Sparta, Oregon

Sparta is an unincorporated community in Baker County, Oregon, United States.

[1] It was named for Sparta, Illinois, by William H. Packwood, a prominent Oregon pioneer who visited the gold diggings at the Powder River there in 1871.

[2] By 1873, the population was 300 and the town had a general store, a hotel, a meat market, and a brewery; food came from the nearby Eagle Valley.

[2] The post office was originally named "Gem" in 1871 and was moved about a mile east when it was renamed Sparta to match the established community.

This Baker County, Oregon state location article is a stub.

Baker County map