Thomas Potter and his son began building the town of Bay ocean, Oregon in 1906 on a sand dune spit between the Pacific Ocean and Tillamook Bay. They had big plans for the development and claimed it would be "the Atlantic City of the West.
The first lots were sold in 1907 to Francis Drake Mitchell a thirty-seven-year-old druggist and entrepreneur who built the first hotel and general store. In 1907 over 600 more lots were sold . But there were no roads or train tracks, so people came to Bay ocean by boat. But at that time the area was still wild and the intense storms of the Pacific Ocean made the trip very treacherous. The Tillamook bar {jetty} is one of the most dangerous crossings on the west coast. But they still came. Eventually, prospective buyers found paved and lighted streets, a public school, bakery and a three-story luxury hotel with 160-foot-long heated saltwater pool built on the beach.
But no one, least of all the developers who poured their money into the town of Bay ocean could have predicted the devastation that was coming. Erosion was crumbling the shore line, roads washed out and some houses precariously on the edge of the cliff. Their resort had turned into a nightmare, developers went bankrupt and the fury of the ocean was destroying their dream. By the early 50's most of the residents of Bay ocean had given up hope of saving the town and moved away. The last home fell into the ocean in 1960 and what remained was either burned or bulldozed. Their town, dreams and hopes fell into the sea and ended up buried under 10–20 foot of sand and silt.
The Pacific Ocean has many moods, from its serene and stunning sunsets to the relentless fury of a winter storm. If you’ve ever visited or lived along the rocky shores of the Oregon coast you know how wild and fierce the storms can be. I've been an Oregonian for over 43 years and some of that time was spent living on the coast. I love the ocean, its salty air, the cry of seagulls and the soft caress of waves on the shore. But I respect, the ocean's unpredictable moods, unseen riptides and winter furies. The ocean’s relentless waves and intense storms can wipe out a small town, which is what happened to the town of to Bay Ocean, Oregon. If you’d like to know more about the town that fell into the sea what the video below.
The Lost City of Bayocean: The ‘Atlantic City of the West’ that vanished into the ocean
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