12 Historic Photos That Show Us What It Was Like Living In Oregon In The Early 1900s
By Sarah McCosham|Published July 13, 2021
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Sarah McCosham
Author
I write like it's my job - because it is! I have a Master's in English and love words: crossword puzzles, Scrabble games, Wordle, and, of course, good, old-fashioned books.
I'm a writer and editor at OnlyInYourState, and a contributing writer at Cincinnati Magazine. I love the Great Outdoors and am endlessly awestruck by this beautiful country of ours. Coffee keeps me going, yoga keeps me sane, my kids keep me grounded, and my writing keeps me inspired.
Today we’re throwing it back — way back — to the turn of the 20th-century. Life in Oregon in the early 1900s looked quite a bit different then, as you’ll see in the following photographs. At the turn of the century, Oregon, like the rest of the U.S., was standing on the precipice of big change. The line between “old” and “new” had been drawn, with technological advances paving the way to the modern society we now know today. These 12 historic photos capture the mood of the early 1900s: apprehension, tension, excitement, and hope.
Oregon has changed a lot in the last 100+ years, but as evidenced in the following photos, there's a lot you'll still recognize.
Established in 1908, the Deschutes National Forest spans 1.8 million acres in central Oregon, along the east side of the Cascades. Revered for its incredible outdoor recreation, this U.S. National Forest has long been a special place for Oregonians. Here is a photograph of one of the park's original ranger stations.
But it's the cities and towns that have changed the most in the last 100+ years. This is most certainly true with Whitney, which once was a logging camp and an important shipping center eastern Oregon, and is now one of the state's most haunting ghost towns.
If you squint, you can kind of see the downtown Bend of today in this photo from 1900. In this era, horse-drawn wagons carried freight down the city's main street.
In Portland, the eponymous Hotel Portland once occupied the city block on which Pioneer Courthouse Square now stands. Once a stately urban destination, the hotel closed in 1951 after 60 years of operation.
Portland's Washington Park was just as lovely in 1909 as it is today. The biggest change is the abundance of mature trees and foliage that now cover its grounds!
And try and tell us there's a more beautiful place than Portland, a city that basks in the glory of majestic Mount Hood. There simply isn't, and that's something that will never, ever change.
We hope you enjoyed looking at these photographs of Oregon in the early 1900s; we certainly had fun digging into the Beaver State’s history! If you’re looking for an authentic old-Oregon dining experience, be sure to check out this historic saloon in The Dalles.
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