Lewis and Clark Salt Works

Near the south end of the Prom [1] at Lewis and Clark Way are the reconstructed salt works of Lewis and Clark. While camped at Fort Clatsop [2] during the winter of 1805–1806, the captains sent a detachment south to find a place suitable for rendering salt from seawater. Their supply was nearly exhausted, and the precious commodity was a necessity for preserving and seasoning their food on the expedition’s return journey.

At the south end of present-day Seaside [3], five men built a cairn-like stone oven near a settlement of the Clatsop and Killamox people and set about boiling seawater nonstop for seven weeks to produce 3.5 bushels (about 314 pounds) of salt for the trip back east.