The Oregon Trail was the route along which thousands of settlers traveled to Oregon by covered wagon in the 1840s and 1850s. This early immigration was predominantly from Midwestern states. After the completion of the transcontinental railroad, northeastern states supplied an increasing proportion of the newcomers.
Foreign immigration began in the 1860s with the importation of Chinese contract laborers, and reached its peak about 1900. Germans and Scandinavians (particularly after 1900) were the most numerous foreign immigrants; Japanese, who began arriving in the 1890s, met a hostile reception in some areas. Canadians have also come to Oregon in significant numbers. Nevertheless, immigration from other states has predominated. Between 1970 and 1980, the state's net gain from migration was about 341,000; from 1980 to 1983, however, the state suffered a net loss of about 37,000, and from 1985 to 1990, the net migration gain was 123,500. Between 1990 and 1998, Oregon had net gains of 260,000 in domestic migration and 58,000 in international migration. In 1998, 5,909 foreign immigrants arrived in Oregon; of these, the greatest number, 1,879, came from Mexico. The state's overall population increased 15.5% between 1990 and 1998, making it one of the fastest growing states in the nation. In the period 1995–2000, 399,328 people moved into the state and 324,663 moved out, for a net gain of 74,665, many of whom came from California.