Oregon isn't generally known for cold winters. We're lucky in the Pacific Northwest; for the most part, in the winter, we get a lot of rain, a little snow, and a few cold days in the winter - but it's all pretty bearable. However, there have been a few winters in history that were quite a bit colder than others, and the winter of 1949 was the coldest of all. Statewide, from the beginning of December 1948 to the end of Februrary 1949, Oregon had the coldest winter on record. The average maximum temperature during that time period was just 33.6° F. That's not that cold compared to other places in the United States, but it's pretty darn cold for Oregon. Read on to learn more about the winter of 1949 - the coldest winter in Oregon ever.

1949 was a long time ago. Most people reading this probably don't remember the winter that year. Either you weren't born yet or you were rather young back then. However, it was the coldest winter in recorded Oregon history.

Back then, Oregon only had a population of about 1.4 million, compared to 4.2 million today. Portland's population was about 512,000, compared to 2.2 million today.

The fine Oregonians who lived in our great state back in 1949 sure had a rough winter. The average high temperature was just 33.6° F from December 1948 to Feburary 1949.

You have to remember and consider that at this point in time, central home heating systems like we have today were rare. Most people were still heating their homes with wood or coal. On very cold days, people would fire up the oven in the kitchen and leave the door open to get extra heat.

But, back then, just like today, Oregonians were pretty hardy folks. Even though it was cold, most people likely made the best of it. Lots of people probably went out and enjoyed winter sports and activities.

As you might have guessed, Oregon also got some snow that year, and due to the cold, it stuck around. On January 20th, five inches of snow fell in Portland. At least one inch of snow remained on the ground until Feburary 8th. Most winters, Portland only has an inch or more snow on the ground for two days on average.

Portland wasn't the only place in Oregon hit with snow during these months. In some places around Crater Lake, snow reached a depth of 14 feet!

The Columbia River was full of clumps of ice, too. This caused the city to become concerned about a power shortage, since the Bonneville Dam couldn't make power like it normally did. The city dimmed the streetlights at night. Fortunately, there was no power shortage after all.

Surely, people enjoyed ice skating on smaller lakes and ponds in Oregon during this very cold winter.

Oregon's coldest winter in 1949 was a long time ago, but there have been two more recent winters that came close! The winter of 2016-2017 was not that long ago; the average maximum temperature in Oregon that year was 38.2° F.  Colder than that, though, was 1993 - the average maximum temperature was very close to 1949 at just 38.8° F for those winter months.

Still, 1949 remains the coldest winter in Oregon of all time.

Stay warm, everybody!

And think spring! If you don't want to think about the cold anymore, perhaps you'd like to contemplate this list of 10 of the Sunniest Cities in Oregon instead!