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This area explores Old Town Chinatown through commerce, migration, civic policy, nightlife, and redevelopment.
In the 19th century, river trade and warehousing tied the district to regional markets, illustrated by operations at the Albers Brothers Milling Company along the waterfront. By the early 20th century, banking, customs, and street improvements concentrated downtown power nearby, linking rail, bridges, and docks into a single commercial zone. In the 1940s, wartime orders displaced Japanese residents and shut down Japantown businesses, shifting population and retail activity out of the area. By the late 20th century, bars, clubs, and arts venues rebuilt foot traffic and created night economies amid disinvestment and preservation efforts. In recent decades, civic projects and adaptive reuse refocused the district toward public space and cultural institutions, with riverfront redevelopment encouraging new patterns of use at Governor Tom McCall Waterfront Park.
At Darcelle XV Showplace from July 10–12, 2023, a continuous drag performance ran over 48 hours to set a Guinness World Record and raised about $300,000 for The Trevor Project. The marathon mobilized dozens of performers and strengthened the venue's role in LGBTQ community support.
At Lan Su Chinese Garden, more than 70 Suzhou craftsmen spent nine months building the site with over 500 tons of Taihu stone, culminating in its opening on September 14, 2000. Their on-site work brought traditional construction methods to Portland and completed a walled garden modeled on Ming-era scholar gardens.
At the Japanese American Historical Plaza, engraved stones and poems document the 1942 incarceration, including the transfer of more than 3,600 Portland-area residents from the North Portland Assembly Center to camps. The design fixes the names of ten camps in the central stone, embedding the wartime displacement in a permanent public setting.
At Portland Saturday Market, artists Sheri Teasdale and Andrea Scharf used a $1,000 Metropolitan Arts Council grant in 1973 to organize a member-run market that opened in 1974. With Bill Naito providing the "Butterfly" parking lot site, the cooperative model gave artisans a direct sales platform governed by vendor-members.
Ankeny Square
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Storydex uses AI to create historical stories based on multiple sources, with citations for further exploration. While we strive for accuracy, please verify important details. We're always improving, so if you spot an error or have feedback, let us know!
