East Portland, Oregon
Encyclopedia
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of Oregon
Oregon
Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...
that was consolidated into Portland
Portland, Oregon
Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...
in 1891. It was founded on a 640 acres (259 ha) land claim by James B. Stephens
James B. Stephens
James B. Stephens was a pioneer of the U.S. state of Oregon. A cooper by trade, he operated one of the first ferries across the Willamette River at what was East Portland, Oregon. His father was the first burial at Portland's Lone Fir Cemetery...
in 1846, who bought a land claim from John McLoughlin
John McLoughlin
Dr. John McLoughlin, baptized Jean-Baptiste McLoughlin, was the Chief Factor of the Columbia Fur District of the Hudson's Bay Company at Fort Vancouver. He was later known as the "Father of Oregon" for his role in assisting the American cause in the Oregon Country in the Pacific Northwest...
of the Hudson's Bay Company
Hudson's Bay Company
The Hudson's Bay Company , abbreviated HBC, or "The Bay" is the oldest commercial corporation in North America and one of the oldest in the world. A fur trading business for much of its existence, today Hudson's Bay Company owns and operates retail stores throughout Canada...
. The City of East Portland, Oregon was incorporated in 1871.
Stephens platted the land from the Willamette River
Willamette River
The Willamette River is a major tributary of the Columbia River, accounting for 12 to 15 percent of the Columbia's flow. The Willamette's main stem is long, lying entirely in northwestern Oregon in the United States...
to East First Street, and from today's Glisan Street to present Hawthorne Boulevard. Much of the land east of the river was marshy and crossed by creeks and sloughs, so it was less desirable than Portland river front property on the west side of the Willamette River. Development was difficult and expensive since many streets had to be built on trestle
Trestle
A trestle is a rigid frame used as a support, especially referring to a bridge composed of a number of short spans supported by such frames. In the context of trestle bridges, each supporting frame is generally referred to as a bent...
s.
A few years after Stephens acquired his land, Gideon Tibbetts filed a Donation Land Claim for 640 acre (259 ha) south of what is now Division Street in southeast Portland. Tibbetts founded the first flour mill on the east side of the Willamette River, planted extensive orchards, and raised hay on part of his claim. He platted some of this land in the Brooklyn
Brooklyn, Portland, Oregon
Brooklyn is a mostly residential neighborhood in southeast Portland, Oregon. It sits along the east side of the Willamette River in the vicinity of Reed College...
neighborhood, and plat
Plat
A plat in the U.S. is a map, drawn to scale, showing the divisions of a piece of land. Other English-speaking countries generally call such documents a cadastral map or plan....
ted an addition to East Portland. Tibbetts sold some parcels and his flour mill to Stephens later. The value of East Portland waterfront property skyrocketed in 1869 when the East-Side Oregon Central Railroad connecting East Portland and Salem was completed.
On July 6, 1891, the cities of East Portland, Albina
Albina, Oregon
Albina is a historical city which was consolidated into Portland, Oregon in 1891.Albina was laid out in 1872 with a plat for the new town filed in April 1873 by Edwin Russell, William Page, and George Williams. Albina was named after Mrs. Albina Page, the wife of William Page. Settlement began in...
and Portland merged as the city of Portland, Oregon. At the time, the population of East Portland was estimated to be 11,457. In about the same year, Ladd's Addition, which lay between the Stephens and Tibbetts land claims, was converted from farm land to a residential neighborhood.