Snow, trolley tracks and road apples, plus the occasional car, all presented challenges to pedestrians on SW 5th and Washington in 1907. The 1906 Swetland Building is dead ahead on the southeast corner. We’re looking south here.
(City of Portland Archives)
For one, I definitely don’t miss all of those telephone lines!
What is that store on the corner – I can’t read it. Thank you for sharing this photo.
Thanks for another fine photo of downtown.
The store looks like it says, “Henry IV Cigars”.
Great photo. It shows the brand new Failing Office Building on the corner of Fifth and Alder prior the addition of several stories in 1913. I’m also loving the two story building with the corner tower on the north side of Alder that was eventually replaced with the Yeon Building.
Really nice picture. I was drawn to the young woman, looks like she is waiting for the next streetcar.
“CROWDING ON STREETCARS.
Another Complaint That Men Block Up Room On Rear Platforms.
PORTLAND, April 7. – (To the Editor.) – Yesterday morning on the down trip of a Portland Heights car there were 12 men standing on the rear platform, only one smoking, entirely filling up the door space; two men on the upper step and one immense man on the lower step. A woman wising to board the car and seeing the impossibility of so doing without squeezing and forcing herself in among these men, backed off and took a later car.”
…
“No wonder women are thrown off the steps every day and others caught hold of and held up passengers, as has often been done on Washington street. I understand the conditions are still worse on the East Side cars.
There really should be an entire change in the present method of conducting streetcar traffic.
R. M Wilbur. “
Morning Oregonian, Letter to the editor, April 8, 1907, page 6
“POLICE ARREST TEAMSTER – The first arrest made by the police in months on charge of blocking streetcar traffic was made yesterday morning at Fifth and Washington, when Patrolman M.P. Murphy took J.D. Konning into custody and sent him to headquarters.”
Morning Oregonian, Jan 25, 1907, page 9
On the power lines. PGE and PP and L service territories over lapped down town till 1972. You had a choice. This is way early but in some of the later photos the reason it looks so bad is that there were two power lines on those poles. I think they had a pole sharing agreement.
Too bad the Google car was on the wrong side of the street to match this picture. If you move the Stree View around a little you can see exactly where that gal was standing.
http://goo.gl/maps/ea7gN
Wow! It is so cool to see the Portland my GG grandparents saw. Another fine photo Dan- thanks!