Among the earliest Quakers to reach Oregon before the Civil War was the Lewelling family, who brought nursery stock to Milwaukie by oxen over the Oregon Trail in 1847. Other families settled in Ashland and the Willamette Valley. Robert and Sarah Lindsay, ministers from London, traveled to the Willamette Valley in 1859 to support the growing but scattered communities of Friends. Organizational direction, however, came in the 1870s through William Hobson, an Iowa Friend. His vision stimulated a major migration to the Chehalem Valley. Most families came from Iowa, which became the parent yearly meeting, although some, such as Jesse Edwards, came from Indiana. In 1893 the Quaker settlements in the Newberg and Salem, Oregon, area were constituted Oregon Yearly Meeting of Friends.

Irrigation projects brought Friends families to Idaho's Boise Valley during the first decade of the twentieth century, with early settlements at Star, Riverside, and Greenleaf. Oregon Yearly Meeting soon included churches in Washington, as well as Idaho. Puget Sound Quarterly Meeting arose following Quaker migrations from Indiana. An anticipated yearly meeting in Washington never developed, and in 1945 Friends from this area united with Oregon Friends. In 1971 the Yearly Meeting changed its name to Northwest Yearly Meeting of Friends Church.

As a result of evangelical resurgence following World War II, the National Association of Evangelicals was formed. Oregon Yearly Meeting joined this organization in 1945. At the present time membership is through the Evangelical Friends International.

Evangelism and outreach became major concerns in the Yearly Meeting because of opportunities afforded by a developing region and because of deep spiritual convictions. These concerns were often expressed through various modes, including revival meetings. By 1997 the membership numbered approximately 7,100.