Salem, Oregon Salem, Oregon Salem is the capital of the U.S. state of Oregon, and the county seat of Marion County. It is located in the center of the Willamette Valley alongside the Willamette River, which runs north through the city. The river forms the boundary between Marion and Polk counties, and the city neighborhood of West Salem is in Polk County. Salem was founded in 1842, became the capital of the Oregon Territory in 1851, and was incorporated in 1857. Salem had a population of 154,637 at the 2010 census, making it the third largest city in the state after Portland
Oregon State University the state of Oregon. The main campus is located in Corvallis, in the Willamette Valley. In 1994, OSU was rated the safest campus in the Pac-10 in a study of universities. In September 2008, much of the Oregon State University campus in Corvallis was designated the Oregon State University Historic District by the National Register of Historic Places. It is the only college or university campus in Oregon to have a historic district designation. The effort to have the John Charles Olmsted-designed campus listed on the National Register took two years. OSU recently completed the construction of a branch campus