Neighborhoods of Portland, Oregon facts for kids

Map of Portland, Oregon's five sections, prior to the creation of South Portland in 2020.

Welcome to Portland, Oregon! This amazing city is split into six main parts: North Portland, Northeast Portland, Northwest Portland, South Portland, Southeast Portland, and Southwest Portland.

Inside these big sections, Portland has 95 official neighborhoods. Each neighborhood has its own group of volunteers called a neighborhood association. These groups help connect the people living in the neighborhood with the city government. They make sure everyone's voices are heard! Sometimes, a neighborhood might even stretch across two of the big city sections.

Exploring Portland's Neighborhoods

Each neighborhood in Portland has its own special borders. These borders are decided by the neighborhood associations themselves. Sometimes, a neighborhood might even include areas just outside Portland's city limits! Also, some neighborhoods can cross the lines between the six main city sections.

The list below shows many of Portland's neighborhoods. You'll see which main section they are in, which group (coalition) they belong to, and sometimes how they got their name!

Neighborhood name	Sextant (City Section)	Coalition (Neighborhood Group)	Namesake (How it got its name)	Image	Notes
Alameda	Northeast	Northeast Coalition of Neighborhoods	Named by the Alameda Land Company, which first planned the area.
Arbor Lodge	North	North Portland Neighborhood Services
Ardenwald-Johnson Creek	Southeast	Southeast Uplift Neighborhood Coalition	Named after Arden M. Rockwood, whose father first planned this area.		Partially in Portland and Milwaukie. Both cities recognize this neighborhood.
Argay	Northeast	East Portland Community Office	A mix of names from Art Simonson and Gerhardt "Gay" Stavney, who planned the neighborhood.
Arlington Heights	Northwest	Neighbors West-Northwest
Arnold Creek	Southwest	Southwest Neighborhoods	Named after Arnold Creek.
Ashcreek	Southwest	Southwest Neighborhoods
Beaumont-Wilshire	Northeast	Northeast Coalition of Neighborhoods	Beaumont means "beautiful mountain" in French. Wilshire's name origin is not known.
Boise	North, Northeast	Northeast Coalition of Neighborhoods	Named after Reuben P. Boise, an Oregon Supreme Court Justice.		Includes the Mississippi District.
Brentwood-Darlington	Southeast	Southeast Uplift Neighborhood Coalition
Bridgeton	North, Northeast	North Portland Neighborhood Services	Named after the Bridgeton Slough, which was named for the Interstate Bridge.
Bridlemile	Southwest	Southwest Neighborhoods
Brooklyn	Southeast	Southeast Uplift Neighborhood Coalition	Named for the many rivers, creeks, and lakes that used to be in the area.
Buckman	Southeast	Southeast Uplift Neighborhood Coalition	Named after City Councilor Cyrus Buckman.
Cathedral Park	North	North Portland Neighborhood Services	Named after Cathedral Park.
Centennial	Southeast	East Portland Community Office
Collins View	Southwest	Southwest Neighborhoods
Concordia	Northeast	Northeast Coalition of Neighborhoods	Named after Concordia University (now part of University of Oregon Portland).
Creston-Kenilworth	Southeast	Southeast Uplift Neighborhood Coalition	Creston's name origin is unknown. Kenilworth is from Sir Walter Scott's novel Kenilworth. A Romance.
Crestwood	Southwest	Southwest Neighborhoods
Cully	Northeast	Northeast Coalition of Neighborhoods	Named after settler Thomas Cully.
Chinatown	Northwest	Neighbors West-Northwest	Named for the many Chinese businesses and homes that were historically here.		This is the Northwest part of Old Town Chinatown.
Downtown	Southwest	Neighbors West-Northwest	This is Portland's main city center.
East Columbia	North, Northeast	North Portland Neighborhood Services	Named after the Columbia River.
Eastmoreland	Southeast	Southeast Uplift Neighborhood Coalition	Named after pioneer Julius C. Moreland.
Eliot	North, Northeast	Northeast Coalition of Neighborhoods	Named after Rev. Thomas Lamb Eliot.		This was once the center of Albina, Oregon before it joined Portland.
Far Southwest	Southwest	Southwest Neighborhoods	It's the farthest southwest neighborhood in Portland.
Forest Park	Northwest	Neighbors West-Northwest	Named after Forest Park.
Foster-Powell	Southeast	Southeast Uplift Neighborhood Coalition	Named after Foster Road and Powell Boulevard. These roads were named for farmer Philip Foster and settler Jackson Powell.
Glenfair	Northeast, Southeast	East Portland Community Office	Named after Glenfair Park.
Goose Hollow	Southwest	Neighbors West-Northwest	Named for the many wild Geese that used to live in the area.
Grant Park	Northeast	Central Northeast Neighbors	Named after Grant Park, which was named for President Ulysses S. Grant.
Hayden Island	North	North Portland Neighborhood Services	Named after Hayden Island, which was named for settler Gay Hayden.
Hayhurst	Southwest	Southwest Neighborhoods
Hazelwood	Northeast, Southeast	East Portland Community Office
Healy Heights	Southwest	Unaffiliated
Hillsdale	Southwest	Southwest Neighborhoods	Named for the Tualatin Mountains (West Hills).
Hillside	Northwest	Neighbors West-Northwest	Named for the Tualatin Mountains (West Hills).
Hollywood	Northeast	Central Northeast Neighbors	Named after the Hollywood Theatre.
Homestead	Southwest	Southwest Neighborhoods	This was the location of the homestead (original farm and home) of State Representative Philip Augustus Marquam.
Hosford-Abernethy	Southeast	Southeast Uplift Neighborhood Coalition	Hosford: Named after Methodist Missionary Chauncey Hosford. Abernethy: Named after Provisional Governor of Oregon George Abernethy.
Humboldt	North, Northeast	Northeast Coalition of Neighborhoods
Irvington	Northeast	Northeast Coalition of Neighborhoods	Named after the Irvington Investment Company, which helped create the neighborhood.
Kenton	North	North Portland Neighborhood Services
Kerns	Northeast, Southeast	Southeast Uplift Neighborhood Coalition	Named after settler William Kerns.
King	Northeast	Northeast Coalition of Neighborhoods	Named after Rev. Martin Luther King Jr..
Laurelhurst	Northeast, Southeast	Southeast Uplift Neighborhood Coalition	Named after the Laurelhurst Company, which helped develop the neighborhood.
Lents	Southeast	East Portland Community Office	Named after settler Oliver P. Lent.
Linnton	Northwest	Neighbors West-Northwest	Named after US Senator Lewis F. Linn from Missouri.
Lloyd District	North, Northeast	Northeast Coalition of Neighborhoods	Named after developer Ralph Lloyd, who started Lloyd Center, once a very large shopping mall.
Madison South	Northeast	Central Northeast Neighbors	Named after James Madison High School (now Leodis V. McDaniel High School).
Maplewood	Southwest	Southwest Neighborhoods
Markham	Southwest	Southwest Neighborhoods
Marshall Park	Southwest	Southwest Neighborhoods	Named after Marshall Park, which was donated to the city by Frederick C. and Addie Mae Marshall.
Mill Park	Southeast	East Portland Community Office
Montavilla	Northeast, Southeast	Southeast Uplift Neighborhood Coalition	A mix of "Mount Tabor Village."
Mt. Scott-Arleta	Southeast	Southeast Uplift Neighborhood Coalition	Mt. Scott: Named after Harvey W. Scott, an editor. Arleta: Named after the daughter of one of the neighborhood's first developers.
Mount Tabor	Southeast	Southeast Uplift Neighborhood Coalition	Named after Mount Tabor, which was named for the biblical Mount Tabor.
Multnomah/Multnomah Village	Southwest	Southwest Neighborhoods	Named after the Multnomah Tribe or Chief Multnomah.
North Tabor	Southeast	Southeast Uplift Neighborhood Coalition	Named after Mount Tabor, which was named for the biblical Mount Tabor.
Northwest District	Northwest	Neighbors West-Northwest	Located in Northwest Portland.		Includes areas like Uptown, Nob Hill, Alphabet District, and Slabtown.
Northwest Heights	Northwest	Neighbors West-Northwest	Located in Northwest Portland.
Northwest Industrial	Northwest	Neighbors West-Northwest	Named for the many industrial businesses in the area.
Old Town	Southwest	Neighbors West-Northwest	This is the original and "oldest part of town" in Portland.		This is the Southwest part of Old Town Chinatown.
Overlook	North	North Portland Neighborhood Services	The neighborhood is on a bluff that looks out over the city.		Includes Swan Island.
Parkrose	Northeast	East Portland Community Office
Parkrose Heights	Northeast	East Portland Community Office
Pearl District	Northwest	Neighbors West-Northwest	A local journalist named Terry Hammond came up with the name for reasons that are not fully known.
Piedmont	North, Northeast	North Portland Neighborhood Services
Pleasant Valley	Southeast	East Portland Community Office
Portsmouth	North	North Portland Neighborhood Services	Named after the Port of Portland.
Powellhurst-Gilbert	Southeast	East Portland Community Office	Named after two schools in the area: Powellhurst (for settler Jackson Powell) and Gilbert Heights (for settler William M. Gilbert).		Includes the recently formed Jade District.
Reed	Southeast	Southeast Uplift Neighborhood Coalition	Named after Reed College, which was named for pioneers Simeon Gannett & Amanda Reed.
Richmond	Southeast	Southeast Uplift Neighborhood Coalition	Named after settler Richmond Kelly, son of Rev. Clinton Kelly.
Rose City Park	Northeast	Northeast Coalition of Neighborhoods	Refers to Portland's nickname, the City of Roses.
Roseway	Northeast	Central Northeast Neighbors	Refers to Portland's nickname, the City of Roses.
Russell	Northeast	East Portland Community Office
Sabin	Northeast	Northeast Coalition of Neighborhoods
St. Johns	North	North Portland Neighborhood Services	Named after settler James John.
Sellwood-Moreland (Westmoreland)	Southeast	Southeast Uplift Neighborhood Coalition	Sellwood: Named after Rev. John Sellwood. Moreland: Named after pioneer Julius C. Moreland.
South Burlingame	Southwest	Southwest Neighborhoods
South Portland	South	Southwest Neighborhoods	It's located south of Downtown Portland.		Includes South Waterfront, Lair Hill, and Corbett.
South Tabor	Southeast	Southeast Uplift Neighborhood Coalition	Named after Mount Tabor, which was named for the biblical Mount Tabor.
Southwest Hills	Southwest	Southwest Neighborhoods	Named for the Tualatin Mountains (West Hills).		Partially in Portland and unincorporated Multnomah County.
Sullivan's Gulch	Northeast	Northeast Coalition of Neighborhoods	Named after settler Timothy Sullivan.
Sumner	Northeast	Central Northeast Neighbors
Sunderland	Northeast	Central Northeast Neighbors			Includes Dignity Village.
Sunnyside	Southeast	Southeast Uplift Neighborhood Coalition
Sylvan-Highlands	Southwest	Neighbors West-Northwest	Named after Silvanus, the Roman God of the Woods.
University Park	North	North Portland Neighborhood Services	Named after Portland Methodist Episcopal University (now University of Portland).
Vernon	Northeast	Northeast Coalition of Neighborhoods
West Portland Park	Southwest	Southwest Neighborhoods	It's the western part of Portland.
Wilkes	Northeast	East Portland Community Office	Named after the Wilkes Family of settlers.
Woodland Park	Northeast	East Portland Community Office			This is Portland's smallest neighborhood.
Woodlawn	Northeast	Northeast Coalition of Neighborhoods
Woodstock	Southeast	Southeast Uplift Neighborhood Coalition	Named after Sir Walter Scott's novel Woodstock.

Other Cool Areas and Communities

Beyond the official neighborhoods, Portland has many other interesting spots:

• Alberta Arts District: A lively area with art, shops, and restaurants. It's found within the King, Vernon, and Concordia neighborhoods.
• Albina: This used to be a separate city that became part of Portland in 1891.
• The Belmont Area: A popular place for shopping and homes, located in the Buckman, Sunnyside, and Mt. Tabor neighborhoods.
• Dunthorpe: A fancy area just outside the city limits, north of Lake Oswego.
• East Portland: This was also a separate city that joined Portland in 1891. Don't confuse it with the larger area of Portland generally east of I-205.
• The Hawthorne District: A fun area with shops, restaurants, and cultural spots. It runs through the Buckman, Hosford-Abernethy, Sunnyside, Richmond, and Mt. Tabor neighborhoods.
• Maywood Park: A neighborhood in Northeast Portland that is its own small city, completely surrounded by Portland.
• Peacock Lane: A charming street in the Sunnyside Neighborhood known for its amazing free holiday light displays every December since the 1940s!
• Vanport: This was a city in what is now North Portland. It was sadly destroyed by a big flood in 1948.