This little city is turning fiddy

Depoe Bay will celebrate 50 years as an incorporated city this Saturday, May 20, with a fun-filled afternoon of live entertainment, delicious food and more.

A video presentation will be played showing hundreds of historic photos and an emcee will encourage locals to share their photos and stories. Several members of the DePoe family will attend to honor Siletz Tribal Chief Charlie DePoe, after whom the town was named.

Food will be available for purchase from Squatchsami and Grubs On, alongside beer from the Horn Public House and Brewery. For kids and the young at heart, Neighbors For Kids will have activities like face painting and a Lego contest.

According to a story in the Salem Capitol Journal from May 23, 1973, Depoe Bay residents chose incorporation by a tidal-wave 121-vote margin.

The newly incorporated city, which had at the time a population of 460 and an assessed valuation of $8 million, encompassed land from Boiler Bay State Park on the north to the Maling Estate on the south and included the six-acre Depoe Bay harbor.

Proponents emphasized the necessity of incorporating to give residents the opportunity to zone and control their town and harbor ecologically and architecturally to preserve Depoe Bay as a picturesque, nautical city by the sea.

The event will be held from noon to 4 pm at the Depoe Bay City Park, located at the end of Shell Avenue by the boat launch ramp area.