Antelope, Oregon

Antelope, Oregon
Post office and abandoned building in Antelope
Location in Oregon
Coordinates: 44°54′41″N 120°43′25″W / 44.91139°N 120.72361°W / 44.91139; -120.72361
CountryUnited States
StateOregon
CountyWasco
Incorporated1901
Government
  MayorRodney Shanks
Area
  Total
0.46 sq mi (1.19 km2)
  Land0.46 sq mi (1.19 km2)
  Water0.00 sq mi (0.00 km2)
Elevation
2,667 ft (813 m)
Population
 (2020)
  Total
37
  Density80.26/sq mi (30.96/km2)
Time zoneUTC-8 (Pacific)
  Summer (DST)UTC-7 (Pacific)
ZIP code
97001
Area code541
FIPS code41-02250
GNIS feature ID2409714
Websitecityofantelope.us

Antelope (known as Rajneesh from 1984 to 1986) is a city in rural Wasco County, Oregon, United States. Antelope had an estimated population of 47 people in 2012.

The city was established in 1872 at a stage and freight wagon road stop on the old Dalles to Canyon City Trail. It was incorporated as the City of Antelope in 1901.

In the early 1980s, hundreds of members of the Rajneesh movement moved in and built a small city in previously unoccupied land they purchased. The Rajneeshees effectively took over the government of the city by outnumbering the original residents with new voter registrations. On September 18, 1984, a vote was held, and the city was renamed Rajneesh, Oregon. By 1985, after several of the Rajneesh movement leaders were discovered to have been involved in criminal behavior (including a mass food poisoning attack and an aborted plot to assassinate a U.S. Attorney), leader Rajneesh left the country as part of a plea deal for federal immigration fraud charges, and the Rajneesh commune collapsed. On November 6, 1985, the city voted to revert to the name Antelope.