[2] The county is named after Stephen A. Douglas, an American politician who supported Oregon statehood.

The area originally was inhabited by the Umpqua Indians, a grouping of natives who spoke a variety of Penutian and Athabaskan languages.

Oregon Route 99 runs through Azalea, Tri-City, Myrtle Creek, Canyonville, Green, Roseburg, Winchester, Sutherlin, Rice Hill, Drain, and Anlauf.

Interstate 5 provides access to the communities of Tri-City, Myrtle Creek, Canyonville, Green, Roseburg, Sutherlin, and Rice Hill.

Oregon Route 138 runs northwest from Roseburg to Elkton, Oregon, and generally east from Roseburg to its terminus at a junction with U.S. Route 97, just east of Diamond Lake and Crater Lake.

The communities of Douglas county are regionally served by U-Trans (formerly Umpqua Transit), the local bus service.

In 2017, these services were significantly expanded to include locations such as Oakland, Oregon and Tenmile Greyhound Lines provide the community of Roseburg with more distant transportation.

No Democratic presidential nominee has carried Douglas County since Lyndon Johnson's landslide win in 1964: indeed the last Democrat to crack forty percent of the county's vote was Michael Dukakis in 1988 during an election influenced by a major drought.

Historically, the county, like all of Western Oregon north of the Rogue Valley, also leaned strongly Republican: before 1964 the only other Democrats to carry Douglas County had been John F. Kennedy in 1960, Franklin Delano Roosevelt in 1936 and 1932, Woodrow Wilson in 1912 and William Jennings Bryan in 1896.

[14] Douglas County is split between the highly conservative 2nd congressional district, represented by Cliff Bentz, and the liberal-leaning 4th district, which includes the Democratic stronghold of Eugene and has been represented by Democrat Val Hoyle since 2023.

The coastal part, including Reedsport, lies within the 9th District represented by Republican Boomer Wright.

A belt from Roseburg south lies in the 4th District, which extends into Jackson and Josephine counties, is represented by Republican Christine Goodwin.

The far southwest adjacent to Curry and Coos counties is within the 1st District represented by Republican Court Boice, and the bulk of the county, centered on the northeastern half, lies in the 2nd District represented by Republican Virgle Osborne.

The southernmost portion of Douglas County exists within the state's 2nd Senate District, represented by Republican Art Robinson.

In spite of its conservative reputation, Douglas County voters have rejected two secessionist proposals to join the Greater Idaho coalition.

Agriculture, mainly field crops, orchards, and livestock (particularly sheep ranching), is also important to the economy of the county.

[17] The post-Prohibition wine industry in Oregon began with Richard Somer planting Hillcrest Vineyard at the south end of the Umpqua Valley in 1961.