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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 15, 1995)
F ebruary 15, 1995 • 1 he P ortl and C) bser \ P age B ö er BLACK HISTORY (Tlie JJcrrtlanb (©bseruer History Of Blacks In Oregon Continued from page B ▲ in India and was brought to the United States as a servant. Elis moth er was Irish and worked as a maid. Bush married a white women in 1832 and raised a family o f five boys. Ele first arrived in The Dalles in the fall of 1844. 1846 James D. Saules was arrested and charged with causing the death o f his Indian wife. A news article reported: A negro man named James D. Saules was brought to this city re cently from the mouth o f the river, charged with having caused the death o f his wife, and Indian wom an. He was examined before Justice Hood, the result o f which examina tion we have never been able to ascertain, but the accused is at large and likely to remain so we suppose. 1850 According to the census taken in Oregon, 207 people were identi fied as black or mulatto. O f this number, three quarters were actual ly Hawaiians or half-breed Indians, as the census takers tended to pull all non-whites in the same category. There were actually only fifty-four black people included in the census o f 1850. 1851 A black man named Jacob Vanderpool, who owned a saloon, restaurant and boardinghouse across the street from the offices o f the Oregon Statesman in Salem, was arrested and jailed. His crime was living illegally in Oregon because he was black. TheophilusM agruder had filed a complaint against him, saying that his residence in Oregon was illegal because o f an exclusion law passed by the Territorial gov ernment in 1849. Five days later, Vanderpool was brought to trial. His defense lawyer argued that the law was unconstitutional, since it had not been legally approved by the legislature. A verdict was ren dered the follow ing day, and Judge T h o m a s N e lso n o rd e r Ja c o b V anderpool to leave Oregon: "I being satisfied that the same Jacob Vanderpool is a mulatto, and that he is remaining in the territory o f Oregon contrary to the Statutes and laws o f the territory, do there fore o rd er that the said Jacob Vanderpool remove from said ter ritory within 30 days from and upon the service o f this order - the said order to be served by showing to the said Jacob Vanderpool this original and at the same time delivering to him a true copy o f the same.’ The decision was delivered to him the same day by the sheriff of Clackamas County. The Oregon Spectator commented: There is a statute prohibiting the introduction o f negroes into Oregon. A misdemeanor commit ted by one Vanderpool was cause of bringing this individual before his Honor Judge Nelson, and a deci sion was called for respecting the enforcement o f that law; who de cided that the statute should be im m ediately enforced and that the negro shall be banished forth with from the Territory. George W inslow’s name was also mentioned in the same article A notorious villain, who calls him self Winslow, has cursed this community with his presence for a number o f years. All manner of crimes have been laid to his charge. We shall rejoice at his removal. Although Winslow could not have been expelled from Oregon legally, his name vanished from the public record, and nothing is known o f his fate. James Vanderpool was the first and only black person o f record to be expelled from Oregon because o f his race. A Salute To My Father T hanks to the m any peo p le o v er the years w ho have sh ared kind w ords ab o u t Dr. John D. M arshall, my father. T h o u g h he retired 15 y ears ago and p a sse d aw ay in 1990 still a w eek does not go by w here we haven t m et som eone w ho te lls us a sto ry about how my fa th e r help ed them in a special way. As a son I remember him first as the man who mowed the lawn on weekends, cooked BBQ all summer and would play BB King tapes every chance he could. But as a p h y sician I re m e m ber him as a m an of p a tie n c e and d e d ic a tio n . W hen he and my m o th er V io la, com e to P o rtla n d in 1947 and lived in V an p o rt, m edical care for A frican A m e ri cans w as scarce. B ecause h o s p i tals o ften w ould not adm it his patien ts m any tim es he w ould put a blanket or a sheet on our kitchen table and ex am ine p a tie n ts in our hom e. He w ould often say how even if b lack p a tie n ts w ere a d m itted m any w hite d o cto rs w ould not care enough to fully u n d e r stand the cause o f the sym ptom s and th e re fo re m isd ia g n o se the problem . As a re su lt o ften the m edicine they w ould p re sc rib e m ade the pro b lem w orse. It was ironic to him th a t he o fte n had to one else tor them to call. In the middle of the night when the phone rang we always knew he would be leaving the house to go deliver a baby. As a kid we couldn’t figure out why babies always came in the middle of the Dr. Marshall Opens Williams Avenue Office B y P ail M arshall (Editor's Note: The follow ing was written in a news article from the late 1940s on the late Dr. John M arshall o f Portland.) Dr. John Marshall, formerly as sociated with Dr. D.N. Unthank, has established offices at 1415 N. W il liams Ave. Dr. Marshall occupies the space which was built for Dr R Joyner. Dr. Joyner recently surrendered his prac tice in Portland and moved to Se attle. Dr. Marshall, a resident of C hi cago. is a graduate of Meharry M edi cal College in Nashville, Tennessee and served his internship at Harlem Hospital, in New York, and General Hospital No. 2 in Kansas City, M is Dr. John D. Marshall souri. He is a member of the C ongre gational Church and has been a resi dent of Portland for 19 months. All Portland prays for the suc cess of Dr. Marshall who is beloved by all who know him. undo the harm o th e r d o c to rs has cau sed b e fo re he co u ld p re sc rib e the c o r r e c t tre a tm e n t to h e a l people o f th e ir o rig in a l p roblem . For many years Dr. Unthank and my father were two of only a few black physicians in Oregon. He would often see sixty patients a day with only a fifteen minute break and still come home and make house calls in the evening. When he left the house he'd say how someone is sick tonight and he has to go and make them feel better because there is no night. On weekends patients would come over and bring fish or veg etables from their garden. I didn't know it at the time but they were paying him. He wouid invite them in and tell them they didn’t owe him any money. I remember him telling my mother that they would never see hai I the money he earned because people could not afford to pay. He viewed himself as a country doctor working in the city and he would tell us it was a tradition to accept form people whatever they had as payment. His one regret was that he was not able to motivate any of this young patients to pursue medicine. He tried very hard to encourage others to go to medical school. As far as he could tell none of his patients did. I have many stories I could tell you about him (many you have told me). But I’ll close with this. If you knew my father and he ever touched your life or helped to heal you, after you read this would you do him a favor and tell a young person about Dr. Marshall and that our community needs healers now more than ever. Dad would appreciate that. Vessels Boutique Celebrates Black History . Vessels, a boutique at 2605 N.E. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.. is cel ebrating Black History Month with a series of programs highlighting Afri can and African-American culture. Saturday, Dr. Darrell Millner will speak on “Black Memorabilia, Domestic Images of Blacks in Ste reotype,” contrasting the images of the past with the present. A professor of Black Studies at Portland State U niversity. M illner will display household items from his personal collection of black memorabilia, in cluding plates, cups, spice holders and salt and pepper shakers. Next Saturday, Feb. 25 will fea ture "Baskets from the M otherland," with Shem an Haggar talking about baskets from N igeria and other coun tries. Haggar will explain the history, function and designs of these unique items. Both presentations will run from 1-3 p.m. The store w ill also feature wooden vessels for sale from the T urkanaregionof Kenya, which were used in village households for de „ cades. The food bowls were used for mixing and serving. The coffee bowls were some of the first coffee grinders, used with a stone to grind grains and beans.Theseunusual woodenbowls were once strictly functional hut are now con sidered highly decorative. » T . . U I . » (.> n r r t t V e r sse l ls, u "T a b le w a re W W i ith Meaning," specializes in ethnic and Afro-centric items tor the dining room, bath and kitchen. The bou tique is open from 10 am. to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. For more information call 249-1952. "Freedom" Plays Thursday The highly acclaim ed 1994 docum entary “Freedom On My M ind." returns to Portland Thursday for a NAACP benefit showing at 7:30 p.m. at Cinem a 21, 616 N.W. 21 st St. The film recounts the heroes and horrors of the Freedom Summer of 1964. Rev. John Jackson: Humanitarian, Friend And Pastor (E ditor’s note: This article is a page out o f P ortland’s own Black History. The Rev. John Jackson and the author o f this article Mattie Ann Callier-Spears were both great ac tivist fo r human rights, in our north and northeast community. Mattie Ann also wrote the Religion page fo r the P ortland O bserver M attie Ann passed away on Dec. 23,1994. They both will be greatly missed.) B y M attie A nn C a ll ie r - S pears In an era w hen it seem s like e v ery th in g and ev ery b o d y is ru n ning aim lessly up a blin d alley , you en co u n ter a p erso n a lity like a John H iram Jack so n , 111, w ho ap p ears to th riv e on p o in tin g the way for oth ers. It is not everyday or even every year that we can meet or sit in the very presence of such a man as John Hiram Jackson, 111. John H Jackson lived through eighty-one of the toughest years in our nation’s history. He witnessed and participated in many of the meat and potato' struggles in the history of the African American. One of the events he frequently cited was the fact that his grand fa ther was cornered, holed-up and burned up in his barn by the Klu Klux Kian when he was just a little boy All that he knew was that he, if it was in his power, would never allow any thing like that to happen again. Jackson believed that education was a powerful vehicle. He believed that education was a powerful ve hicle. He believed that it would be come the master key' to unlock many of the century-long locks and shack les S o -h e strove to attain excel lence in the very area of study he pursued. Jackson (ought hard and long until the fear within him had subsided. You sc e -h e no longer felt threatened; but rather, he became the threat. Jackson persevered. He was bold and relentless. Singlc-foeuscd. His strong unwavering spirit was felt by co u n tless, thousands-upon-thou- sands, individuals. If anyone decided to select a label that would ultimately define who this man really was, it would have to be ‘hum anitarian’. As I tracked his life, all of his achieve ments were tied-up in people involved projects and undertakings, such as: restructuring of the State Welfare system, the Housing Authority of Oregon, After Care programs for small children (working mothers) - 4-C and Albina Ministerial Alliance Child Care Program. Founder of P O IC , M a y o r 's C o m m issio n . G overnor’s Commission, Law En force mentCounsel and so many other organizations in the state and outside of the state of Oregon. Foremost and above all, he was a man of God. Yes! Reverend Jack- son was driven, or should I say com pelled. to defend, life and encourage a fledgling community which sud denly found itself involved , up to its neck in social change. Before coming to Portland. Jack- son was an administrative director over the American Baptist Churches of the Pacific Northwest which was based in Seattle, W ashington. He had ten to twelve secretaries under his command. He had also been of fered the presidency of a large, well- known university; however, he for feited any personal ambitions to ful fill what was his chosen destiny. A church member approached him one day and asked. "Rev. Jack- son. Why did you take this small church when you were a such a big wig in Seattle? And I understand that you handled millions of dollars be cause you were a loan officer for the American Baptist Convention. “God told me to preach”, he said one day "I had to come from behind that desk because that was not where God wanted me Io be I have to be a b o u t my h e a v e n ly l a th e r s business."gation like a doting father. Jackson arrived in Portland in 1963 to accept the pastoral responsi bilities of the Mount Olivet Baptist Church. Upon his arrival, he began to calculate, discuss and resolve long term perplexities. Through his vast knowledge, he was able to bring about social and spiritual change and ju s tice for all who were willing to listen and take heed. Several governors and mayors sat under his tutelage; and many, many heads of state will attest to his authenticity and his blunt wisdom. “To me", says Tony Hopson. Director o f Self Enhancement Inc.. “Rev. Jackson represented hope." Rev. Jackson guided his congre Soon - Mount Olivet became a household word and a frequently vis ited place of worship for all who wished to come. The love that God had planted deep in his breast had soon spilled over into the Portland community. In the 1960s, when Union Av enue was burning, it was Rev. John H. Ja c k so n and R ev. T h o m a s Strayhand. deceased paster of Allen Temple CME Church, who bravely and prayerfully went among the riot ers; pleaded with them to stop burn ing and looting; gave them a differ ent focal point and achange in venue. Leading the group were angry, intelligent black men. Rev. Jackson Mattie Ann Callier-Spears Rev. John Jackson gation like a doting father. Mount Olivet Baptist Church had in its pos session. for twenty-seven years, a priceless gem. Many programs were born under his leadership and are still in place These programs were created to evoke a greater willing ness for fellowship among the saints and to kindle a climate, within the church, that would catertothe youth. The church was losing its young people and no one knew the how or the with what to make the repairs until Rev Jackson began to imple ment his spirt,-led strategies appealed to their intelligence by ask ing, “what kind of sense does this make to burn down your own neigh borhood.’" Form this action, many productive community organizations • • ■» - were born; W ar on Poverty Comm is- sion. Black United Front, more blacks in local and state-level politics. At one of his many gatherings. I heard him admonish the group with these words, “You live here too. You must lake part in the decisions that are being made about you II you just sit here and say nothing, don't get all upset when things don’t go the way you want them to go. It’s like a man yelling into a big black hole. Nobody can hear him and he can’t get mad at no one but himself, you have to get up and do something about your situ ation; but, do it intelligently. D on’t go in there unprepared." R ev., Ja c k so n tu to re d and coddled many grateful recipients. He was a pastor’s pastor. Rev. Jackson assembled the local pastors and told them, “It’s no wonder the flock is divided... when you are divided. You should all be working together with a common purpose." Rev. Jackson assisted many sm all, store-front churches in becom ing established in conferences and he also assisted them in the facts of lending, spending and purchasing property. He was a shepherd, a coun selor, a missionary, a mentor, a m e diator. an arbitrator ...Rev. John H. Jackson, III was a champion for the people. As late as 1984. Rev. Jackson was arrested while demonstrating against social injustice. He received many threats on his life. The family telephone number had to be changed several times. Jackson went to white corporate A m erica and negotiated jobs for blacks. While negotiating for blacks, all oppressed people benefitted from his lobbying. On February fourteenth, nine teen hundred ninety-four, a day set aside to demonstrate love (latin: amo - 1 love; anias - you love; amamus - we love), the God of love, himself, came down and gave Rev. Jackson his last directive, “come on home Jack! You have been faithful over much and you have endured to the very end. Come on up and take a rest from your labor. Well done! My good anil faithful servant Since the day ol John Hiram Jackson. Ill’s birth on November 16. 1912. God had predestined his life, its order and the events. The many aw ai ds, plaques, certificates, degrees. and accolades he gathered in hiseight- one years on earth shall pale to the crown he has receive. May G od’s blessings of peace be upon his surviving family mem bers; especially his devoted wife, Mrs. Dian Jackson. Rev. B. A. Taylor, pastor of Dam ascus Baptist Church-Seattle, W ash ington, eulogized Rev. Jackson with these parting and comforting words, “Nobody should live and die and be forgotten when you're covered up. Live a meaningful life that will help someone on their way. D on’t live a selfish existence.” Rev. Taylor spoke on The After-Gio O f a Servant. He spoke of how we must reach the — after; of how we can’t hurry God. We must be patient when we are looking for the - after. Taylor said, “Problems is the reason why God created preachers. Preachers must go like a lamb among w o lv e s. So -- to d a y , we say, “Goodbye, farewell, see you again ’ All of the wonderful remarks heard here today arc all part of the - aft er gio. No one could have shared in this manner if Rev. Jackson had not touched their lives the way he did. And to hear one gentleman say that Rev. Jackson was responsible for helping him to change his strategy and the anger in his life is a miracle in itself. Jackson, though small in stat ure. was a giant among men and his legacy lives on in all of the lives he touched." Rep M arg aret C a rte r shared in the c e le b ra tio n by b ellin g out. "G lory, glory h a lle lu ja h ' S ince I laid my b u rd e n s d o w n . S he shared her p e rso n a l life c h a n g ing e n c o u n te r w ith R ev. Jackson with the au d ien ce. A homegoing celebration was held at the Vancouver Avenue First Baptist Church on Friday, Feb. 18. 1994. where Rev. Jackson served as Assistant Pastor to Rev O B W il liams. now deceased
