A History of Portland's "Living Room"

A brief look a the history of the block that is now home to Portland, Oregon's Pioneer Courthouse Square.

[@Rosarium2007]

Some of the stone from the exterior of the lower floors of the Portland Hotel was re-used in the 1950s to enlarge the Chapel at the 1906-built Trinity Episcopal Cathedral in NW Portland.

[@scottlarson1548]

If the Portland Hotel hadn't been torn down, I think it would now be a fancy hotel like the Olympic Fairmont is in downtown Seattle which used to be University of Washington.

[@katiekalyoncuoglu3433]

My brother lived in this building. He didn't have a kitchen but the rent was cheap back in the day. :)

[@TylerVossler]

Thanks for sharing

[@stevefranks1711]

Well done Val! So glad you mentioned the fragment of one of the Portland Hotel's entrance gates that graces the square today -- a welcome connection to the site's gloried past.

[@beverly2844]

Thank you, Val! I really enjoyed all of the photos showing the history of architecture in this block. It is wonderful that we have this space to enjoy at the present with the square that is so well designed. Great presentation!

[@Gryphonisle]

How about a video on Union Station, and most importantly, with images showing its original Victorian interior, not the odd mis-match of it’s 1915 Beaux Arts rebuild? Portland and Seattle made a fortune off the rebuilding of earthquake and fire ravaged San Francisco in 1906-1912; construction workers across the nation poured in, holding up projects up and down the coast and as far east as the Colorado state capitol construction; and of course NW forests were felled profitably for the rebuilding here, and fortunes made there. Both cities got new downtowns, but poor old Union Station lost what must have been a lovely (if very dark) victorian interior that would have matched its victorian exterior. It’d be nice to see what that old interior looked like! (is the interior of Medford’s station any clue, given the structure’s are similar?)

[@beachgirl48]

Replacing the hotel with a parking lot? Progress :(

[@c39v26]

Hi hottie

[@uhadme]

They don't have the tech to build such structures. (tech for 'Roman" cement was lost over 1000 years ago) Buildings in your town that date back prior to modern cement invention in 1818 are obviously not made with that cement. So the narrative explains it as lost tech.. apply that information to the old railroad columns or any 'Roman" column you see standing. Cement from even 100 years ago has crumbled away.. but "Roman" cement never does. (Florida condos for example)

[@garyt-of6yb]

AND LOOK AT IT NOW TENT CITY!

[@drummerlinn]

I had no idea the square is as old as I am.

[@fishnet420]

I know it's not Portland but in Welches they used to have the Tawney Hotel burned down twice and used to be were you would go if you wanted to go up the mountain. Had to take a buggy from Sandy to the Hotel as the roads didn't exist yet

[@xplzf]

Never knew this!

[@c39v26]

Thanks! Very sussinct

[@pad9x]

if they end up tearing down the old courthouse, i think someone should create a replica of the old Portland Hotel on that block.

[@HobbyOrganist]

Replicas will never be the same

[@harryworth4824]

They can be better in many ways and renovations are inevitable anyway

[@denverdubois5835]

@@HobbyOrganist Better than the alternatives though, generally. Need another mall, another huge, ugly modern hotel or glass tower block, or still more oversized condo buildings?

[@Rosarium2007]

Do you mean the old county courthouse on SW Fourth Avenue? Because Pioneer Courthouse is not only on the National Register of Historic Places, it is an active Federal Courthouse used by he United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.

[@pad9x]

@@Rosarium2007 i heard they were supposed to move to that new building by the waterfront/hawthorne bridge because the old building wasn't up to seismic code, and that it was due to be torn down. i might be wrong tho so don't quote me on it.

[@user-ho2pf5mj5g]

🤫 secrets

[@terenceflanagan1225]

Also protestors and transients toilet for 10 years 🤣