Thompson's Mills | State Heritage Site — Local services in Oregon

There is a lot of powerful historic vibes in this place. The photo is of an ancient mysterious human built mound. This mound is just east of Thompson's Mill going towards I-5 though there is no interchange. These mounds are found all over the Calapooia and Muddy Creek drainage, up to at least Brownsville, and starting in Albany along the Calapooia. In our current times, these mounds are very much downplayed by academia and the museums, but back in the 1880's through 1929, James G. Crawford both excavated and photographed the artifacts that he found. Crawford actually opened a museum in Albany showcasing his findings. The main take-away with what Crawford found, was artifacts that suggested a "diffusionist" view of history. Diffusionists hold that since extremely ancient times much earlier than that of the "land bridge during the ice age theory", humans crossed the oceans and discovered far away lands. In Crawford's museum were pictures of what appear to be "Lingam's". A lingam, sometimes referred to as linga or Shiva linga, is an abstract or aniconic representation of the Hindu god Shiva in Shaivism. This artifact suggests that people from as far away as India back in very ancient times came to the Willamette Valley and were part of this Mound Building Culture. I have lived in the Willamette Valley my whole life, it was only within the last ten years that I became aware of the Mounds in the Willamette Valley. The one pictured can actually be seen from I-5 as you drive by. Thompson's Mill sits atop all kinds of mound connected sites, nearby a house was built atop a mound, right on the Calapooia, when erosion happens all kinds of artifacts pop out. In Brownsville, houses were also built atop the mounds. This post is an invitation for more people interested in the true history of Oregon to find out more and...

This is a very cool place ran by very nice volunteers. It is dayuse only. NO OVERNIGHT PARKING. We came in around 7:00 the night before hoping to be first in line and ended up being gently informed that it is dayuse only. Looking at it on the map there is clear rv parking. We were hoping to be able to use it but I guess it's for the volunteers not guests. There are vault toilets that are well maintained. There is access to drinking water. It is a very cool place! Truly surprising how much there is to do, see, and learn here. There are interactive displays you can use and mess with. They can power up the turbine and you can see it run as an example of how it would've been to be in there back when it was still in use. You can choose a guided or self guided tour. Even with the self guided tour option there are still volunteers around to help answer questions or give you more information. It's a really neat place and I really appreciate the opportunity to...

Impressive community effort preserving this water powered mill for public awareness. We got a tour from a dedicated volunteer who guided us from almost all the areas and historical times in this 100+ year old facility. The tour was full of interesting facts about the development of a rural economic network of grain producers and their ingenuos engineering. Most of the artifacts are pretty well preserved despite of surviving two floods. I was amazed to realize how far the owners of the mill went to "create" a water fall digging up to 10 ft to fed this mill. While it's not an area for small children to explore freely unattended, the tour have hand off experiences for kids around 8 to 10 years old so they can understand why and how this mill was built and what it meant for people living there long ago. Great for combining a peaceful walk with an interesting...