These 10 Photos of Portland In The 1950s Are Mesmerizing
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Katherine Green
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If you think Portland looks different now than it did 10 years ago, check out these pictures from over 60 years ago to see just how spectacularly the city has transformed. Once a sleepy port town, the City of Roses is nearly unrecognizable in many of the pictures from the 1950s.
Getting in and out of town was a lot different then. The Portland Airport, for one, was a lot less congested in the 1950s.
One of the last street cars from Council Crest is towed through the streets of 1950s Portland, signaling the end of an era.
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The 1950s saw one record cold year with plenty of snow, no doubt halting city activity much in the same way it does today.
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The North Portland shipyard was quiet after WWII ended.
Rosy is a popular attraction at the Oregon Zoo in the 1950s.
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Things seemed a lot simpler (and a whole lot less congested) in this 1950s shot looking south over North Broadway and North Wheeler.
Out in Beaverton, things were growing as well. In this shot, of downtown Beaverton Canyon Road is on the right and Beaverton High School is in the middle.
St. John's still has a similar small town feel today.
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While the cars and ownership of many of the buildings have changed, much of downtown looked almost the same. In this picture, the Orpheum is standing in place where Nordstrom's now stands.
And finally, this Texaco car park of the 1950s that featured an elevator to move cars around looks so much cooler than the ones of today. Although with traffic like it is in Portland, it is good that parking garages expanded to house them all.
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