While Hiking In Oregon, They Found A Mysterious Camera From The ’50s!

The camera’s inscription read ”Made in East Germany/U.S.S.R. occupied,” leading them to believe that it was made between 1957 and 1963.

Oregon is known for it’s lush wilderness and natural beauty. Many travel from far and wide to hike its trails, climb its mountains, and photograph its sublime landscapes. In fact, in 1952, Jimmy Stewart starred in a movie called A Bend Of The River (co-starring Rock Hudson and Julie Adams) that took advantage of Oregon’s natural landmarks. Recently two young men were hiking in a spot near where the Jimmy Stewart movie was filmed, in a place called Colombia Gorge, when they made a fascinating discovery: a mysterious Cold-War-era camera covered in mud.

The two hikers, Ethan Field and Ron Campbell, were wading through Eagle Creek. It was a rainy day and the two had brought with them their cameras and a head-mounted GoPro. After getting out of the creek, Field leaned over to catch his breath on land. He saw a bit of metal glinting up at him from a pile of stones. He grabbed at the object and discovered that it was an SLR camera from the late 1950s!

A photo posted by Found Where I Won’t Be Found (@emergingeye) on

A photo posted by Found Where I Won’t Be Found (@emergingeye) on

Field and Campbell decided to send the film to a local expert to try to get it developed. Meanwhile, they carefully removed all of the mud and moss from the camera’s body. They knew very little, but they did know: