Aurora, Oregon

Aurora is a city in Marion County, Oregon, United States. The population was 1,133 at the 2020 census, up from 918 in 2010. It is part of the Salem Metropolitan Statistical Area.

Before being incorporated as a city, the area was the location of the Aurora Colony, a religious commune founded in 1856 by William Keil and John E. Schmit. Keil named the settlement after his daughter.

Aurora is in northern Marion County, bordered to the east by the Pudding River, which forms the boundary with Clackamas County. Oregon Route 99E passes through the center of town, leading northeast 4 miles (6 km) to Canby and southwest 8 miles (13 km) to Woodburn. The cities of Portland and Salem are 22 miles (35 km) to the north and 25 miles (40 km) to the southwest, respectively.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Aurora has a total area of 0.48 square miles (1.24 km²), all land. The Pudding River runs along Aurora's eastern boundary and flows north to the Molalla River, shortly before the Molalla joins the Willamette River north of Canby.

This region experiences warm (but not hot) and dry summers, with no average monthly temperatures above 71.6 °F (22.0 °C). According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Aurora has a warm-summer Mediterranean climate, abbreviated "Csb" on climate maps.

As of the 2020 census, Aurora had a population of 1,133. The median age was 46.0 years; 6.7% of residents were under the age of 5, 20.6% of residents were under the age of 18, and 21.8% were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 99.8 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 96.1 males age 18 and over.

100.0% of residents lived in urban areas, while 0% lived in rural areas.

There were 431 households in Aurora, of which 31.6% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 63.6% were married-couple households, 9.0% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 19.0% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 16.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.74 and the average family size was 3.00, and 2.3% of households were cohabitating couples.