Portland, Oregon, is situated at the confluence of the Columbia and Willamette Rivers, with Mt. Hood and Mount St. Helens in the background. It is known as the Rose City, a city of bridges and parks, a city that works, and a friendly city.

Portland is Oregon's largest city with over 1.5 million people in the greater Portland area. It's a metropolitan community with an easy-going, can-do spirit and a small-town ambiance. Perennially near the top of the USA's "most livable cities" list, Portland is known for its relaxed pace and its people's love of the outdoors and the environment.

Portland is 65 miles from the nearest glacier on Mt. Hood to the east and 78 miles from the Pacific Ocean to the west. Crater Lake, the deepest lake in the nation, is 269 miles south. Ft. Vancouver, the site of the Hudson's Bay Company fur trapping post, is five miles north, across the mighty Columbia River.

Portland is an exceptional place to visit, and the people welcome visitors. This hospitality may be left over from pioneer days when everyone had to depend upon his neighbor. The scenery is incredible with its many volcanoes, buttes, and hills. The food is excellent, and the variety includes everything from seafood to fast-food to international foods. Abundant green spaces make the center of downtown feel natural and friendly. The downtown area open areas range from block-sized parks with fountains, mile-long parks for walking and resting, to "Mill Ends," the smallest park in the nation.

The diversity of Portland's activities, attractions, and people makes the mixture intriguing and entertaining. You can see sports fans hustling to Portland Trail Blazers basketball games at the Rose Quarter Sports Arena, art-lovers strolling through galleries in the trendy Pearl District, and people of all colors and conditions chatting in Pioneer Courthouse Square in downtown Portland.

There is no sales tax in Oregon! Downtown Portland offers retail shopping in some of the finest nationwide and regional chains, local shops, art galleries, restaurants, and cafes. Portland does not roll up the sidewalks at the end of the work day, and you can safely walk through most of the downtown area in the evening.

Downtown Portland:

The Tom McCall Waterfront Park, running along the west side of the Willamette River is 22 blocks long. The park preserves river access and the harbor for the people.

Portland's Saturday Market, the nation's largest continuously operating open-air arts and crafts market, displays hand-crafted wares on Saturday and Sunday, eight months a year. The food stalls serve an eclectic variety of foods, and the nearby restaurants in quaint old buildings add to the atmosphere. The Thirsty Lion restaurant on S.W. 2nd and Ash Street is a Portland pub with an old world flavor.

The Japanese American Historical Plaza, in Gov. Tom McCall Waterfront Park, is dedicated to the memory of those who were deported to inland internment camps during World War II. The hope is that, if we all remember the wrongs done to these American citizens, it will never happen again. Artwork tells the story of people of Japanese ancestry in the Northwest.

The Classical Chinese Garden occupies an entire city block near the Willamette River. Serpentine walkways, ponds, bridges, and open colonnades guide visitors through a meticulously arranged landscape of fantastic rock groupings, delicate trees and shrubs. The Garden is in one of the pioneer neighborhoods of Northwest Portland. Located between the core business district to the south and the sports and convention area east across the river, it serves as a gateway to downtown Portland.

The Oregon Maritime Center and Museum, located in a sternwheeler on the Willamette River, contains a collection of ship models and artifacts from Oregon shipping.

The Portland Police Historical Museum has exhibits of police history including uniforms, handcuffs, guns, and photographs.

The Pioneer Courthouse Square is known as "Portland's Living Room." It sits on the most valuable block of land in downtown Portland. This was the site of Portland's first school and later housed the grand old Portland Hotel. It is now where Portlanders go to meet their friends, and over 2.5 million people visit this space each year. Every noon, Pioneer Square's Weather Machine performs - forecasting upcoming weather by displaying one of three metal figures amid a show of fanfare, mist and flashing lights. This whimsical machine also tells the temperature.

The Park Blocks provide an oasis of towering ancient elms with a simple floor of grass in the middle of downtown Portland. At southwest Park and Salmon is the Simon Benson Memorial. This drinking fountain represents one of the 20 four-bowl fountains that Benson gave to the city in 1912. Some say that he thought there was so much drunkenness among sailors and loggers because they were thirsty, so he wanted to give them an easy, non-alcoholic way to quench their thirst. For further information on the Benson bubblers and other Portland fountains, click here.

The Portland Art Museum is located across a park block from OHS. It was founded in 1892 and is the home to an impressive collection of Asian, European, American, and American Indian art.

The Pearl District is 50 city blocks of industrial warehouses turned into loft apartments, art galleries, eclectic restaurants and brew pubs.

Powell's Book Store is one that every genealogist knows and treasures. It is the nation's largest bookstore. The main store occupies an entire city block in a rambling old building, and there are additional stores on several other blocks. New books share shelf space with used books, all at affordable prices.

Washington Park is the crown jewel of the park system. Its 145 acres of hills, locabed above Portland and next to the zoo, provide impressive views of the city and the mountains.

The International Rose Test Gardens are located in the park. They provide a vivid display of over 8,000 rose bushes. Views of Mt. Hood are spectacular from there.

The Japanese Garden, located near the International Rose Test Gardens, is a classical Japanese garden with incredible views of the city and the mountains. This five and one-half acre site is one of the most tranquil places in all of Portland.

Washington Park Zoo specializes in breeding programs for rare and endangered species. The major exhibits simulate the animals' natural environments. Special exhibits include the Alaskan Tundra and African Rain Forest. The MAX train stops in a tunnel 200 feet below the zoo. An elevator quickly takes you to the surface.

Pittock Mansion, a carefully restored French Renaissance style mansion built in 1912 for the founder of The Daily Oregonian, is located 1,000 feet above Portland. It features sweeping views of the city and five mountains.

Hoyt Arboretum features a world of trees. Perched on a ridge overlooking the Zoo, this 175-acre arboretum displays more than 900 species of trees and shrubs. Ten miles of gentle trails wind past hundreds of plants from distant places in this living exhibit.

The Audubon Society of Portland is a 160 acre wildlife sanctuary and hospital adjoining Hoyt Arboretum where birds and animals can be seen in their natural environment. A trail winds down to quiet Balch Creek, the site of Oregon's first murder.

The Vietnam Veterans Memorial is near Hoyt Arboretum and the Forestry Center.

The World Forestry Center, next to the Zoo, highlights Oregon's forest legacy with world-class permanent and traveling exhibits.

Forest Park is the nation's largest urban wilderness. The nearly 5,000 acre preserve has more than 60 miles of trails.

Portland's East Side:

Lone Fir Cemetery, on the east side of the Willamette River, is Portland's oldest extant burial ground. The remains of people of every race, color, nationality, occupation, and fortune are set next to each other. Markers are inscribed in English, Chinese, French, German, Hebrew, Japanese, and Spanish. There were earlier cemeteries, but they are no longer in existence. For information about the those cemeteries, click here.

Grand Central Bowl, at SE 10th and Morrison, is an excellent place to stop and eat and perhaps bowl a lane. (It's kid-friendly, too.) The building was erected in 1928 as Grand Central Public Markets of Oregon and is on the National Historic Register.

Libraries with genealogical resources:

The Multnomah County Library is situated in a recently refurbished architectural gem of a building. The genealogy collection on the third floor contains treasures for the curious genealogist.

The Genealogical Forum of Oregon Library, located in a 6,000 square foot building, is the largest genealogical library in Oregon. The library collection includes something for almost everyone, and is a must see for researchers tracing Oregon ancestors.

The Oregon Historical Society (OHS), located in the Park Blocks, is the collector of Oregon's history where they display it in a beautiful building marked by eight-story trompe l'oeil murals. Their website includes on-line exhibits of Oregon history. The Oregon Historical Society Library is the largest collection of Oregon materials in the state.

© 2001-2009

Connie Lenzen, CG^SM

CG, Certified Genealogist, is a service mark of the Board for Certification of Genealogists, used under license by board certified genealogists after periodic evaluation, and the board name is registered in the US Patent & Trademark Office.