Brooklyn, Portland, Oregon facts for kids

Brooklyn is a neighborhood in southeast Portland, Oregon. Most people live in homes here. It is located along the east side of the Willamette River. The neighborhood is also near Reed College.

Brooklyn was first established in the late 1860s. Today, it is a middle-class area. It mainly has single-family homes. You can also find some old industrial sites along the river. There is a large train yard too. This train yard was once home to the famous Southern Pacific 4449 train. It also housed other large, old steam and diesel trains.

History of Brooklyn

Early Days and Naming

Before European settlers arrived, the area was home to the Clackamas people. The first European settler was Giddeon Tibbets. He got the land in 1851 through a special law. This law was called the Donation Land Claim Act of 1850.

Tibbets built a family home and a grist mill (a mill for grinding grain). He named the area "Brookland." This name came from the rivers, creeks, and lakes on his property.

Growth and New Residents

In 1868, Tibbets divided his land into smaller pieces. He also allowed the Oregon Central Railroad to build tracks across his property. The new train line and land sales quickly brought many residents. The neighborhood then got its current name, "Brooklyn."

More people moving in led to a town square being built. It was at the corner of Powell Boulevard and Milwaukie Avenue. In the 1890s, many German-American families moved to Brooklyn. Most of them were Catholic.

During World War I, many German street names were changed. However, signs of this period still exist today. You can see several older German-American businesses. There is also the Sacred Heart Catholic Church. The historic 1891 Johan Poulsen House is another example. In 1908, a construction company called Giebisch and Joplin built the neighborhood's first sewer system.

Changes in the 20th Century

The 1920s brought big changes to Brooklyn. This was part of a city-wide building effort. The construction of the Ross Island Bridge over the Willamette River made the town square disappear. At the same time, many small rivers and ponds in the neighborhood were filled up.

Building McLoughlin Boulevard (Oregon Route 99E) cut off Brooklyn's link to the Willamette waterfront. An overpass on 17th Avenue also split the neighborhood into two parts.

Community Efforts and Modern Brooklyn

By the 1960s, the neighborhood faced many challenges. It was during this time that former Portland mayor Tom Potter started his police career. He worked as an officer in Brooklyn and nearby Sellwood. Potter learned a lot about community policing while working here.

He became involved with the Brooklyn Action Corps (BAC). This was a community group started to help improve the neighborhood. They worked to solve problems and make Brooklyn a better place.

By the 1980s, the neighborhood had improved a lot. Today, it is considered one of the best places to live in southeast Portland. The building of the Eastbank Esplanade helped Brooklyn get its connection back to the Willamette River. Also, the Orange Line light rail opened in September 2015. This made it much easier to get to downtown using public transport like trains.