Oregon Historical Society

Oregon Historical Society The Oregon Historical Society preserves our state's history and makes it accessible to everyone in wa

The Oregon Historical Society is dedicated to making Oregon’s long, rich history visible and accessible to all. For more than a century, we have served as the state’s collective memory, gathering and preserving a vast collection of artifacts, photographs, films, manuscripts, books, and oral histories. Researchers from around the world travel to our library, unearthing information that challenges c

onventional thinking. Curious individuals come to us to explore their family trees or discover the history of their homes or neighborhoods. Archaeologists, environmentalists, filmmakers, architects, novelists, artists, and others all find their way to us, asking questions, making discoveries, creating knowledge. We share our vast collection through thought-provoking museum exhibits and robust digital platforms. We bring history directly to Oregon’s students in ways that bridge gaps of time and perspective, and we support lifelong learning through our many public lectures and events. We advance critical inquiry through the Oregon Historical Quarterly, a journal that has sparked conversations throughout our community for over a century.

Only ten days left to visit “The Yasui Family: An American Story,” on exhibit through September 6.The exhibit is feature...
08/27/2026

Only ten days left to visit “The Yasui Family: An American Story,” on exhibit through September 6.

The exhibit is featured on an episode of “The Jefferson Exchange,” a program on Jefferson Public Radio. Host Mike Green interviews OHS’s Curator of Exhibitions, Megan Lallier-Barron, about how the Yasui family entrusted OHS with their compelling collection of family history, and how the exhibition allows us to share a timely story of the rights and responsibilities of American citizenship.

Listen to the interview:

https://www.ijpr.org/show/the-jefferson-exchange/2025-08-13/yasui-family-an-american-story-of-citizenship-immigration-and-belonging-in-oregon

Born on August 26, 1832, Amanda Wood (later Amanda Wood Reed) was an intelligent, enterprising, well-traveled, and gener...
08/26/2026

Born on August 26, 1832, Amanda Wood (later Amanda Wood Reed) was an intelligent, enterprising, well-traveled, and generous social leader of the early Portland community, whose business acumen contributed to building the fortune she shared with her husband, Simeon Reed, the bulk of which she directed to fund the Reed Institute, which established Reed College in 1911.

Moving to Portland in 1854, the Reeds invested in merchandising stores, steamboats, silver lead mines, livestock breeding farms, electric railways, an iron and steel company, and real estate. Amanda Reed had a strong business sense and advised her husband in his business dealings, managing the financials.

The Reeds were benefactors of the First Unitarian Society of Portland, and, having no children of their own, directed much of their philanthropy toward causes that benefited young people. The Reeds discussed establishing a college to educate the youth of Portland, and after Simeon’s death Amanda Reed directed in her will that the bulk of her estate be used to establish and maintain “an institution of learning, having for its object the increase and diffusion of practical knowledge among the citizens…and or the promotion of literature, science, and art.”

Today, Reed College enrolls nearly 1,400 undergraduates each year from all over the world. Considered one of the most demanding colleges in the nation, Reed’s academic rigor is intended to cultivate an ethos of learning for the sake of learning, shaped by critical thinking, creativity, and scholarly discipline.

Learn more about Amanda Wood Reed and Reed College at the Oregon Encyclopedia:

https://www.oregonencyclopedia.org/articles/reed-amanda/

https://www.oregonencyclopedia.org/articles/reed_college/

Portrait of Amanda Reed, circa 1850. Special Collections and Archives, Eric V. Hauser Memorial Library, Reed College.

Simeon and Amanda Reed, 1854. Special Collections and Archives, Eric V. Hauser Memorial Library, Reed College.

College President William T. Foster looks over the Reed site, 1910. Special Collections and Archives, Eric V. Hauser Memorial Library, Reed College.

Ariel view of Reed College, 1940. City of Portland, a2004-002-879

Born on August 25, 1876, Paul Cole Murphy played a major role in the development of Laurelhurst in southeast Portland, a...
08/25/2026

Born on August 25, 1876, Paul Cole Murphy played a major role in the development of Laurelhurst in southeast Portland, and Oswego (now Lake Oswego).

Reusing the name of a successful Seattle development, Portland’s Laurelhurst neighborhood was built on land which had been William M. Ladd’s Hazel Fern Farm. Ladd had consulted with landscape architect John Charles Olmsted to lay out the streets for the eventual residential development, and Murphy’s Laurelhurst Company retained his ideas with minor changes.

Near the center of the neighborhood is Coe Circle, originally the site of the sales office for Laurelhurst homes and a stop on the Glisan streetcar line, and in 1925 Portland doctor Henry Waldo Coe donated a gilded Joan of Arc statue that remains one of several landmarks that distinguish the neighborhood. Most of the homes built from 1910 through 1925 feature Arts and Crafts, Bungalow, Portland Foursquare, and Spanish Revival styles, and several are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

The location and configuration of the nearly thirty-acre Laurelhurst Park resulted from the efforts of City of Portland parks director Emanuel T. Mische, based on the recommendations in Olmsted’s 1903 Portland Parks Plan.

Today, the character of the neighborhood, the original street design, and much of the original plat remain intact. The Laurelhurst Gates, sandstone pillars, still mark entry into the neighborhood at major streets on the western and southern edges. Along with several other Ladd properties that were developed into residential neighborhoods—Ladd’s Addition, Eastmoreland, and Dunthorpe— Laurelhurst remains distinctive in the residential fabric of the city. It retains its original design integrity, which evoke the Olmsted tradition and the City Beautiful Movement.

Learn more about Paul C. Murphy, Laurelhurst, and his other significant contributions to residential development in the Portland area at the Oregon Encyclopedia

https://www.oregonencyclopedia.org/articles/murphy_paul_c_1876_1957_/

https://www.oregonencyclopedia.org/articles/laurelhurst/

Images:

Laurelhurst neighborhood ad, 1912. OHS Research Library, OrHi 100759

Ladd farm, c. 1900, approximate site of present-day Coe Circle. OHS Research Library, OrHi 104407

Laurelhurst neighborhood, 1921, NE Glisan and 32nd, with streetcar tracks. OHS Research Library, COP01852

Paul C. Murphy, Laurelhurst neighborhood ad, 1912. OHS Research Library, OrHi 100759.

Final Week!For nearly a century, Obukan Judo Dojo has been more than a place to practice martial arts — it’s been a comm...
08/24/2026

Final Week!

For nearly a century, Obukan Judo Dojo has been more than a place to practice martial arts — it’s been a community rooted in discipline, resilience, and cultural connection.

This exhibition explores the dojo’s remarkable history, from its founding in Portland’s Japanese American community to its closure during World War II incarceration and its postwar revival. Today, Obukan continues to shape generations of judoka and carry forward the philosophy of “the gentle way.”

Step onto the mat and discover the stories, people, and traditions behind one of the oldest judo schools in the United States before the exhibition closes on August 30!

https://www.ohs.org/museum/exhibits/obukan-judo.cfm

This week, what remained of the historical Centennial Mills building following a fire earlier this month was demolished....
08/21/2026

This week, what remained of the historical Centennial Mills building following a fire earlier this month was demolished. For eighty years, Crown Mills (known as Centennial Mills after 1949) was one of the largest producers of flour and milled grain in the Pacific Northwest. Seeking opportunities to increase profits, Balfour-Guthrie and Company built the mill in 1910 and began to market Crown Flour in Oregon, while also shipping flour to Europe, Asia, and South America. The August 2026 fire was not the first in the building’s history; barely a year after its opening the flour mill was seriously damaged by a fire. It was quickly rebuilt with a huge wood-stave (later steel) water tank atop the roof to help protect it.

Learn More on The Oregon Encyclopedia:
https://www.oregonencyclopedia.org/articles/crowncentennial_mills/

Image: This 1945 photograph of Portland waterfront docks and repair facilities documents the Centennial Mills complex (left). OHS Research Library, Org. Lot 1284, box 23, 1002-1.

OHS’s research library staff recently digitized a collection of Homer and Miyuki (Yabe) Yasui’s photographs (1950–2011) ...
08/18/2026

OHS’s research library staff recently digitized a collection of Homer and Miyuki (Yabe) Yasui’s photographs (1950–2011) as part of Citizen(s) Yasui: Illuminating the Japanese American Experience through the Yasui Family Collections, a project supported by the Council on Library and Information Services to digitize selections from the Yasui Brothers business records (Mss 2949), Yasui family papers (Coll 949), and Yabe family papers (Coll 982).

Among this collection of over 600 images are those that highlight Homer and Miyuki’s work and leadership in the Portland chapter of the Japanese American Citizens League (JACL) during the 1970s through the early 2000s. The images feature scenes from Nikkei community events, including the dedication of the Japanese American Historical Plaza in 1990 and the 2nd Annual Day of Remembrance. Additionally, many notable JACL leaders involved in the Redress Movement of the 1970s and 1980s are represented in the collection, including Gordon Hirabayashi, Cherry Kinosh*ta, Ed Yamamoto, Edison Uno, and Jim Tsujimura, the first Portlander to serve as National JACL President (1980–1982).

Learn more about the Yasui family’s history by visiting "The Yasui Family: An American Story," before it closes on September 6, and view the collection on OHS Digital Collections at https://digitalcollections.ohs.org/coll-949-5-4

Image: From left to right are Herb Cawthorne, Miyuki Yasui, and Homer Yasui at the Asian/Pacific American Heritage Week Celebration held at Catlin Gabel School in Portland on May 10, 1980. OHS Research Library, Coll 949, box 42, dolder 15, item 29.

Give students an opportunity to experience Oregon history beyond the classroom with a visit to the Oregon Historical Soc...
08/13/2026

Give students an opportunity to experience Oregon history beyond the classroom with a visit to the Oregon Historical Society! Our school tours offer immersive experiences that inspire discussions about the historical information, belongings, objects, documents, and images on display. Tour formats include guided, bilingual English-Spanish assisted, and self-guided.

Fall 2026 reservations are now open for September 24–December 16, with Winter 2027 reservations opening December 1. K–12 students and chaperones receive free admission, and funds are available to help schools with bus or public transportation costs.

Book your tour today ➡️ https://www.ohs.org/education/school-tours.cfm

📸 Volunteer Educators lead a school tour in Experience Oregon. Photo by Andie Petkus Photography.

What can newly donated photographs reveal about a defining moment in Oregon history?A recent donation of color slides to...
08/12/2026

What can newly donated photographs reveal about a defining moment in Oregon history?

A recent donation of color slides to OHS’s research library offers a rare look at the aftermath of the Roseburg Blast, the 1959 industrial explosion that transformed downtown Roseburg and led to changes in federal explosives transportation regulations.

In a new blog post, OHS Photographs Librarian Laura Cray shares selections from the collection and explores the history of the event and its lasting legacy.

https://www.ohs.org/blog/remembering-the-roseburg-blast.cfm

📸 A pile of burned rubble is visible behind a billboard reading, “Roseburg, building for tomorrow!” following the Roseburg Blast in August 1959. OHS Research Library, Jerry Barrett photographs relating to Roseburg Blast, Org. Lot 1448, image 007.

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