1. On December 29, 1847, Father Peter De Smet celebrated the first Catholic mass in Oregon City. He was a Belgian Jesuit missionary who had traveled all the way from St. Louis to minister to Native American tribes in the Oregon Territory.

2. Exactly one year later, on December 29, 1848, the Territory of Oregon passed a law banning slavery, making it one of the few free states in the nation at the time. This law was part of Oregon's constitution, which was ratified in 1857.

3. On December 29, 1907, the Oregon State Penitentiary officially opened in Salem. The prison was built to replace the overcrowded and outdated facility in Portland. Today, the penitentiary houses over 2,000 inmates and is the only maximum-security prison in the state.

4. In 1959, Oregon's first ski resort, Mt. Bachelor, opened on December 29. Located near Bend, Mt. Bachelor has since become one of the most popular ski destinations in the Pacific Northwest. The resort offers over 4,300 acres of skiing terrain and attracts visitors from all over the world.

5. On December 29, 1999, Oregon became the first state in the nation to allow doctors to legally prescribe lethal medication to terminally ill patients who request it. This law, known as the Death with Dignity Act, has since been replicated in several other states. Under the law, patients must meet strict criteria and go through a number of evaluations before being approved for the medication.