Bly is in southeastern Klamath County, slightly west of Lake County, along Oregon Route 140. By highway, it is about 37 miles (60 km) west of Lakeview and 50 miles (80 km) east of Klamath Falls.[6][7]
The name Bly comes from the Klamath word p'lai, meaning 'up' or 'high', referring to its location at the upper Sprague River.[9] The Sprague River post office was established in the area in 1873, and the name was changed to Bly in 1883.[9] At that time, the community was near the east end of the Klamath Indian Reservation.[10] The 21st century community of Sprague River is downstream and west of Bly and Beatty.[7]
Around 1900, Bly had two general stores, two hotels, and a saloon.[10] A history published in 1905 referred to the surrounding area as the "precinct" or the "valley" and estimated its total population at 750.[10] The chief products of the valley at that time included cattle, horses, mules, and a few sheep, as well as oats, clover, and hay.[10]
In 1935, the United States Forest Service acquired a 4-acre (16,000 m2) site in Bly for a district ranger station to manage the western part of the Fremont National Forest. The Forest Service paid $625 (equivalent to $13,900 in 2023) for the property. The ranger station was built by Civilian Conservation Corps workers under the supervision of Forest Service district ranger Perry Smith. The seven original buildings at the Bly Ranger Station were constructed between 1936 and 1942. A modern administrative headquarters building was added to the compound in the 1960s. The ranger station compound was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1981.[11][12]
Memorial to the victims of the Japanese balloon bomb
World War II
Bly is also the site of the only fatalities of World War II in the continental U.S. due to an enemy balloon bomb attack.[9] On May 5, 1945, a Japanese balloon bomb exploded as it was being pulled from the woods by curious picnickers.[9] Killed in the explosion were: Elsie Mitchell, 26, wife of minister Archie E. Mitchell; Edward Engen, 13; Richard Patzke, 14; Jay Gifford, 13; Sherman Shoemaker, 11; and Joan Patzke, 13.[13] Rev. Mitchell heard the explosion and discovered the bodies. The victims' families were compensated by the government. A memorial was erected at what today is called the Mitchell Recreation Area.[14]
^Moffatt, Riley Moore (1996). Population History of Western U.S. Cities and Towns, 1850–1990. Lanham, Maryland: Scarecrow Press. p. 206. ISBN978-0-8108-3033-2.
^"Bly, Oregon Census Data". data.census.gov. United States Census. Archived from the original on November 15, 2021. Retrieved November 15, 2021.
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