The City of McMinnville

09/29/2026

https://mailchi.mp/97c21ab40313/city-council-tonight-10909135

Join in an historical themed scavenger hunt with the McMinnville Antiques Mall - grab a group of friends and participate in an in-store historical themed scavenger hunt! Simply email Amy at [email protected] to reserve your spot.

09/29/2026

The Mac150 Parade & Birthday Party is Saturday, October 17! That’s just two weeks away — which means it’s time to get your quilt squares in McMinnville!

Drop off your completed square at the McMinnville Public Library , Community Center, Senior Center, or City Hall before the end of the week!

09/24/2026

🤷Throwback Thursday Trivia! Some historic buildings tell the story of one moment in time. Others tell the story of an entire community changing around them.

Built before 1884, the Schilling building is one of the earliest brick structures on Third Street, first appearing on McMinnville’s earliest map as a saloon. During the late 1800s, the saloon served farmers, merchants, and laborers as a gathering place to exchange stories and connect after long days of work. As McMinnville entered a new era, the building changed with the community.

In 1905, John Schilling purchased the property and gave the building its distinctive appearance, adding the decorative parapet and tin pediment that still crowns the façade today. Around the same time, changing attitudes and newly approved prohibition laws transitioned the building from a local watering hole to commercial center.

The space was home to a variety of businesses, including a grocery store and Rutherford’s Variety Store. Families flocked there for affordable treasures: candy, toys, fabric, and household goods. Generations of shoppers remember the excitement of finding something special among shelves filled with everyday necessities before it became a Sears Roebuck in the 1950s.

After decades, the building found new life through restoration in the early 2000s, where it continues to serve downtown McMinnville as a place for dining and hospitality. It reminds us that preservation is not about freezing a place in time—it's about allowing historic places to continue in new ways. From saloon conversations to shopping trips to modern gatherings over shared meals, this building has witnessed nearly 150 years of McMinnville life.

Learn more about these stories and more in the newly reprinted Uncover McMinnville and Stroll publications (available at the CDC, Visit McMinnville, and MDA, and Library).

✨Question?! What Schilling Building restaurant is not only famous for their food, but also for poltergeist activity occurring onsite, including a w**e bottle flying across the room and shattering against the wall, and chairs moving on their own?✨Comment below ⬇

09/23/2026

🥳 CONGRATS to our Mac150 Coloring Contest winners — Selah, Coralyn, and Kathy! You nailed it! And THANK YOU to everyone who participated in the contest — McMinnville, your love for community is strong 💪 and you’ve exceeded all expectations. ❤️

Don’t forget — mark your calendars for Saturday, October 17th for the 🎉 MAC150 Parade (10 am) and Birthday Celebration in City Park (12 to 2 pm)! 🎈

09/22/2026

https://mailchi.mp/65900f9f17b4/city-council-tonight-10909037

What: Pool party, swim lesson testing, *greased pumpkin tournament, swim team info, water aerobics demos, bellyflop contest, games, and fun!

09/18/2026

It’s almost here! The Mac150 Parade and Birthday Party is just one month away!

Join us to celebrate the City’s sesquicentennial anniversary on Saturday, October 17. We’ll kick off the festivities with a Parade downtown McMinnville at 10 am, followed by a Birthday Party in City Park from 12 to 2 pm.

At the party you’ll—
✨Enjoy live music by Tuesday String Band
✨Join in activities for all ages by our very own MAC Parks and Rec
✨Eat some great food by Neeley’s Food Truck and Hola Tamale (for purchase) and
✨Nosh on some FREE dessert sponsored by Visit McMinnville

We hope to see you there!

09/17/2026

09/17/2026

✨Throwback Thursday Trivia!⁉✨ (One lucky winner will be chosen at random to receive a Mac150 Lapel Pin!)

As McMinnville grew into a thriving community, it needed more than homes and businesses. It needed leaders, institutions, and systems that would help the city prosper. Few people embodied this more than Charles Grissen.

A businessman, mayor, and civic leader, Grissen played an important role in shaping McMinnville during the late 19th century. He served on the Water Committee that helped establish what would become McMinnville Water and Light and became a founding member of the Oregon Fire Relief Association (OFRA), created in 1894.

The Queen Anne home Grissen built in 1889 still stands at the eastern edge of downtown and holds a unique distinction: it was the first property insured by OFRA, an organization that would later become Oregon Mutual Insurance Company.

Just a few blocks away, another building tells the story of the institutions that supported McMinnville's growing economy.

Constructed in 1885, the McMinnville Bank Building became home to the Yamhill County Bank in 1886 and the McMinnville National Bank in 1888. As local businesses flourished, the building served as an important financial center for the community.

In the early 1900s, OFRA moved into the building, further linking these two places and the people who worked to build a safer and more prosperous city. Later, the building would serve as headquarters for McMinnville Water and Light, another institution that helped modernize the community. Together, these two landmarks tell the story of a city coming of age.

They remind us that McMinnville's success was not built by chance. It was shaped by residents who invested in public services, financial institutions, and organizations that protected and supported their neighbors.

⁉ Which community-loved pub resides in the original McMinnville Bank Building and got a new owner last year? *Hint* the new owner was a long time employee!

Learn more about these stories and more in the newly reprinted Uncover McMinnville and Stroll publications. Pick them up at McMinnville Community Development Department or ,

09/15/2026

https://mailchi.mp/0a2dbacb8bbc/city-council-tonight-10908915