Aimee Gorham created a large wooden marquetry at the rear of Ainsworth auditorium. The piece is usually hidden behind band equipment and room dividers. In danger of damage unless acknowledged as US property, not Portland Public School property. According to Barry N…. read more
The Burnside Tunnel, historically referred to as the Barnes Road vehicle tunnel, improved traffic movement through Portland’s West Hills by straightening the roadway and removing steep grades. Completed in 1940, it was one of three tunnels constructed in the West… read more
In 1936, young people employed by the National Youth Administration provided the labor for construction of an amphitheater on the Reed College campus in southeast Portland. The private college supplied the materials and land with the understanding that the theater… read more
From late December 1934 through early spring 1935, the State Emergency Relief Administration (SERA) funded improvements to the Columbia Slough that involved raising and leveling a dike on the slough’s channel approximately 1.5 miles east of Faloma station. While improving… read more
At over 1,000 feet, Council Crest Park occupies the highest point in the City of Portland. From 1907 to 1929, an amusement park occupied that vantage point. Despite its superior position and streetcar access, it took eight years before the… read more
Although Duniway Park was founded in 1918 to serve residents in south Portland, improvements had been limited and those who used it complained of the odors associated with the landfill that originally established the playground area. In 1934, the Oregon’s… read more
The historic East Portland Station post office was constructed with federal Treasury Department funds in 1936. The post office houses New Deal artwork.
The post office originally held an earlier version of this mural entitled “Post Ride,” funded by the Treasury Section of Fine Arts and painted in 1936 by Paul Grellert. During renovation of the post office in the 60’s the mural… read more
Works Progress Administration (WPA) workers provided landscaping improvements to the Eastmoreland Golf Course, the City of Portland’s oldest municipal course, during 1937. The $26,348 project budget was made up almost entirely of labor costs. As a Parks Bureau report notes,… read more
In 1939 the Works Progress Administration (WPA) constructed an athletic field at Portland’s Franklin High School as part of a larger commitment ($468,459) to the improvement of Portland public school properties.
From 1939 to 1942, Portland’s Franklin High School benefited from two different Works Progress Administration (WPA) initiatives. One of the projects allowed artists from the Federal Art Project, one of the five independent branches of the Works Progress Administration, to… read more
Once the site of Multnomah County’s Poor Farm, the city began developing this land in the West Hills of Portland as an arboretum in 1930. In its first six years, much of the labor for tree planting and park development… read more
Collaborating with the Portland Public Schools, the Works Progress Administration (WPA) built a 1000 seat stadium for Jefferson High School in the summer of 1941. The $14,000 project (1941 dollars) consists of an uncovered structure with restroom and concession facilities… read more
Although the majority of the New Deal era work completed on Johnson Creek addressed the stream’s annual flooding problems, the project brought some recreational benefits as well. WPA (Works Progress Administration) workers built a fish ladder in the channel and… read more
The Works Progress Administration (WPA) became the New Deal’s primary work relief program for the general population in 1935. WPA funds supported a number of projects in City of Portland parks. In the case of Laurelhurst Park, WPA funds provided… read more
Macleay Park, a 130-acre portion of the City of Portland’s enormous Forest Park, was the site of Works Progress Administration (WPA) works projects during the mid-1930s. WPA workers built several miles of trails, access roads, and comfort stations, improving a park… read more
Red oaks line a section of McLoughlin Boulevard on its southern entry into the City of Portland. The nearly ninety-year-old trees are the legacy of a highway beautification project funded by the Public Works Administration (PWA) in 1934. The Oregon… read more
Founded in 1937, the Museum of Contemporary Craft was originally located in 3934 SW Corbett Avenue. At the time, it was known as the Oregon Ceramic Studio and became the Contemporary Crafts Gallery in 1965. The studio was built with… read more
In 1940 and 1941 respectively, Works Progress Administration (WPA) workers constructed two tunnels approximately a quarter mile apart from one another to improve vehicular movement through Portland’s Forest Park in the city’s west hills. As with the Rocky Butte tunnel,… read more
The second of two tunnels on NW Cornell Road constructed by WPA workers, the 250 long Tunnel 2 was completed in 1941. It was prioritized among infrastructure improvements as a means of opening up residential development in Portland’s West Hills. As… read more
Acquired by the City of Portland in 1930, the ten-acre Overlook Park required improvements during the Depression years if it were to serve adequately the north Portland Overlook neighborhood, which had reached full development during the 1920s real estate boom…. read more
Overlook Park sits on a bluff above the east bank of the Willamette River in the north Portland Overlook neighborhood. Recognizing the demand for recreational opportunities in a neighborhood built-out during the 1920s, the City of Portland acquired land for… read more
“The base is the home of the 142d Fighter Wing, Oregon Air National Guard. The 142d FW participates around the globe supporting drug interdiction, USAFE air defense, as well as contingency operations such as Operations Noble Eagle, Enduring Freedom, and… read more
The two panels of the New Deal mural “Development of St. Johns” were commissioned by the Treasury Section of Fine Arts for the St. John’s Station post office. The building served as the St. John’s Station Post Office and is currently… read more
The Works Progress Administration (WPA) built the original Portland Airport (now Portland International, PDX) in the late 1930s. “The present PDX site was purchased by the Portland City Council in 1936. At the time it was 700 acres (280 ha) bordered… read more
As part of war efforts, “on 26 February 1941, the FCC received funding to launch the ‘Foreign Broadcast Monitoring Service,’ the first name for FBIA. The service began its monitoring duties [in Washington, DC] at 316 F Street, NE. On… read more
“Portland ultimately received matching federal dollars for street widening, highway construction, and a new city airport on 700 acres of reclaimed land along the Columbia River east of the city. Completed in 1940, the new airport required four years and… read more
During the hard winter months of 1933-1934, the Civil Works Administration (CWA) was a work relief program that employed Portlanders on a variety of needed projects. Road work was one such project category. These men are shown graveling SE Holgate… read more
During the hard winter months of 1933-1934, the Civil Works Administration (CWA) was a work relief program that employed Portlanders on a variety of needed projects. Road work was one such project category. These men are shown graveling SE Holgate… read more
The Rocky Butte aircraft beacon was erected in 1933 by the U.S. Bureau of Lighthouses for aircraft navigation. A revolving beacon atop a metal tower at the summit contains a medium intensity white light that flashes intermittently. The tower also… read more
Rocky Butte Scenic Historic District consists of two approach roads up the butte and a viewing area on the top of the hill, which were constructed between 1934 and 1939 by the State Emergency Relief Administration (SERA) and federal Works… read more
Rose City Golf Course, constructed adjacent to a middle-class residential development in 1923, was the second public golf course in Portland and the state of Oregon. In 1937, the Works Progress Administration (WPA) redesigned the first nine-holes, rebuilding the greens… read more
During the hard winter months of 1933-1934, the Civil Works Administration (CWA) was a work relief program that employed Portlanders on a variety of needed projects. Sewer repair work was one such project category. These men are shown doing sewer… read more
During the hard winter months of 1933-1934, the Civil Works Administration (CWA) was a work relief program that employed Portlanders on a variety of needed projects. Sewer repair work was one such project category. These men are shown doing sewer… read more
During the hard winter months of 1933-1934, the Civil Works Administration (CWA) was a work relief program that employed Portlanders on a variety of needed projects. Street repair work was one such project category. These men are shown on January… read more
“The Sunset Highway No. 47 (see Oregon highways and routes), in the state of Oregon, is an official designation for the portion of U.S. Route 26 between its western terminus, south of Seaside, and the interchange with Interstate 405 in… read more
Adjacent to Portland’s International Rose Test Garden in Washington Park, the amphitheater served originally as a venue for “all ceremonies incident to the christening of roses or functions held in honor of roses in Portland”(1921). Designed to accommodate 5000 people… read more
Portland’s morning newspaper, The Oregonian, announced in late January 1936 that the city’s Seawall Railing was nearing completion, bringing with it a harbor line that was “beautified and protect(ed).” The ornamental, reinforced concrete railings added 3 ½ feet to the… read more
In 1935, the City of Portland Bureau of Planning approved the development of a city park to serve the Westmoreland neighborhood, which had rapidly developed during the previous twenty years without the benefit of any park or playground facilities. The… read more