Nibley is an unincorporated

Unincorporated area

In law, an unincorporated area is a region of land that is not a part of any municipality.To "incorporate" in this context means to form a municipal corporation, a city, town, or village with its own government. An unincorporated community is usually not subject to or taxed by a municipal government...

 historic locale in Union County

Union County, Oregon

Union County is a county located in the U.S. state of Oregon. It is included in the 8 county definition of Eastern Oregon. The county is named for the town of Union, which is located within its boundaries; in 2010, the county population was 25,748. The county seat is La Grande.-History:Union County...

, Oregon

Oregon

Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...

, United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

, about 11 miles east of La Grande

La Grande, Oregon

-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 12,327 people, 5,124 households, and 2,982 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,833.5 people per square mile . There were 5,483 housing units at an average density of 1,260.3 per square mile...

 on Oregon Route 237

Oregon Route 237

Oregon Route 237 is an Oregon state highway running from OR 82 in Island City to Interstate 84 and U.S. Route 30 in North Powder. OR 237 is composed of the Cove Highway No. 342 and part of the La Grande-Baker Highway No. 66...

 in the Grande Ronde Valley

Grande Ronde Valley

The Grande Ronde Valley is a valley in Union County in northeastern Oregon, United States. It is surrounded by the Blue Mountains, and is drained by the Grande Ronde River. La Grande is its largest community. The valley is long, north to south, from Pumpkin Ridge to Pyles Canyon, and wide, east...

.

Nibley was founded by Mormon businessmen Charles W. Nibley

Charles W. Nibley

Charles Wilson Nibley was the fifth presiding bishop of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints between 1907 and 1925 and a member of the church's First Presidency from 1925 until his death....

 and George E. Stoddard. The two men purchased 8000 acres (3,237.5 ha) from A. B. Conley, and the town was named after Charles Nibley. Charles Nibley, David Eccles

David Eccles (businessman)

David Eccles was an American businessman and industrialist who founded many businesses throughout the western United States and became Utah's first multimillionaire.-Biography:...

, and George Stoddard organized the Oregon Sugar Company

Oregon Sugar Company

The Oregon Sugar Company was a sugar beet growing and processing operation created by the founders of the Amalgamated Sugar Company of Utah.The company was incorporated February 12, 1898, by David Eccles, Charles W. Nibley, and George Stoddard. A shareholder meeting was held on February 26, 1898 in...

 in 1898 and soon opened the first sugar beet

Sugar beet

Sugar beet, a cultivated plant of Beta vulgaris, is a plant whose tuber contains a high concentration of sucrose. It is grown commercially for sugar production. Sugar beets and other B...

 processing plant in the Pacific Northwest

Pacific Northwest

The Pacific Northwest is a region in northwestern North America, bounded by the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains on the east. Definitions of the region vary and there is no commonly agreed upon boundary, even among Pacific Northwesterners. A common concept of the...

 in La Grande, which was eventually owned by the Amalgamated Sugar Company

Amalgamated Sugar Company

The Amalgamated Sugar Company is a sugar beet refining company run on a cooperative basis. It was founded in 1897 in Logan, Utah, and is now located in Nampa, Idaho, United States. The company markets its sugar under the White Satin brand.-Founding:...

.

Beet production was less than expected, so the men organized the Oregon Land Company and purchased the Nibley property in 1900 to attract experienced beet farmers from their home state of Utah

Utah

Utah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...

. By 1902 Nibley was a flourishing village with 20 families and a post office, but beet production continued to be low because of lack of water (as Nibley anticipated irrigation becoming available) and unfavorable weather.

In 1905 there was a typhoid

Typhoid fever

Typhoid fever, also known as Typhoid, is a common worldwide bacterial disease, transmitted by the ingestion of food or water contaminated with the feces of an infected person, which contain the bacterium Salmonella enterica, serovar Typhi...

 epidemic and more bad weather. The Oregon Sugar Company factory in La Grande was closed in 1906, the town ceased to exist on December 29, 1906, and the post office shut down.

As a company town

Company town

A company town is a town or city in which much or all real estate, buildings , utilities, hospitals, small businesses such as grocery stores and gas stations, and other necessities or luxuries of life within its borders are owned by a single company...

, Nibley was not considered a proper town by some historians. Nibley, Utah

Nibley, Utah

Nibley is a city in Cache County, Utah, United States. Incorporated in 1937 and named after Charles W. Nibley, a leader in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The population was 5,438 at the 2010 census...

was also named for Charles W. Nibley.