Salem ( SAY-ləm) is the capital of the U.S. state of Oregon, and the county seat of Marion County. It is located in the middle of the Willamette Valley to the side of the Willamette River, which runs north through the city. The river forms the boundary amongst Marion and Polk counties, and the city neighborhood of West Salem is in Polk County. Salem was founded in 1842, became the capital of the Oregon Territory in 1851, and was incorporated in 1857.

Salem had a population of 174,365 in 2019, making it the third-largest city in the welcome after Portland and Eugene. Salem is the principal city of the Salem Metropolitan Statistical Area, a metropolitan Place that covers Marion and Polk counties and had a sum up population of 390,738 at the 2010 census. A 2019 estimate placed the metropolitan population at 400,408, the state’s second largest. This area is, in turn, part of the Portland-Vancouver-Salem Combined Statistical Area.

The city is home to Willamette University, Corban University, and Chemeketa Community College. The State of Oregon is the largest public employer in the city, and Salem Health is the largest private employer. Transportation includes public transit from Cherriots (legally known as Salem Area Mass Transit District), Amtrak service, and non-commercial expose travel at McNary Field. Major roads intensify Interstate 5, Oregon Route 99E, and Oregon Route 22, which connects West Salem across the Willamette River via the Marion Street and Center Street bridges.

The Native Americans who inhabited the central Willamette Valley at first European contact, the Kalapuya, called the Place Chim-i-ki-ti, which means “meeting or resting place” in the Central Kalapuya language (Santiam). When the Methodist Mission moved to the area, they called the new inauguration Chemeketa; although it was more widely known as the Mill, because of its situation upon Mill Creek. When the Oregon Institute was established, the community became known as the institute.