Until the 1830's the only people who had experienced the wonders of Pine Valley included the Nez Perce, Umatilla, Shoshone and Snake Indian tribes.  They used to hunt, fish and gather Camas Bulbs in the area.  Captain Benjamin Bonneville explored the area and published his description of it in his journal in 1837.  He described Pine Valley as a beautiful valley about five miles wide and fifteen miles long surrounded by snow-capped peaks and timber laden mountains with numerous mountain streams flowing through the meadowlands below.

 

Mining played a major part in the early history of the area.  One of the major Gold finds was in Cornucopia located in the Granite Mountains above Pine Valley.  A number of years after the initial Gold rush to Baker county in the fall of 1861 came the rush of 1885 to Cornucopia when numerous gold hungry men staked their claims all over the mountain.

 

The town of Halfway was named such due to it's location in Pine Valley.  Originally the mail route covered both ends of the Valley from Cornucopia to Pine but failed to cover the folks in the middle.  The original petition was to name the town Midway, but that name had already been taken by a town near Portland so the officials suggested the name of Halfway. 

 

Ranching has been the life-blood of Halfway and has kept it alive long after its mining town neighbors became ghost towns.  You can still experience a cattle drive down main street where the road is completely filled with cattle as the life-blood of Halfway surges through its arteries.