Pot Luck

Old South Portland... (4.00 / 1)

We've been having a ball lately over at Vintage Portland, on my favorite lost neighborhood, and my current obsession.

"First Avenue in Portland was like Delancy Street in New York City. There were butchers and little grocery stores, Mosler's Bakery and Dr. Wolfe's barbershop. In those days not only did the barber cut hair and do shaves but if you had a problem he'd put leeches on." - Jerry Stern

South Portland, as many know, was the immigrant district where Jews and Italians settled in the early 1900s. The roughly 1.5 square miles south of downtown Portland had few Jewish residents before 1900 but 6,000 by 1920, according to author Steven Lowenstein. Portland's Italian population also surged reaching 5,500 by 1910.

The tight ethnic community had kosher butcher shops, bakeries, synagogues and Italian delis before a series of highway projects cut it to shreds. By the time the 1960s urban renewal project razed 54 blocks, many immigrant families had left South Portland for more prestigious neighborhoods like Laurelhurst and Irvington.

Three straight days of historic photos from Old South Portland featured over there courtesy of Dan at Vintage Portland.

"The essence of the independent mind lies not in what it thinks, but in how it thinks." - Christopher Hitchens

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by: JayinPortland @ Fri Aug 13, 2010 at 02:19:27 AM UTC

fascinating.. (4.00 / 2)

Speaking of Delancey? have u ever seen http://www.imdb.com/title/tt00...  

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by: LeeN @ Sun Aug 15, 2010 at 10:47:43 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Nah... (4.00 / 1)

Never seen it...

"The essence of the independent mind lies not in what it thinks, but in how it thinks." - Christopher Hitchens

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by: JayinPortland @ Sun Aug 15, 2010 at 14:42:28 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Dude (4.00 / 2)

check out Keith Olberman tonight. Or this: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/...

"I can understand someone from Iowa promoting corn and soy, but we are not feeding the world, we are feeding animals and soft drink companies." - Jim Goodman

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by: Jill Richardson @ Fri Aug 13, 2010 at 02:30:31 AM UTC

The money quote... (4.00 / 1)

For many, this echoes of the poisoning of 9/11 cleanup workers, where chemicals, dust, and asbestos sickened so many. Most of those dying far too early of cancer and respiratory disease believed the lies they were told about the safety of the air. New York City's construction workers, electricians, and other tradesmen labored to pull order from terrorist-imposed chaos, usually without protective equipment.

Let's remember to not ever forget, or forgive, Christie Todd Whitman for that.  One of the most disgusting periods of our government's recent history, and sadly it's being repeated all over again less than a decade later.

My personal experience was that within 48 hours of arriving in the Gulf Shores area of Alabama I began experiencing intense headaches and respiratory issues. Our entire team was affected to varying degrees. Nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, sore swollen throats, difficulty breathing, chest congestion, and extreme gagging coughing reflex were typical for all of us. After our two days of flying over the gulf courtesy of Bonny Schumaker and WingsOfCare, my condition worsened. All of the leading edges of the plane were covered with a thick reddish-brown oily substance which was a mixture of the oil and dispersant which was evaporating over the Gulf. I stayed in the area the longest and developed Chemically Induced Pnuemonitis. Fortunately for me I was able to return home to clean Colorado air recently and have improved somewhat but for the numerous people who reside along the Gulf Coast the option to leave is not viable, and the long-term effects of the Corexit dispersants are unknown.

"The essence of the independent mind lies not in what it thinks, but in how it thinks." - Christopher Hitchens

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by: JayinPortland @ Fri Aug 13, 2010 at 04:33:58 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Oh noez! (4.00 / 1)

It's Friday the 13th, and my name is Jason.

Stay away from me today, I guess?

;)

"The essence of the independent mind lies not in what it thinks, but in how it thinks." - Christopher Hitchens

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by: JayinPortland @ Fri Aug 13, 2010 at 08:23:30 AM UTC

Mark Twain in Portland, 1895... (4.00 / 2)

From The Sunday (Portland) Oregonian, 9 August 1895 -

"Portland seems to be a pretty nice town," drawled the author of "Tom Sawyer," as the 'bus rolled down Sixth Street, "and this is a pretty nice, smooth street. Now Portland ought to lay itself out a little and macadamize all its streets just like this. Then it ought to own all the bicycles and rent 'em out and so pay for the streets. Pretty good scheme, eh? I suppose people would complain about the monopoly, but then we have the monopolies always with us. Now, in European cities, you know, the government runs a whole lot of things, and, it strikes me, runs 'em pretty well. Here folks seem to be alarmed about governmental monopolies. But I don't see why. Here cities give away for nothing franchises for car lines, electric plants and things like that. Their generosity is often astounding. The American people take the yoke of private monopoly with philosophical indifference, and I don't see why they should mind a little government monopoly."

City-owned bike share!  In 1895!

"There must be some reason," said he, "why a fine town like Portland has not long since built a new depot. What is the reason?"

It was explained to him that the completion of a fine new station had been delayed through two of the roads interested in its construction having gone into receiverships.

"Well, I haven't had an opportunity to see much of Portland, because, through the diabolical machinations of Major Pond, over there, I am compelled to leave it after but a glimpse. I may never see Portland again, but I liked that glimpse."

The current Union Station opened six months later, on February 14, 1896.

"The essence of the independent mind lies not in what it thinks, but in how it thinks." - Christopher Hitchens

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by: JayinPortland @ Fri Aug 13, 2010 at 21:15:00 PM UTC

I so cannot wait for the release (4.00 / 2)

of Mark Twain's autobiography. Given the things he said and wrote that are already known, imagine what is in a book that he wanted kept under wraps until he'd been dead 100 years.

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by: caseyOR @ Fri Aug 13, 2010 at 23:33:17 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

More Twain... (4.00 / 1)

When author Samuel Clemens, aka Mark Twain, swung through the Pacific Northwest 115 years ago this summer, he likely dined on local oysters, months without "R's" notwithstanding. Twain loved oysters, and he was no stranger to the native Olympia bivalves that were harvested here. The author of Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn was wined and dined from Spokane to Portland to Olympia to Vancouver to Seattle (the Rainier Club still has his signature in its guest registry). Few banquets of that era did not feature oysters when they were obtainable.

During Twain's time in San Francisco in the 1860s, the city had an amazing appetite for the critters. Having mostly wiped out the native oyster population of San Francisco Bay, the boom-town's residents were getting oysters from whoever could ship them in.

Washington state, which sent much of its native lumber to build San Francisco's famous Victorian homes, also sacked its native oyster beds to feed a growing California population. They came from Puget Sound and Shoalwater Bay. They were tiny, with a distinct coppery flavor, and San Franciscans called them "Olys" and devoured them by the ton.

In some cases, [Andrew] Beahrs [author of Twain's Feast: Searching for America's Lost Foods in the Footsteps of Samuel Clemens] tries to replicate a Twain meal, such as a breakfast featuring coffee with fresh cream, buckwheat cakes, and an aged, two-inch-thick Porterhouse steak with butter. In doing so, it turns out that many of the things taken for granted in Twain's day, such as aged meats or unpasteurized cream, are not so readily available, at least not without the assistance of active foodies and the money to pay a premium to get them. Much of the everyday food of Twain's era is pricey and exotic today. Some of it is even essentially extinct or impossible to get.

A good example is the native Sierra trout that Twain loved, including the wild, up-to-30-pounders that were once catchable in Lake Tahoe. This in an era when a "mammoth" trout in an East Coast market was 7 pounds, an average one between 1 and 4. In Twain's time at Tahoe during his Civil War-era Nevada sojourn, the crystal clear lake held an enormous population of, well, enormous fish, and Twain delighted in trying to catch them and get them into the frying pan with a little bacon fat and flour as soon as possible.

"The essence of the independent mind lies not in what it thinks, but in how it thinks." - Christopher Hitchens

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by: JayinPortland @ Sat Aug 14, 2010 at 08:29:14 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Twain autobiography (4.00 / 1)

I did not know about this. Thank you.

There will be three volumes eventually.

Dead for a Century, Twain Says What He Meant

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by: count @ Sun Aug 15, 2010 at 15:00:29 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

WWI / WWII Food posters... (4.00 / 1)

Great find from Jill O over at Portland Food.

12 awesome wartime food posters, with themes like "Let The Hen Whip The Kaiser!", and "Food - Don't Waste It (buy it with thought, cook it with care, serve just enough, save what will keep, eat what would spoil, home-grown is best)", and "Waste of Food is Disloyalty", and "Be Loyal To Connecticut!  Use The Potatoes The Farmers Have Grown", and "Of Course I CAN (get it?) - I'm patriotic as can be, and ration points don't worry me!", and others...

"The essence of the independent mind lies not in what it thinks, but in how it thinks." - Christopher Hitchens

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by: JayinPortland @ Sat Aug 14, 2010 at 10:51:56 AM UTC

Wow on poster 7! (4.00 / 1)

"Eat More - Corn, Oats and Rye Products; Fish and Poultry; Fruits, Vegetables and Potatoes*; Baked, Boiled and Broiled Foods... Eat Less - Wheat, Meat, Sugar and Fats; To Save For The Army and Our Allies"

How quick would such a poster become the subject of a lawsuit brought by 18 different food lobbies these days?  12 hours?  36 if it was a weekend?

*Separating potatoes from vegetables is interesting enough in itself, eh?

"The essence of the independent mind lies not in what it thinks, but in how it thinks." - Christopher Hitchens

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by: JayinPortland @ Sat Aug 14, 2010 at 10:57:21 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Mexican Flea Market... (4.00 / 1)

Okay, I think I'm finally gonna make it out to Oregon Flea Market (and La Tipatia grocery) late this morning / early afternoon, at SE Stark & 183rd about a mile over the Portland city line into Gresham.  The Rockwood / E. 188th MAX station is just a few blocks away, so easy transit access.  Will bring my camera, of course... :)

"The essence of the independent mind lies not in what it thinks, but in how it thinks." - Christopher Hitchens

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by: JayinPortland @ Sat Aug 14, 2010 at 11:30:56 AM UTC