If all Americans knew of Oregon’s natural wonders fewer would go to Europe in quest of scenic beauty.

-Cross & Dimmitt, The Columbia River Highway: America’s Greatest Scenic Drive (ca. 1920)

“You have in the Columbia Highway the most remarkable engineering in the United States, which for scenic grandeur is not equaled anywhere.”

Theodore Roosevelt

“…the highway is a religion, a work of art to be given the devotion of a lifetime.”

Mark Woodruff, The Oregonian, 1916

“The people of Oregon country have built this great highway for agricultural and commercial pursuits, as well as for the enjoyment of the beautiful and grand in nature.”

Samuel C. Lancaster