Probably not the most dramatic Columbus Day Storm photo you’ll see today but this gives us a little insight into what the North Park Blocks looked like in 1962. The three buildings in the distance are still standing. The one on the right provides a hint of what lurks below it’s cladding installed during a modernization attempt. This view is northwest from NW Davis & 8th.
(City of Portland Archives)
Since its opening in 1901 the US Custom House on NW 8th Avenue between Everett and Davis Streets has been home to the US Customs Service and the US Army Corps of Engineers. It’s currently the site of the police headquarters in the TV program “Grimm.” The building recently sold at auction with future plans for the building not announced. The streets appear to still be unpaved in this 1904 image.
(City of Portland Archives)
Some of Portland’s most prominent merchants built the Seamen’s Bethel to improve the lives of 19th-century sailors by providing food, lodging, spiritual needs and general advocacy. Both the four-story and two-story sections, built in 1880, still stand on the northwest corner of NW 3rd and Davis. This photo dates to 1968.
(University of Oregon Libraries)
Harbor Drive approaches to and from the Steel Bridge are shown in this circa 1950 photo looking north. Front Street parallels Harbor Drive on the left and the intersection with the DeSoto and Blitz billboards is at Davis Street. Some of this roadwork still exists.
(City of Portland Archives)
We saw this building in a 1917 view last month; here is how it looked 36 years later. Another 58 years have passed since this photo and freight trains no longer rumble down the center of the street. This looks northeast at NW 12th and Davis. The small white building on the next block was just demolished a couple of months ago.
(University of Oregon Libraries)
Once in the heart of industrial Northwest Portland, the Pacific Coast Biscuit Company building now finds itself in the heart of the sleek Pearl District. You’ll find a different looking group of people on this corner now; you’ll also find one fewer floors, as the top of this building was removed some time in the intervening years. This view is northeast on the corner of NW 12th and Davis; it’s now a parking garage.
(City of Portland Archives)
In a comment posted about last Friday’s West Burnside aerial photo, VP fan Edmund referred to this illustration in the 1888 “The West Shore” magazine. At center stage is the magnificent 1882 Knapp mansion, situated on the full block between NW 17th and 18th, Davis and Everett. Now a parking lot, its basalt wall still circles the block. The old Portland High School can be seen in the distance on the right. Other homes, churches and businesses are identifiable in this richly detailed illustration.
(Library of Congress)
