Yachats (/ˈjɑːhɑːts/ YAH-hahts) is a small coastal city in the southernmost area of Lincoln County, Oregon, United States.

Archeological and linguistic evidence support the existence of a southern Alsea village known as the Yahuch band, located on the coast at the Yachats River.

[11] In order to open up land in the Coos Bay area for homesteading in the early 1860s, the U.S. Army forcibly marched the Coos and Lower Umpqua Indians 80 miles (130 km) north over rugged terrain to the Alsea Sub-Agency reservation in Yachats where the peaceful Indians, treated by the Army as though they were prisoners of war, were incarcerated.

Twelve years after the Alsea Sub-Agency had opened, the Indians were allowed to establish a trail and develop agricultural plots up the Yachats River Valley, where they were able to grow potatoes, oats, wheat, and corn.

Despite the early difficulties of reaching Yachats, the tourist industry began in 1905 with the conversion of a chittum bark warehouse into the first hotel.

Camp 1 contained a machine shop, locomotive shed, bunkhouses, bungalows, mess hall, school, and commissary.

[17] [18][19] Early in World War II, the West Shelter built by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) near the top of Cape Perpetua was used as an observation site and radar station for the detection of enemy submarines and aircraft.

Sir Robert Perks, who owned most of Yachats at the time, provided the property; the logs were donated as well and the work was contributed by local citizens.

[31] The Yachats event is the summer festival for Four Seasons Arts, an organization that presents annual recitals at Carnegie Hall and the Lincoln Center.

[34] Many of the world's finest Celtic musicians perform there, traveling from Scotland, Ireland, Canada, and various regions of the U.S. to participate.

At the Cape Perpetua Scenic Area, the visitor center hosts Whale Watching Weeks in winter and in spring.

[36] The Heceta Head Lighthouse, located 13 miles (21 km) south of Yachats, holds a Victorian Christmas Open House each December.

Besides the usual guided tours of the historic lighthouse, the Queen Anne style keeper's house is thoroughly decorated in a Victorian manner.

[46] The sanctuary of the Yachats Community Presbyterian Church is lighted by six windows featuring gold-hued panes made of agates collected from the local beaches.

It now houses the city government offices and hosts a wide variety of events, including monthly free movie nights, play readings and drum circles (open to the public), seniors' luncheons, and concerts of the Yachats Big Band[48] (with ballroom dancing).

Periodically, concerts by the Oregon Coast Chamber Orchestra[49] and plays, musicals, and revues by One of Us Productions are performed on the stage in the large auditorium, and a number of art and craft shows are held at the Commons as well.

The Yachats Academy of Arts & Sciences sponsors numerous educational and entertainment events, most of which are held at the Commons.

Presentations include speakers, films, workshops, exhibitions, and seminars on various topics relating to art, science and the humanities.

[50] A feature-length, tongue-in-cheek version of the 1950s horror movie genre, this film was made by an all-amateur production team of writers, actors, and crew.

The Seed Bank displays a wide selection of cookbooks, gardening manuals, and guides for developing community sustainability.

Its natural history affords the study of marine, montane, and riparian ecological communities and their complex interactions.

The Siuslaw National Forest borders Yachats on the east and consists of over 630,000 acres or 2,500 square kilometers (about five-eighths the area of the state of Rhode Island) extending from Coos Bay in the south to Tillamook in the north.

Named by Captain James Cook on March 7, 1778, this promontory rises to 803 feet (245 m) above sea level, making it the highest point on the Oregon coast.

Around on the north slope of the cape, the privately owned and operated Cleft of the Rock Lighthouse is visible from the U.S. 101 Highway.

At Agate Cove on the south end of the park, waves crashing against the basalt rocks provide spectacular spouts from blow holes.

In January 2013, the Coastal Safety Marker was installed in Smelt Sands State Park to remind visitors about the danger of sneaker waves.

The marker tells the story of two high school seniors from Eugene, Oregon, who were hit by a sneaker wave and drowned here on February 5, 2011.

The park's boardwalks and paths present a wide variety of native plants and wildlife, including a preserved spruce forest.

Among the native Sitka spruce, western hemlock and wildflowers, the garden is a unique experimental outdoor laboratory, featuring a great many exotic species such as South African honeybush, New Zealand and Tasmanian tree ferns, Chinese fig hazel,[61] Australian Grevillia, and Chilean flame and lantern trees.

[67] Published monthly, The Yachats Gazette provides hardcopy and online community news, including interviews and features about local people, businesses and attractions.