It is located on the old alignment of U.S. Route 30 off Interstate 84, in the Umatilla National Forest, near Emigrant Springs State Heritage Area and the route of the Oregon Trail.

Meacham was a station on the Union Pacific Railroad, near the summit of the Blue Mountains.

[6][7] On July 3, 1923, Meacham was visited by President Warren G. Harding, who stopped for the day during his Voyage of Understanding and participated in the exercises commemorating the eightieth anniversary of the Oregon Trail.

[9][10] According to local tradition, Harding in his speech said (or, as a historic marker tells it, "reporters noted") [11] that the little town of Meacham was the nation's capital "all day long".

[14] Meacham has a dry-summer humid continental climate (Köppen Dsb) with cold snowy winters and mild summers.