industry in the 1980s pushed Joseph to reinvent itself as a bronze-casting town, a shift that reshaped the local economy through the following decades.

Getting There

Oregon Route 82 is the county’s main highway, running from Elgin through Wallowa, Lostine, Enterprise, and Joseph to Wallowa Lake; Oregon Route 3 connects Enterprise north into southeastern Washington. Distances from Enterprise:

• Joseph — 6 miles southeast
• Wallowa — 15 miles northwest
• Lostine — 10 miles west
• La Grande — 65 miles southwest

The nearest commercial airport is Eastern Oregon Regional Airport in Pendleton, roughly two hours west by car; the nearest Amtrak service is the Empire Builder line at La Grande, about an hour and fifteen minutes southwest.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the Enterprise postcode?
97828.

What is the county seat of Wallowa County?
Enterprise is the county seat.

How many people live in Wallowa County?
The county had a population of 7,391 at the 2020 census.

How big is Wallowa County?
The county covers 3,152 square miles (8,160 km2), nearly all of it land.

What is Wallowa County known for?
The Wallowa Mountains and Eagle Cap Wilderness, Hells Canyon along its eastern edge, and Joseph’s bronze foundries.

What are the incorporated cities in Wallowa County?
Enterprise, Joseph, Wallowa, and Lostine.

Where does the name Wallowa come from?
Most likely a Nez Perce word for a fishing weir made of staked poles on the Wallowa River.

More counties in this state: Towns and villages in Oregon.