Dave Knows Portland

Archives for April 2011

April 2, 1806: William Clark and Men Camp Near Cathedral Park

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Cathedral Park St Johns Bridge - Portland Oregon
By Ian Poellet (User:Werewombat) (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0 or GFDL], via Wikimedia Commons

William Clark and seven men took a small side trip down the Willamette River on their way back East. They spent the night of April 2, 1806 camped just downstream of the current location the St. Johns Bridge and Cathedral Park, across the river from Linnton.

Clark wrote in his journal of the spot:

The Current of the Multnomar is as jentle as that of the Columbia glides Smoothly [26] with an eavin surface, and appears to be Sufficiently deep for the largest Ship. I attempted fathom it with a Cord of 5 fathom which was the only Cord I had, could not find bottom ⅓ of the distance across. I proceeded up this river 10 miles from it’s enterance into the Columbia to a large house on the N E. Side and Encamped near the house, the flees being So noumerous in the house that we could not Sleep in it.

Not fond of the fleas, the group turned around the next day and made their way back towards the Columbia.

Kick Ass Oregon History: Episode 3

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Kick Ass Oregon HistoryKick Ass Oregon History is the latest series of podcasts from the enthusiastic historians behind ORHistory.com.

Episode 3 dropped friday: Balloon Bombs!

The previous episodes:

  • Kick Ass Oregon History Vol 1 #1: The Roseburg Blast – The city of Roseburg goes up in smoke
  • Kick Ass Oregon History Vol 1 #2: The Eggs! – 1942 poisoning at the Oregon State Hospital for the Insane.

The brains behind this project are the crack hustlers of Oregon History Doug Kenck-Crispin and Andy Lindberg. Doug is a graduate student studying Public History and Pacific Northwest History at PSU, and Andy, though a Portland native, is currently working as an actor in New York City. Doug does most of the research and writing for the podcasts with input from Andy, who voices the broadcasts with a thespian’s flair.

With the Kick Ass Oregon History podcast they plan to cover just the good stuff: Sex, Drugs, Rock and Roll and Earth Shattering, Devastating Destruction.

Ultimately, our goal is to take Oregon History out of the hallowed halls of the academy, get folks excited and enthused about this shared history, and get them out into the state, digging it and experiencing it. Get them to embrace it, and get their boots muddy in the process. It’s all OUR History; nobody owns it.

Visit ORHistory.com and stay tuned to @Oregon_History on Twitter for further details on specific episodes and the series.

April 1, 1948: The Freedom Train Stops in Portland

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Freedom Train announcement, The Oregonian 1 April 1948
Freedom Train illustration, The Oregonian, 1 April 1948

Portland was the 151st stop for the Freedom Train, which toured the country from 1947 through 1949, visiting every state and over 300 towns.

A traveling museum guarded by U.S. Marines, documents traveling and displayed on the train included original copies of the Declaration of Independence, the Bill of Rights, the Northwest Ordinance, the 1873 Treaty of Paris, the U.S. Constitution, the Emancipation Proclamation, the Gettysburg Address, and the Tokyo Surrender.

In President Harry S. Truman’s words the Freedom Train was intended to be a broad national educational program seeking to emphasize the blessings of our American heritage [i.e. a propaganda campaign].

The Oregonian reported on the train’s April 1, 1948 visit:

All it takes to see the Freedom train is a strong strain of patriotism, a hearty box lunch, a pair of arches with the fortitude of the Broadway bridge – and an alarm clock that rings early in the morning

Portlanders found that out Thursday as they shuffled in endless queues, for from five to six hours before boarding the gleaming vehicle – but they took it without a whimper. It was their heritage they came to see, and tired feet were a small price to pay.

As a Portland-related sidenote, Reed College president Dr. Peter Odegard originated the idea for the Freedom Train in 1942 while he was an assistant to Secretary of the Treasury Henry Morgenthau (The Oregonian, 26-September-1947). He proposed it as a combination war bond selling campaign and educational project. During the war the plan had been approved, even up to consulting with the British government to obtain the Magna Carta for the tour. But shortage of materials during the war, security concerns, and the fact that movie stars and entertainment at that time looked to some officials a better bet for selling war bonds nixed those plans.