Portland's Lost Waterfront

I am hesitantly thrilled to announce that the OPB, Oregon Experience series has created a program called "Portland Noir," examining the seedy days of yore. Since I am either seedy enough, or ancient enough, I was invited to add my thoughts on the workings of Portland's old waterfront. There will be a screening of this program Friday, October 11th at 7 p.m. (the doors open at 5:30) at the McMenamin's Mission Theater Pub 1624 N.W. Glisan St. (The old longshoremen's hiring hall). You are invited. My hesitation comes from a certain uneasiness at seeing myself on a screen of any size.

I don’t know if anyone has noticed this, but the Steel Bridge on old postcards is often designated as being owned by any one of three different companies. Most often you will see the words “O.W.R. & N. Co. Bridge across the Willamette,” or something to that effect. Other times the card might read, “O. R. R. & N. Co. bridge, Portland, Oregon.” Then, on occasion, a card might say, “Union Pacific bridge, Portland, Oregon.” This was confusing to me at one time, until I read a little something on the history of the Union Pacific lines in the west, then I became even more confused. The lines were in and out of receivership, leased, sold, given different, but very similar names, and called different names by different levels of railroad hierarchy. When the first Steel Bridge was built in 1888 the company behind the construction was the Oregon Railway & Navigation Company (O. R. & N. Co.), an old and powerful entity that had evolved from the Oregon Steam Navigation Company