Lost Portland

I promise to write something for Culture Shock soon. Really. Right now I'm sitting in the lobby of the Newmark Theatre while close to 900 kids and their adults watch Willy Wonka trying to find someone who will inherit his chocolate factory. Spoiler Alert: It's Charlie.

In the meantime, enjoy these pictures of SW Broadway and Salmon, today and circa 1954. That's the Heathman Hotel you're looking at. A Rexall Store filled the corner spot where Cacao now has a little shop. I presume that the drugstore also occupied what is now the Heathman's lobby as well as a good portion of its bar and restaurant. Of course, we all know that the Paramount sign was changed to read "Portland" when the old vaudeville hall was renovated to create the Schnitzer Auditorium (a.k.a., the Arlene).



For more vintage Portland photos, I recommend searching Flickr for "Portland vintage" and this historic photo archive.

ADDENDUM: I just found the photo below of Broadway from the same mid-1950s era,but shot from the reverse angle. That's still the Heathman with the Rexall drugstore in the corner on the left side of the photo. The building across the street from the Heathman apparently was the "Northwest School of Commerce." The building now houses John Helmer Haberdasher, which I hope will always be there because every town needs a haberdashery. A bit down the street on the left is the old Fox theater (now the new Fox Tower). The Fox Theatre's art deco box office is reportedly being stored by the Oregon Historical Society. When I arrived in Portland, the theater was closed but not yet torn down. And, of course, that's the Jackson Tower on the right side with the clock tower.



I owe this latest find to the blog Lost Oregon--a fabulous source of ephmera and local history maintained by John Chilson. I love this kind of stuff.