Portland is the largest city in the state of Oregon. It is also the county seat of Multnomah County. Located in the Pacific Northwest, Portland straddles the Willamette River south of its convergence with the Columbia River.
While most of the city is in Multnomah County, parts of Portland are within Clackamas and Washington counties. The city has a population of 550,000.
Portland’s climate is ideal for growing roses and it has many rose gardens. As a result, Portland has earned the nickname “Rose City” or “The City of Roses.” Other popular nicknames include “”Bridgetown”” (because of its several bridges), “Stumptown”, “Puddletown” (because of the weather), and “”River City”” (because of its proximity to the Columbia and Willamette rivers). Other modern nicknames for the city are “P-town”, “PDX” and “Rip City”.
In its formative years, Portland was in the shadow of Oregon City, then the territorial capital. However, its better location gave it a clear advantage over Oregon and other contending cities like Sellwood and Milwaukie. By 1850, the town had about 800 citizens, a log cabin hotel, its own newspaper called the Weekly Oregonian, and a steam-powered sawmill.
For most of the 19th century, Portland was the key port in the Pacific Northwest. Like most West Coast ports, Portland was prone to “shanghaiing.” In other words, the men were drugged, kidnapped and forced to serve time working on ships. There were tunnels under city blocks that extended for several blocks from the Willamette River. These tunnels were built for perfectly valid reasons, but soon became infamous for their alleged use in such acts. Today, tours of these tunnels are given.
Portland’s climate is seasonal and moderate. Precipitation averages about 35 to 42 inches a year. Despite its positioning in the Marine West Coast climate region, the city of Portland surprisingly displays many traits of a Mediterranean climate. The city has relatively wet winters and hot, dry summers. The summer months extend from June to September; 80 percent of the annual precipitation occurs between the months of November and April. Winter temperatures can drop to 35°F (2°C), and summer averages around 80°F (26°C). However, temperatures can reach 100°F (38°C) when heat waves occur. All said and done, summers are very sunny and quite pleasant.
