The History Pub topic for Monday, September 26, 2011 at the Kennedy School (5736 NE 33rd) is “A Woman Alone”: Mona Bell Hill and the Mansion on Bonneville Rock.
Mona Bell Hill was a rodeo performer, newspaper reporter, world traveler and a mistress of Sam Hill, founder of the Maryhill Museum and one of the visionaries behind the Columbia River Highway. Mona’s impressive mansion was built in 1928 as a gift from the flamboyant, philanthropic entrepreneur Hill. Their son was born that same year. Mona later occupied a public role in Oregon history battling the federal government after the Army commandeered her mansion and surrounding riverfront acreage in the Columbia River Gorge to build Bonneville Dam. For 15 months she fought the government with the assistance of Sam’s longtime friends, including two governors of Oregon.
The presenter is John Harrison, Information Officer at the Northwest Power and Conservation Council and author of A Woman Alone: Mona Bell, Sam Hill and the Mansion on Bonneville Rock.
The presentation begins at 7pm, and is free; please bring a canned good to donate to the Oregon Food Bank!
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