Lonely Planet Washington, Oregon & the Pacific Northwest by Lonely Planet

Author:Lonely Planet
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Lonely Planet

Oregon City

%503 / POP 36,400

This little Portland suburb, nestled next to the Willamette River, was the final stop on the Oregon Trail and the first US city founded west of the Rockies. The city features a bit of historic character downtown and a variety of old homes in surrounding neighborhoods.

At the heart of town, 1500ft-wide Willamette Falls is the second-most-powerful waterfall in the US. Its current backdrop of industrial decay – a hydroelectric plant, an old paper mill – makes its aesthetics a challenge for some, but that’s about to change. Plans are in the works for a new riverwalk and a redesign of the waterfront around the falls, led by a Norwegian design firm. The plan will give pedestrians and cyclists easier riverfront access. And don’t worry, preservationists: the paper mill ruins and the elevator will be incorporated into the new design.

1Sights

Municipal ElevatorVIEWPOINT

(www.orcity.org; btwn Railroad Ave & 7th Sts; h7am-7pm Mon-Sat, 10am-7pm Sun, extended hours Jun-Oct) F

Oregon City was initially built at river level, but as it grew, it moved higher. In 1912 residents started talking about an elevator that would join the ‘lower’ and ‘upper’ cities. A rickety version went into service in 1915, although it didn’t always work; passengers had to climb out a trap door and up a ladder if it stopped. The current version dates more or less from the ’50s and is one of only four municipal elevators in the world.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.