| Coordinates | 43.9831°N 123.0957°W |
|---|---|
| Location | South of Eugene, Oregon, USA |
| Range | Cascade Volcanoes[citation needed] |
| Part of | Little Butte Volcanics[1] |
| Highest point | 2,058 feet (627 m)[1] |
| Formed by | Intrusion of lava through sandstone base, and subsequent erosion of sandstone |
| Geology | Butte |
| Age | approximately 23 to 30 million years |
| Orogeny | Phanerozoic orogen |
Spencer Butte is a prominent landmark in Lane County, Oregon, United States, described in the National Geodetic Survey as "a prominent timbered butte with a bare rocky summit" on the southern edge of Eugene, with an elevation of 2,058 feet (627 m).[1] Spencer Butte is accessible from Spencer Butte Park and has several hiking trails to the summit.[2] The tree cover on the butte is predominantly Douglas fir; however, the butte is now treeless at its summit. The butte is the tallest point visible when looking south from downtown Eugene.
A lone Douglas Fir stood on the top of the Butte until February of 2021 when a vandal cut it down.[3]
Name
The butte is called Champ-a te or Cham-o-tee by the native Kalapuya, meaning rattlesnake.[4]
One popular theory is that Spencer Butte was named for a young Englishman of the Hudson's Bay Company named Spencer, who was said to have been killed by the Kalapuya after climbing the hill alone.[5] Another, less popular theory holds that the butte was named after Secretary of War John C. Spencer in July 1845 by Elijah White.[2][4] Spencer was no longer Secretary of War by 1845, however. Spencer Butte was named after Eugene Skinner’s (the namesake of Eugene, OR) uncle, Spencer Fullerton Baird, who was a prominent American naturalist and the first curator of the Smithsonian Institution.[6]
In popular culture
- The song "All Of Me Wants All You" by Sufjan Stevens mentions Spencer Butte twice; the song is from the album Carrie & Lowell, which also includes a song titled "Eugene" after the city, and makes many other references to places in Oregon.[7]
Geology
Spencer Butte is volcanic in origin,[8] potentially being a volcanic plug.[citation needed]
See also
References
- ^ "Spencer Butte - NGS Data Sheet". U.S. National Geodetic Survey. Retrieved January 20, 2013.
- ^ Sullivan, William (2005). 100 Hikes in the Central Oregon Cascades. 3rd ed. Eugene, Oregon: Navillus Press. pp. 176–177. ISBN 0-9677830-6-2.
- ^ KVAL (2021-02-15). "Tree on summit of Spencer Butte cut down in apparent act of vandalism". KVAL. Retrieved 2026-05-13.
- ^ "Spencer Butte Park History". City of Eugene. Archived from the original on July 21, 2011. Retrieved 2008-05-05.
- ^ "Indians, Surveyors, Incidents Gave Names to Streams, Lakes and Mountains". Eugene Register-Guard. 4 January 1942. p. 5. Retrieved 23 April 2015.
- ^ Spencer Butte Park - History - Spencer Baird, cited 12-May-2026.
- ^ Wright, Craig. "Emerald Recommends the best albums of 2015". Emerald Media. Retrieved April 15, 2016.
- ^ "Facts About Spencer Butte : Eugene Oregon : Lane County". www.spencerbuttepark.com. Retrieved 2026-05-13.