Portland, Louisville

Portland is a neighborhood and former independent town two miles northwest of downtown Louisville, Kentucky. In its early days it was the largest of the six major settlements at the Falls of the Ohio River, the others being Shippingport and Louisville in Kentucky and New Albany, Clarksville, and Jeffersonville on the Indiana side. Portland was laid out in 1811 by Joshua Barclay and Alexander Ralston with a Northwest to Southeast street grid (still noticeable on maps and a contrast to the untilted grid of the rest of Louisville). It was located at the only natural obstacle on the Ohio River, so boats traveling on the Ohio had to stop and unload their goods and then move them by land two miles and reload them on another boat. With a captive audience and a need for freight hauling, Portland flourished as numerous taverns, warehouses, and shipyards were built. It was settled starting in 1814 by French immigrants from Alsace. ^[1] By 1817 the original street grid had run out of room and was expanded to 40th Street on the west and 13th Street on the east in 1817 to facilitate the additional growth. It quickly became a rival of Louisville and the nearer-by settlement of Shippingport. The three were first connected by road in 1818. This road, initially called the Louisville & Portland Turnpike, became Portland Avenue. An important early home was the Squire Earick house, which was home of the first magistrate, and also used as the settlement's courthouse and jail. Another landmark was the Church of Our Lady, started in 1839 and the third building, built in 1873, still standing in 2007. In 1830 a canal was built around the Falls, causing many of the warehouses and shipyards to close and shifting ecomomic power on the Falls to nearby Louisville, although Portland would continue to grow as many French and Irish immigrants moved there. It was incorporated in 1834, but then annexed by Louisville in 1837 after a compromise in which the canal would be widened to handle larger ships, but a new rail line going from Lexington to the Ohio River would go to Portland's wharf instead of Louisville's. However, after the new line didn't connect to the wharf, Portlanders voted in 1842 to become independent again, although 10 years later the area was annexed a second time. Portland would continue a slow decline through the 1920s. Major floods in 1937 and 1945 drove many middle class families from the area. In the 1960s, construction of Interstate 64 lead to the razing of significant portions of Portland closest to the river, including the old Portland Wharf. However, the portions of the neighborhood away from the interstate were largely untouched by urban renewal, and retain a great number of older buildings.

1863 mansion with a direct view of the Portland Canal, of which the first owner was superintendent. It was later used at the corporate offices of the Ky. & Ind. Terminal Railroad Co.^[2]

As of 2000, the population of Portland was 11,810 ^[1]. The population is still predominantly white. Prior to 1960, blacks were effectively unable to live in the neighborhoods north of Broadway, which included Portland. However, during white flight the areas surrounding Portland became almost entirely black. There are many historic landmarks in Portland, including the United States Marine Hospital of Louisville‎; (1847) (currently being restored), the Notre Dame du Port Church (1841) (now the Church of Our Lady), the Montgomery Street School (1852) and the Portland Museum. The entire Portland Historic District is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The Riverwalk, a seven mile long paved bike trail, goes through the area.

Its modern neighborhood boundaries are the Ohio River, 10th Street, West Market Street and I-264. In 2006, Portland was named by First Lady Laura Bush to be a Preserve America community. Communities designated through the program are allowed to use the Preserve America logo on signs and promotional materials and are eligible to apply for grants that will be administered by the U.S. Department of the Interior.

Portland Image Gallery

Historic marker near the Church of Our Lady	The locations of the six early Falls settlements, as shown on a modern map	A map from the 1850s showing the streets of Portland, the slanted orientation is noticeably different than that of encroaching Louisville's	Ongoing work to widen portions of the Louisville and Portland Canal
Squire Earick house, the oldest known surviving house in Portland

References

1. ^  Community Resource Network. Retrieved on 2005-11-18.

Notes

1. ^ Burnett, Robert A. (April 1976). "Louisville's French Past". Filson Club Quarterly: 10.
2. ^ History of the Kentucky & Indiana Terminal Railroad. Retrieved on 2007-05-24.

External links

• Portland Museum
• Portland Now, Inc. (Portland's Neighborhood Association)
• Places in Time: Portland
• Street map of Portland

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