The Lost City of Vanport
The World War II-era federal housing project on the outskirts of North Portland was built in a year. A flood destroyed in a few hours. Its legacy lives on.
Map of Vanport, Oregon (1942) by UnknownThe Vanport Mosaic
Vanport was a temporary housing project built in 1942 to house the thousands of people pouring into Portland to work in his shipyards. At its peak, it was the largest World War II federal housing project in the United States and the second-largest city in Oregon.
Where was Vanport? (2022) by Vanport MosaicThe Vanport Mosaic
Where was Vanport?
Vanport is a merging of the names VANcouver and PORTland. The city, built in a flood plain and circled by dikes, was situated in the low area west of I-5, near the current sites of Delta Park, Portland International Raceway, and Heron Lakes Golf Course.
The Theater in Vanport City (1942/1947) by UnknownThe Vanport Mosaic
For over 40,000 residents, Vanport was simply home. They came from all corners of the country to contribute to the war effort and in search of a better life, forming an instant community in a city with everything but a future.
Vanport Flood Refugees (1948) by UnknownThe Vanport Mosaic
In a state founded on the unceded traditional lands of the many indigenous Tribes and with a constitution that initially made it illegal for Black people to live or own property within its borders, Vanport provided housing to a multicultural and multiracial community.
Vanport Community Painting by Muralist Alex Chiu (2018) by Painting by Alex ChiuThe Vanport Mosaic
Since 2014, Vanport Mosaic had collected oral histories with Vanport former residents and survivors of the 1948 flood. We continue to gather around these stories in multi-generational circles to harvesting lessons of hope, resistance and resilience for these challenging times.
Vanport Survivor Jackie Winters Oral History Excerpt (2017) by Vanport MosaicThe Vanport Mosaic
A microcosm of The United States
Who lived in Vanport? Watch this interview excerpt with Sen. Jackie Winters, a former resident. The oral history is part of the Vanport Mosaic collection "Lost City, Living Memories: Vanport Through the Voices of Its Residents."
Children in Vanport (1946) by unknownThe Vanport Mosaic
A miracle city
Although built in 110 days as a temporary city, Vanport offered shopping centers, a movie theater, schools, a hospital, police and fire stations, a post office, a bus station, and the only public library in any wartime housing project.
A miracle city
Housing was unofficially segregated, but school and social life were not. Black, Native, Hispanic, Asian, and white residents found themselves going about their daily lives side by side.
Oral History Interview with Vanport Survivor Ed Washington (2016) by Vanport MosaicThe Vanport Mosaic
A place called home
Watch this oral history excerpt from the Vanport Mosaic "Lost City, Living Memories: Vanport Through the Voices of Its Residents"
Residents of Vanport escape waist-high waters (1948) by Allan deLayThe Vanport Mosaic
The Vanport flood
On May 30, 1948, a flood destroyed the city. By midnight, the city of Vanport was all but gone with at least 15 people killed and another 18,500 left houseless. About 6,300 of them African Americans.
Vanport Refugees (1948) by UnknownThe Vanport Mosaic
A surge of social change
Many who fled to Portland stayed, forever changing the social, economic, and political fabric of our region.
Aerial photo of Vanport (1942) by UnknownThe Vanport Mosaic
Vanport today
Vanport was never rebuilt. Once home to the second-largest city in Oregon, today, this area is the site of Delta Park, Heron Lakes Golf Course, Portland International Raceway, Expo Center, wetlands, and a dog park.
Guided Tour of Historic Vanport - The 4th Vanport Mosaic Festival (2019) by Photo by Emmalee McDonaldThe Vanport Mosaic
Erased history
Today, only a few signposts and a concrete slab from Vanport’s movie theater are the only physical reminders of the “Miracle City.”
Vanport Mosaic offers walking, bus, and bike narrated tours of the historic sites.
"I just feel like ’cause it was a bunch of poor people that nobody gives a damn...because most of us survivors are gone, hardly any people remember Vanport." - Wallace Sanders, Vanport survivor
Prof. James Harrison About The History of Vanport and Its Legacy (2019) by Director: John King Producer: Erik FauskeThe Vanport Mosaic
Why was the history of Vanport obliterated from official records and Portland's memory? Listen to Prof. James Harrison, Vanport historian, in this interview excerpt.
Vanport Community Annual Reunion, part of the 4th Vanport Mosaic Festival (2018) by Photo by Julie KeefeThe Vanport Mosaic
The spirit of Vanport lives on
Vanport former residents and flood survivors, now in their 80s and 90s, have kept this history alive. Since 2014 they have collaborated with Vanport Mosaic “memory activists” to record their experience.
Vanport Survivor Marge Moss: "Stories that matter" (2019) by Video Produced by Meredith LaurenceThe Vanport Mosaic
Remembering is an act of resistance
Watch this short interview with Vanport survivors Marge Moss. Learn about Vanport Mosaic mission to tell stories WITH, and not "about," under-heard communities like the one who was formed in Vanport.
You can learn more about Vanport Mosaic's ongoing memory activism effort to amplify, honor, and preserve the history of Vanport, as well as the many other silenced Portland histories.
