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The Commemorative
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The Commemorative Quarter for Oregon





Welcome to Independence ...

The city of Independence is located in Polk County<1>.

Independence was established in 1874.

From the  Census Estimates for 2019, Independence has a population of 10,250 people<2> (see below for details).

The community of Independence is 170 feet [52 m] above sea level.<3>.

Time Zone: Independence lies in the Pacific Time Zone (PST/PDT) and observes daylight saving time

Area Codes for Independence: 503 & 971<4>

The ZIP code for Independence: 97351<5>

Population Details ...

Taken from the 2019 Census Estimates, Independence had an population of 10,250 people. This is an increase of 19.32% since the 2010 Census (or an increase of 69.84% since the 2000 Census).

At the time of the 2010 Census, Independence had a population of 8,590 people (which is 11.37% of the total population of Polk County). This makes Independence the county's 3rd most populous community.

The population of Independence represents 0.22% of the total population of Oregon (which has 3,831,074 people), making it the state's 57th most populous community.

With a 2010 count of 8,590 people, the population of Independence increased 42.34% from the 2000 Census (which had a count of 6,035 people).

More information can be found on the Census Page for Independence.

Communities Also Named Independence ...

Using our Gazetteer, we found that there are 50 communities that are also named Independence - they are located in Alabama, Arkansas, California (2), Colorado (3), Idaho, Illinois, Indiana (2), Iowa, Kansas (2), Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Minnesota (2), Mississippi (2), Missouri, Montana, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, North Dakota (2), Ohio (2), Oklahoma (2), Pennsylvania (3), Tennessee (3), Texas (2), Utah (2), Virginia, Washington (2), West Virginia (4) and Wisconsin.

For more information, see our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Independence.

Communities near Independence ...

We have created a list of 10 communities that are near Independence.

To Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

We have a couple of sections for those tracing their genealogy.

We created a list of cemeteries that are in the area around Independence. Our list includes the location of those cemeteries and we provide an overhead view. See our Cemetery List for Independence.

Using the information from an 1895 Atlas, we've created a list of communities that were in the area of Independence. Our list includes information such as whether the 1895 community had a post office or railroad service. See our List of 1890's Communities around Independence.

We also have a detailed list of newspapers that have been published in the area around Independence. Our list includes 12 papers. See our Newspapers Page for Independence.

TripAdvisor Tourism Pages for Independence ...

Looking for more information about Independence? A wonderful source is the TripAdvisor website. We always start with the TripAdvisor Tourism page, where you can read an overview with links that will help you find lodging, restaurants and attractions.

In addition to the Tourism page for Independence, there are neighboring communities that also have Tourism pages. More information about those communities can be found on our TripAdvisor Page for Independence.

Adding Independence to Our Gazetteer ...

We originally found mention of Independence in both the FIPS-55 and the GNIS. For more information, see the FIPS and GNIS Codes sections on our Miscellaneous Page.

From our notes, the earliest published mention we've found for Independence was in the document titled List of Post Offices from Cameron Blevins and Richard Helbock.<8>

X2X - From that list, the Independence post office opened in 1852.

We also found Independence in the book titled List of Post Offices in the United States (1870).

For more details, see References and Mentions for Independence.

Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Independence. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.

The official website for Polk County: www.co.polk.or.us/

The official website for State of Oregon: https://www.oregon.gov/

Footnotes ...

<1>If you're interested in how the shape of Oregon's counties, including Polk, have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
<2>Population counts have been provided by the U.S. Census Bureau. For more detail, please visit our Census Page for Independence.
<3>The elevation is an estimate for the area around Independence - it will be higher in some places and lower in others.
<4>When there's a risk of an area code running out of phone numbers, an 'Overlay Area Code' is created that has the same geographic boundaries as the existing area code. In this case, the 503 code has been Overlayed with the 971 area code. New phone numbers in the Independence area will be assigned with one of these codes: 503 or 971. As a result, placing a call in the Independence area will require 10-digit dialing (where you enter both the area code and then the phone number).
<5>ZIP Codes have been created by the United States Postal Service (USPS) as a way of grouping addresses to make delivery more efficient. The boundaries of the ZIP Code can be changed, re-assigned, eliminated or overlapped with other ZIP Codes. So keep in mind that any given ZIP Code is only 'loosely' associated with a city (such as Independence). When looking for a ZIP Code, whether Independence or elsewhere, it's always best to check the website of the United States Postal Service (USPS).
<6>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<7>The location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required.
<8>A copy of their list with background information can be found at:

      https://cblevins.github.io/us-post-offices/data-biography/




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 29 Apr 2025