Florence, by the Siuslaw River, is a fishing town and the trading point for farmers of the small Siuslaw Valley. Formerly row boats and "one-lungers," boats powered by one-cylinder marine engines, were used for valley transportation. Errands were run, children taken to school, and parents went to churches and sociables in boats, frequently powered by the winds or the tides. George Melvin Miller, the poet, helped develop the town. Florence holds an annual Rhododendron Festival.
Works Progress Administration, Federal Writers' Project, Oregon: End of the Trail, American Guide Series, Binfords & Mort, Publishers, Portland, 1940.