PlacesPages: Milwaukie, Oregon

Wednesday, April 29, 2015

Milwaukie, Oregon

I originally posted the Milwaukie, Oregon PLACES page on my old website on October 10, 2008. I have added information I did not have at that time.

I have the interesting distinction of having lived in both Milwaukee, Wisconsin and Milwaukie, Oregon. Since I have already covered Milwaukee, Wisconsin, it is only fitting that I also cover Milwaukie, Oregon. Milwaukie's small, historic downtown gives the feel of a small town, despite its close proximity to Portland, and while it may not be as famous as the larger Wisconsin city for which it is named, Milwaukie does have a lot of history.

Historical photos of Milwaukie are hard to find online, but this page does include a couple of links to historical photos from the Salem Public Library's Oregon Historic Photograph Collections and American Classic Images.

Milwaukie History

The area that is now Milwaukie, Oregon was originally home to the Clackamas Tribe of Native Americans. Illnesses brought by white settlers killed many of the native people by the late 1840s. The town of Milwaukie was established in 1847 by Lot Whitcomb, Henderson Luelling and Joseph Kellogg. Whitcomb named the city after Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The spelling of the names was originally the same, but the spelling of the Wisconsin city's name eventually changed (see The Milwaukie/Milwaukee Controversy). Whitcomb and Kellogg built boats and mills for lumber and flour. Luelling went into agriculture with the 700 fruit trees he brought with him over the Oregon Trail; he and his foreman Ah Bing, a Chinese immigrant, created the Bing Cherry in 1878. Milwaukie was incorporated in 1903. The first city ordinance limited the storage of gun powder and explosives along railroad lines.