North Portland’s Community Newspaper Serving: Arbor Lodge, Bridgeton, Cathedral Park, East Columbia, Hayden Island, Kenton, Overlook, Piedmont, Portsmouth, St. Johns, University Park
TWITTER: @stjohnsreview - EMAIL: reviewnewspaper@gmail.com - WEB: www.stjohnsreview.com - PO Box 83068, Port. OR 97283 - 503-283-5086 - A Bi-Weekly community newspaper
Introducing RHS’s 2016
Rose Festival Princess:
Katie Johnston watching movies,
K
St Johns Review PO Box 83068 Port. OR 97238
#6 March 25, 2016
atie is an 18-year old
Senior at Roosevelt with
aspirations of becoming
a psychologist. Her activities and
honors at Roosevelt include being
in the drama club, the Key Club,
and as a Student Ambassador
through People to People Inter-
national. She is also a member
of the National Society for high
school scholars and has studied
advanced math at the University
of Portland.
Katie has many interests,
which she said includes: “Read-
ing, journaling, attending church
and youth group, playing fl ute,
going to brunch with my mother,
515-840
walking in Colum-
bia Park, yoga, and
attending every home
Timbers game.”
Katie is a big Tim-
bers fan and added
that her favorite place
to visit is Providence
Park before or during
a Timbers game with
20,000 excited people.
“Just by being there
you become best
friends with every-
one. Strangers hug
strangers, everyone
cheers and jumps
up and down to the
same chants, and
you always feel like you belong.
You have something in common
with every single person in that
stadium.”
Governor Brown, Speaker Kotek visit St. Johns
O
regon Governor Kate Brown chose James John Elementary School as the location for her recent signing
of an historic piece of legislation. On Friday, March 11, the Governor met with students and signed a bill
that made Oregon the i rst state
in the nation to completely elimi-
nate coal power. The Governor se-
lected James John because of the
school’s use of solar panels to gen-
erate electricity and teach students
about renewable energy.
After the bill signing, Governor
Brown and House Speaker Tina
Kotek took a walking tour through
St. Johns, stopping at some locally
owned small businesses, like the
Childrens’ Relief Nursery, Zim-
mers Dog Grooming and Blue
Moon Camera and Machine.
Above: Governor Kate Brown and
House Speaker Tina Kotek visit
with Jim Hair and Zeb Andrews at
Blue Moon Camera and Machine.
Right: During a walking tour of
St. Johns, Governor Kate Brown
and House Speaker Tina Kotek
stopped to talk to local Street Roots
vendor, John.
The Cut: Part I
From the Review Editor:
I’ve been receiving phone calls
and emails from new residents and
business owners the past few years
asking various questions about
particular areas and/or sites in
North Portland. While I answer
them as best I can, a phone con-
versation lessens the romanticism
of how interesting it actually is.
And so I think it’s time to retell
some stories about our special
community, and who better to do
that than Jim Speirs. Enjoy.
- Gayla -
From the Author, Jim Speirs:
A number of years ago, I did
a series of articles in The Review
on the North Portland “Cut.” The
reason for the effort was to intro-
duce and identify the odd gash that
runs through St. Johns and docu-
ment some of the strange history
behind the ugly eyesore that has
become an identifying landmark.
For generations, the Cut has be-
come a reference point for many
North Portland residents. Often,
a person will give directions by
saying “it’s about a mile west of
the Cut,” or “when you get to the
Cut, take a left.” Many people who
Your St. Johns History
By Jim Speirs
live in the area actually believe the
neighborhood of St. Johns begins
at the Cut. Additionally, the puz-
zling tunnel that passes beneath
Columbia Park has continually
got people’s attention, yet few in-
dividuals can make the connection
between the Cut and the tunnel.
Recent inquiries to the Review
have made it obvious that many
new citizens and businesses to our
community are asking questions
about such an iconic spot and few
of them have gotten satisfactory
answers. North Portland has a
unique and colorful past; one that
stands alone in the history and
development of greater Portland.
The Cut is but one of the seminal
events that make up our neighbor-
hood. The history behind the Cut is
one of deep intrigue, with political
power brokers, railroad tycoons,
criminals, gunfi ghts and bribery,
all part of the rich and unusual
tale that the “Cut” blends into a
story and helps to defi ne St. Johns.
As the Review has carried the
torch of history and development
of St. Johns for over a century, it’s
a privilege to allow this newspa-
per to once again introduce you to
the “Cut, “ that remarkable piece
of historic tapestry that helps to
defi ne who we are and where we
came from.
- Jim -
Creation of a
Railroad Cut also
created a division in
the community
The “Cut!” What a name! It al-
most conjures up an evil or dam-
aging image and sounds like a
gash that needs to be stitched shut.
Yet The Cut is recognized for its
geographical signii cance to North
Portland and St. Johns because it
has become a dei nitive landmark.
When The Cut was created, a
psychological separation was also
created between residents who
lived to the west of it to those who
lived to the east; it formed a physi-
cal division to our community.
People who were not born when
the dig was completed, (and that’s
nearly all of us,) use the term
“Cut” with regularity, and new
people moving to the area pick
up the name quickly saying things
like: it’s about half mile west of the
Cut.
But, as we drive over the Cut and
peer down at the trains that rum-
ble along the tracks, how many of
us ever stop to wonder where this
opening came from, and what se-
ries of events brought about a rail-
road being placed in our backyard?
The story is steeped in political in-
trigue, innuendo, big money, mys-
tery, bribes, division, and eventual
evisceration of St. Johns.
All the players in the century-old
action have passed from the scene,
and we are left to reconstruct bits
and pieces of a bygone era. Still, as
history is a precursor to the future,
and the Cut remains a permanent
i xture of our lives, it’s a good idea
“The Cut: Part I”
Continued on Page 8