Twin Rocks is a set of sea stacks situated about 0.5 miles (0.8 km) offshore and 1 mile (1.6 km) south-southwest of Rockaway Beach, a seaside community about 4 miles (6 km) south-southwest of Nedonna Beach and 2 miles (3.2 km) north-northwest of Barview, Oregon. The southern sea stack, sometimes called Elephant Head, features a natural arch. These islands are part of the Oregon Islands National Wildlife Refuge. The mainland strand extends for 6 miles (10 km) from the mouth of the Nehalem River to the north and Tillamook Bay to the south. The community of Rockaway Beach, established in 1909 by the Rockaway Beach Company, is named after Rockaway Beach in Queens, New York. The community lies on a narrow coastal plain formed by a bench or platform shaped by the wave erosion of marine sedimentary rock. The plain’s western edge consists of dunes that have formed several small lakes. The underlying sedimentary rocks are primarily sandstone, deposited in deep water during the Early Miocene or Oligocene epochs. About 15 million years ago, basalt flowed into the northern coastal regions through an ancestral Columbia River drainage system. Basalt lava also erupted from vents near the present-day shoreline. Some of this basalt erupted under the sea or flowed into it, mixing with the sediment on the sea floor. Originally, basalt was continuous over a large area along the northern Oregon coast and inland. It was likely connected to the basalt of the Columbia River Gorge and the Columbia Plateau. Over time, wave erosion isolated masses of basalt, surrounded by less resistant sedimentary rock, from the mainland. Today, only remnants remain, primarily near the centers of eruption. Along the shore, these remnants form prominent headlands, points, reefs, stacks, and offshore arches.
Historically, Native American tribes such as the Tillamook, Nehalem, and Nestucca inhabited the area. These peoples had a close relationship with the sea and local waterways, building boats ranging from small canoes for hunting ducks and fishing in inland rivers and lakes to large ocean-going canoes for hunting marine mammals and long-distance travel. In 1788, Captain Robert Gray became the first Euro-American to land and make contact with the Tillamook tribe. The Native population, estimated at 2,200 around the 1800s, declined to one-tenth of that size by the mid-1800s, primarily due to European diseases like smallpox and influenza. Before 1810, the Oregon Country was a disputed region of the Pacific Northwest, occupied by British and French Canadian fur traders. The coastal areas north of the Columbia River were frequented by ships from various nations engaged in the maritime fur trade. The Treaty of 1818 between the United States and the United Kingdom allowed for joint occupation and settlement of the Oregon Country and established an international boundary at the 49th parallel. In 1843, settlers formed the Provisional Government of Oregon. The Oregon Treaty of 1846 ended the joint occupancy. In 1853, the Oregon territorial government created Tillamook County, where early industries included shipping, logging, fishing, farming, and dairy. The Rockaway Beach area remained sparsely populated until the Pacific Railway and Navigation Company built a railway from Portland to Tillamook in 1911, making the coast more accessible. The area became a summer tourist destination as Portland residents spent warmer months there. Men working in Portland during the week would take the Friday train to Rockaway to join their families for the weekend.
Other communities established along Rockaway Beach include Nedonna Beach at the Nehalem River, Twin Rocks, Watseco, and Barview at Tillamook Bay. Barview was the site of the Tillamook Life Saving Station, which in 1908 was the last such station built on the Pacific Coast. A change in the coastline in 1915 led to the station’s boats being housed and moored at Garibaldi in Tillamook Bay. The U.S. Coast Guard used the Barview facility until 1943. Watseco was founded by brothers George and Robert Watt, who purchased 360 acres (145 ha) of beachfront land. It became a flag stop for the coastal railroad in 1916. The name “Watseco” combines “Watt” and “Sea Coast.” The community of Twin Rocks is home to the Twin Rocks Friends Camp, founded in 1918 as a religious retreat. Nedonna Beach serves as the terminus for three undersea communication cables: the Trans-Pacific Express, the Southern Cross Cable, and the NorthStar Cable, connecting Oregon with Alaska. Early residents of these communities likely participated in the commercial fishing industry at the nearby ports of Garibaldi and Nehalem. However, both sport and commercial fishing have become severely limited. Rockaway Beach is increasingly known as a vacation and retirement community, with 50% of its households used seasonally. Read more here and here. Explore more of Twin Rocks and Rockaway Beach here: