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There was a post office called Riverside not far from this community, established about 1874. This caused confusion with another place in Oregon with the same name, and in April 1888, the office was moved and the name changed to MIST, describing the atmospheric condition prevailing in the Nehalem Valley. The townsite of Mist was surveyed and platted with the name of Esto. It has never been called Esto.
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Shown here in the respective photographs are the Mist store and the Mist school. Both are still in use. The store has operated for over a century with little change. It has convenience merchandise and a short order cook on duty. It is popular for coffee and breakfast these days.
Update: The Mist Store burned to the ground in the summer of 2001 and has not been rebuilt.
Today the Mist Gas Fields have been developed into the only producing natural gas site in Oregon. The field is not extensive and the pools are modest by world standards. However the gas is found in relatively shallow pockets (2200 feet) with a solid dome above it and salt water below it. The geology is ideal for gas storage for which it has been developed. At nearby Miller station off peak gas is pumped into the ground during much of the year, and during the seasonal peaks, the compressors are reversed and the gas is recovered to augment regional supplies.
West Oregon Electric maintains a substation near Mist fed by a 115,000 volt West Oregon owned transmission line which interconnects with the Bonneville system at Clatskanie. From the Mist Substation WOEC maintains 3 phase feeders South to Vernonia, and West and South to Elsie. Constructed about 1980, it is one of WOEC's finest substations and has long provided reliable service the Mist and Birkenfeld areas. It is located adjacent to the Mist-Birkenfeld Rural Fire Department.