A wonderful look west on SW Washington Street from 2nd Avenue in 1905. A few of these beauties still exist (the Postal and Dekum Buildings on the left and the Waldo Block on the immediate right). The Portland Savings Bank on the near left corner has been a surface parking lot since the early 1950s, and the distinctive, but long-gone, Perkins Hotel at SW 5th was farther down the right side of the street.
(City of Portland Archives)
September 10, 2012 at 9:29 am
Electric poles or telephone poles?
Street view: http://goo.gl/maps/nOMBL
September 10, 2012 at 11:27 am
Is the person on the far lower right corner wearing a birds head, the placard says corn?
September 10, 2012 at 11:47 am
Likely both. The high-mounted crossbars would be carrying electricity and lower would probably be telegraph/telephone. The fat bundle seen crossing left-to-right near the suspended streetlamp on the left is likely telephone.
Also note the bell-shaped on the left-hand side of the street advertising (I think) something-something “Long-Distance Telephone”.
And what’s that guy doing kneeling in the middle of the street?
I just love the Dekum Bldg.
September 10, 2012 at 2:20 pm
He appears to be working on the streetcar track.
September 10, 2012 at 5:17 pm
This photograph also captures the elusive Washington Block just beyond the Dekum Building. Dan Haneckow uncovered some of its history and some rare photos on his blog
September 10, 2012 at 5:33 pm
Has an old European look. This was Portland before the cast-iron geneocide
October 6, 2012 at 10:14 pm
We’ve gone backwards.