Halfway is located in Baker County 54 miles east of Baker City, along Oregon Route 86.. The region was mostly a livestock dominated economy until active mining in n nearby areas led to an influx of miners. Charles L. Fee was the first known settler in Pine Valley at which Halfway is located.. He trapped in the area in 1866. The first white child born in the valley was Claude Officer on Oct. 24, 1876. Pine Valley is a broad plane at the base of the Wallowa Mountains. The first school house was on the John Thayson Homestead. Thayson was a native of Denmark and a blacksmith by trade.

Alexander Stalker established a ranch in the vicinity in the 1870s. He petitioned for a post office and it was established on October 3, 1887. Mr. Stalker was the first postmaster. The name “Midway” was requested but the postal officials replied that there was already a Midway, Oregon, and suggested Halfway. The post office was simply named because it was roughly halfway between the small settlement of Pine and a site known as Jim Town. Two years later, the post office was moved to the current location of the town of Halfway.

It was located in Union County until 1901, when it became part of Baker County. Once the post office was moved it retained its name. Halfway was incorporated in 1909. The first Mayor was W.W. Lloyd. The 1910 census listed the population as 186 people.

After the mining boom in the region declined the community once again became a livestock and timber based economy. Halfway became famous during the dot-com bubble in December 1999. It agreed to an offer to change its name to Half.com for one year. This was a publicity stunt for an e-commerce company with the same name. In return, the city received $110,000, 20 computers for the local school and other money to help the town Halfway was the first city in the world to rename itself after an internet company. The name change was not a legal change, but the city put up signs at its borders. These signs welcomed visitors to “America’s First Dot-com City.” In 2007, the city sold one of these signs for $1,000. The person who bought it was Josh Kopelman, the founder of Half.com.

The town of Halfway now has a population of 380 people. The U.S. Forest Service employs quite a number of people, and the school system provides employment for about 65 residents and Idaho Power provides additional employment.. Ranching, timber and the tourist business are the principal supporters of the local economy. One of the notable people of the community is Babette Beatty, the first Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue cover model. Halfway is in a beautiful location and well worth a visit.

Contributed by Steve Lent, Historian