Vanport oregon history books

Vanport street scene with residences and water tower in the background. The 1940s features nostalgic images of portland during this eventful decade, including street scenes, education, public service, celebrations. Vanport documentary and author event saturday, february 23, 2019, 46pm oregon city public library community room. Join us for a screening of the pbs documentary oregon experience. The columbia river vanport, the 1948 vanport flood, and. As oregon history comics prove, the best history is history that is compelling, engaging, and accessible to. It took one hour for the burg, with a population of 17,000 onethird of it black, to completely disappear, leaving a reported people dead and thousands homeless. Vanport was built to house employees of the kaiser shipyards during world war ii and was eventually managed by the housing authority of portland. It was literally wiped off the earth in a matter of hours in the devastating flood of. In its short history, from 1942 to 1948, vanport was the nations largest wartime housing development, a site for social innovation, a lightning rod for racial prejudice, and the scene of. Photographs of the aftermath of the flood that destroyed vanport, or.

Vanport construction began in august 1942 to house the workers at the wartime kaiser shipyards in portland and vancouver, washington. Vanport became the second mostpopulated city in oregon, behind portland. Two photo albums regarding the history of vanport have recently been made available in special collections and university archives. When the columbia river flood came in 1948, destroying the complex, 25% of those left homeless were african american. Opb is kicking off the 11th season of its original television series oregon experience with a new, onehour documentary vanport. Explore stories of the people and events which shaped oregons history. The city was destroyed in may 1948 when a 200foot section of the dike holding back the columbia river collapsed during a flood, killing 15 and. The event was erased from the oregon history books. Vanport was a place of great ambiguity, incorporating elements at once utopian and jim crow, innovative and secondrate. Vanport, hastily created during world war ii to house workers who came to portland to build warships, had at its peak a population of 40,000, making it oregons second largest city, according to.

The shipbuilding town of vanport home to most of oregon. In 1948 the columbia river dike broke and wiped out the entire city in a massive flood. Vanport city, oregon was conceived in 1942 as a temporary housing project for the. The story of vanport has taught me not to accept all words as truth and seek out primary sources for true information. I would highly recommend this book to anyone interested in history of. Wastewater plant dedication 1957 filming for civil defense film a day called x based on 1955 operation green light evacuation drill. Nestled in the floodplain between north portland, oregon, and vancouver, washington, a housing project was built to help house world war ii. Oregon history vanport sign detail, located at the vanport wetlands dog park, portland, oregon. In its heyday, vanport was the secondlargest city in.

Oregons tiniest county geographically quickly grew to be the states most populous. The oregon historical society is dedicated to making oregons long, rich history visible and accessible to all. I will list the dates and newspaper articles, postcards and company monthly news letters. That is always the question when we host an event that deals with our appalling racial history, and with past and present community marginalization. Vanport, built in a little over a year to house them, was a city that did not sleep. Vanport college eventually evolved into portland state university. In its heyday, vanport was the secondlargest city in oregon. Vanport, oregon images of america series by zita podany.

The columbia river broke the level and put homes w 50 thousand people were living. Covering people and events from 1854 to the present day, this definitive reference on the history, politics, and policy of multnomah county provides compelling details about public works undertakings and political scandals. New opb documentary tells the story of life in vanport. This book is a very readable and fast way to learn about the vanport, oregon on. The vanport library served the shortlived community of vanport, oregon from august 3, 1943 until the city was flooded in 1948.

Scrap book of 1948 vanport flood in portland oregon nr. Devastating vanport flood focus of vintage books event, opb show, more. View upcoming events and programs sponsored by the oregon historical society. By 1943 it was the secondlargest city in oregon and remains the largest government housing project in u.

Vanport housing was composed of 14unit apartment buildings. They were twostory boxes with onestory wings, built on wooden foundationsa challenge in a swampy site. People, politics, and power, 18512001 by jewel lansing. Vanport photographs ohs digital collections oregon historical. Vanport assignment unst 108i portland serbulo libguides at. From maxville to vanport sets 2 oregon communities. In its heyday, vanport was the secondlargest city in oregon with a population of over 40,000 residents. Through june 28, 2015, the oregon historical society will be hosting the exhibit a community on the move, which explores the history of vanport, as well as portlands black community throughout. Vanport has developed and adopted appropriate documents, manuals and procedures to help guide its staff on compliance for our chain of custody requirements. Once the deluge arrived in vanport, the second largest city in oregon during world war ii, hadley says, it swallowed the town not in a gulp, but in a creeping, uniform sweep. Devastating vanport flood focus of vintage books event.

Manley maben, vanport, oregon historical society press, 1987. Vanporta portmanteau of vancouver and portlandwas home to 40,000 people, about 40 percent of them africanamerican, making it oregons secondlargest city at the time, and the largest public housing project in the nation. This remarkable story is wellillustrated throughout with photos from the oregon historical societys files. It had 2,500 books upon opening, 1,000 of which were loaned from portlands central library vanport, then the largest federal housing project, was the only one with its own library. The struggles there were just as intense though they are rarely identified in the history books. Vanport is a valuable contribution to the history of the region. John jacob astor and thomas jeffersons lost pacific e.

Portland books after the tremendous response to our first portland memories book, the oregonianoregonlive is proud to present a second volume focused on portland in the 1940s. But the history of vanport has been largely eclipsed by the drama of its demise. The mood and understanding among residents and officials alike was that vanport was to be a temporary dwelling. Ne portland history king neighborhood association kna. For more than a century, the oregon historical society has served as the states collective memory, preserving a vast collection of artifacts, photographs, maps, manuscript materials, books, films, and oral histories. The company worked with the city to create vanport, an.

The film will be followed by a lecture from the author of the book vanport, zita podany during the early 1940s, vanport, oregon was the second largest city in the state. From historical biographies to issues and events that have shaped our state, oregon experience is an exciting. How oregons second largest city vanished in a day history. During the early 1940s, vanport, oregon, was the second largest city in the state. It provided twentyfour hour daycare for the children living there, laid the foundations for portland state university through its vanport extension center, and provided housing for the thousands of new workers attracted to the city of portland by the shipyards. Between 1940 and 1943, defense employment in the portland and vancouver area climbed from a few thousand to about 140,000 in late 1943 and early 1944. Vanport is named exporter of the year by the governor of oregon.

This foldout map of vanport, along with a booklet of services and rules of conduct, was provided to all new residents. From the oregon history project of the oregon historical society. During the early 1940s, vanport, oregon was the second largest city in the state. Located in the kenton neighborhood, it was home to 40,000, but was washed away in a flood on may 30, 1948. During its time, vanport was the largest housing project in the united states perhaps the world and the second largest city in oregon. Resurfacing history around the o university of oregon. Vanport is also the latest title in arcadia publishings images of america series, a line of local and regional history books that are stuffed with vintage photographs.

Many of the displaced residents stayed on in the area. After the flood waters erased vanport, there was a second coverup. The first residents moved in on december 12, 1942, and vanport was soon the second largest city in oregon with 35,000 people, a movie theather, five schools, a library, a police station, and after the war, a college. According to a historical marker, the break happened at an old railroad cut that had been filled. The first african american teachers in oregon taught in vanport schools and the first african american librarian in the state worked at vanport. State department of forestry begins replanting tillamook burn. Dikes surrounding vanport presumably would protect it from flooding, but an old railroad cut that had been filled in as part of the dike on the western edge of. When it was christened on december 12, 1942, vanport became the second biggest city in oregon, with a peak population of 42,000. There are lots of pictures and the history of the vanport site is.

In its short history, from 1942 to 1948, vanport was the nations largest wartime housing development, a site for social innovation, a lightning rod for racial prejudice, and the scene of one of oregon s major disasters. Oregon experience vanport season 11 episode 1101 pbs. Zita podany nestled in the floodplain between north portland, oregon, and vancouver, washington, a housing project was built to help house world war ii shipyard workers. Planning, politics, and growth in a twentieth century city, university of nebraska press, 1983. Vanport was once oregon s second largest city, created as a wartime housing development for kaiser shipyard. This auction is for a scrap book of newspaper stories and pictures of the 1948 vanport flood in portland, oregon. Vanport city, oregon photo albums vanport, oregon was a wartime public housing project built to shelter kaiser shipyard employees working in portland and vancouver, washington. When the war was over and the shipyard jobs ended, despite calls by civic leaders for them to leave, many blacks stayed in vanport, making oregon their home. Nestled in the floodplain between north portland, oregon, and vancouver, was. This film explores the flood and vanport city and its impact on the city of portland. The official website of the oregon secretary of state chronology of events in oregon history from 1902 to 1950. Vanport, sometimes referred to as vanport city or kaiserville, was a hastily constructed city of. Vanport will be topic of arts festival, gets its own book.