Brooklyn, Portland, Oregon
Encyclopedia
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...
. It sits along the east side of 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...
in the vicinity of Reed College
Reed College
Reed College is a private, independent, liberal arts college located in southeast Portland, Oregon. Founded in 1908, Reed is a residential college with a campus located in Portland's Eastmoreland neighborhood, featuring architecture based on the Tudor-Gothic style, and a forested canyon wilderness...
. Founded as a neighborhood in the late 1860s, the neighborhood today is a middle-class area comprising mainly single family homes, interspersed with remaining industrial sites along the river and a large railyard.
History
The area of the neighborhood was inhabited by ClackamasClackamas Indians
The Clackamas Indians are a tribe of Native Americans of the U.S. state of Oregon who traditionally lived along the Clackamas River in the Willamette Valley. Lewis and Clark estimated their population at 1800 in 1806...
people before settlement by whites. The first white settler in the area of was Giddeon Tibbets, who acquired the land in the Donation Land Claim Act of 1850. He settled the area in 1851, building a family home and grist mill. Tibbets named the area "Brookland" due to the river, creeks, and lakes on his property. In 1868 Tibbets subdivided the property into smaller lots and allowed the Oregon Central Railroad
Oregon Central Railroad
The Oregon Central Railroad was the name of two railroad companies in the U.S. state of Oregon, each of which claimed federal land grants that had been assigned to the state in 1866 to assist in building a line from Portland south into California...
to cross the property. The rail line and the subdivision quickly brought in a large number of residents to the neighborhood, which acquired its current name of "Brooklyn". The influx lead to the construction of a town square at the corner of Powell Boulevard and Milwaukie Avenue. In the 1890s, the neighborhood received an influx of largely Roman Catholic
Roman Catholicism in the United States
The Catholic Church in the United States is part of the worldwide Catholic Church, the Christian Church in full communion with the Pope. With more than 68.5 registered million members, it is the largest single religious denomination in the United States, comprising about 22 percent of the population...
German-American
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
s. The neighborhood continues to bear the traces of this period today, with several older German-American businesses, as well as the Sacred Heart Catholic Church and the 1891 Johan Poulsen House
Johan Poulsen House
The Johan Poulsen House is a three-story American Queen Anne Style mansion in Portland, Oregon's Brooklyn neighborhood. It was built in 1891 by Johan Poulsen.-House details:...
.
In the 1920s, the neighborhood changed drastically as a part of a city-wide construction effort. The construction of the Ross Island Bridge
Ross Island Bridge
The Ross Island Bridge is a cantilever truss bridge that spans the Willamette River in Portland, Oregon. It carries U.S. Route 26 across the river between southwest and southeast Portland...
over the Willamette destroyed the town square. At the same time, many of the streams and ponds in the neighborhood were filled in. The construction of McLoughlin Boulevard (Oregon Route 99E) severed the neighborhood's connection to the Willamette waterfront. The construction of an overpass on 17th avenue also divided the neighborhood in two.
By the 1960s, the neighborhood had acquired the reputation as being poverty-stricken. It was during this time that past Portland mayor Tom Potter
Tom Potter
Tom Potter is the former Mayor of the city of Portland, Oregon in the United States. He was elected in 2004, and left office in January 2009. He was succeeded by City Commissioner Sam Adams. Prior to Potter's service as mayor, he was Portland's police chief....
began his police career in Portland, as a beat officer in the neighborhood, as well as nearby Sellwood
Sellwood, Portland, Oregon
Sellwood-Moreland is a neighborhood on a bluff overlooking the Willamette River in Southeast Portland, Oregon, bordering Westmoreland to the north, Eastmoreland to the east, and the city of Milwaukie to the south...
to the south. According to Potter, he acquired many of the basic tenets of his philosophy of community policing while as a young officer in the neighborhood. Potter became involved in the Brooklyn Action Corps (BAC), a community organization that was founded during this time to combat the poverty, crime, and drugs that were afflicting the neighborhood.
By the 1980s, the neighborhood had undergone a nearly complete turnaround. Today it is regarded as among southeast Portland's most desirable residential neighborhoods. The current construction of the Eastbank Esplanade
Eastbank Esplanade
The Eastbank Esplanade is a pedestrian and bicycle path along the east shore of the Willamette River in Portland, Oregon, United States...
in Portland will allow the neighborhood to regain its connection to the Willamette River.