Portland's West Block Tour
Welcome to Portland's West Block, one of Portland's commercial districts as well as the home of the first electric streetcars in the West.
Exterior renovation of West's Block building by UnkownArchitectural Heritage Center
Portland's West Block Tour
Explore one of the original blocks in all of Portland! Wests' Block was first built in 1896 and expanded outward with the rush of the Technological Revolution.
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West Family Building (1896)
721-727 SE Grand Ave.
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West Family Building
The youngest of the West family buildings on this block is indicative of streetcar-era commercial buildings that became popular after the arrival of the first electric streetcars in East Portland in 1889.
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Over the decades the building has offered rooms for rent, served as a boxing gym, and been home to some popular restaurants and bars.
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West Family Building
The center building is the tallest of the three surviving buildings on this block of Grand Avenue.
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The building has always had a commercial storefront, with businesses over the years that included a post office, electrical supply, shoe store, and an antique shop among others.
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West's Block (1883)
701-707 SE Grand Ave.
West Block Vintage (1970) by Architectural Heritage CenterArchitectural Heritage Center
Nathaniel and Mary West
The oldest building on Grand Avenue, West's Block was one of several buildings on the block built for the Nathaniel and Mary West family.
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A long history...
The Wests initially ran a dry goods store on the main floor, while living upstairs.
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Bosco-Milligan
After serving as a rooming house, grocery store, biker bar, and later a stained glass business, the building was transformed by the Bosco-Milligan Foundation into the Architectural Heritage Center, which opened in 2005 after a multi-year renovation.
West's Block (2008) by Architectural Heritage CenterArchitectural Heritage Center
Visit us!
You can come explore the building as well as the Bosco-Milligan collection at 701 SE Grand Avenue.
Minor White Exhibit: View of Exhibit Wall (2017) by Nina JohnsonArchitectural Heritage Center
Engage with Portland's architecture and history year round!
The Architectural Heritage Center is exploring how our historic places intersect with issues like art and design; housing and affordability; the environment and social equity.
Join us for walking tours, events and exhibits, digital projects, and talks and forums.
visitahc.org
