Historic Hood River
Oak Street, circa 1924
Notes
This image from the newly rediscovered Alva Day negatives captures a day in the life of downtown Hood River. The start of construction of the Butler Bank Building dates this image to 1924. We see our friend “Corson the Music Man” and the Paris Fair Buildings. Several of the automobiles lined up are taxi cabs. One has a sign offering “Heights 15 Cents” and another offers “10 Cents” though the destination is obscured.
As I mentioned Monday, you can help us with the estimated $2000 to process the rest of this photographic treasure trove. Please send a check to “The History Museum of Hood River County” at PO Box 781, Hood River, OR 97031 with a note that it’s for photo archives. Questions can be directed to the Museum Director, Connie Nice (phone 541-386-6772). If you include your email address with the check, I’ll send you a special preview of one of the photos you’re helping to preserve and share with the community.
I know this kind of appeal is working for Wikipedia, so hopefully it will work for Historic Hood River. $50 will conserve and digitize 33 of these great negatives, $150 will cover 100 of them. I can’t wait to share the rest of the collection with you, but for now the five we’re posting this week will have to do.
Charlott
L. W. Hansen was a very well known builder, especially in the Portland area.There was a period of time that he was in partnership with Hammond, but later went out on his own. Apparently they were awarded the contract to build the Butler Bank.
Hansen has a long list of achievements in the construction industy in Portland. Among the building credited to him were the Pacific Building, Broadway Theatre, YMCA, and Multnomah Statium. He also did a great deal of construction on Crown Willamette paper mill in Camas.
Another very interesting observation. Next to what would become the Butler Bank you see a shoe store with the owner Johnson. Believe it or not Johnson’s Shoe Store was in operation when I was even a teen ager. I think probably J. C. Johnson was the father of the owner that had it when I was growing up. I think his name was Art Johnson.
Jim Gray
The 2 vehicles I believe you are calling Taxi’s are canopy delivery trucks, could also be hauling freight to the Heights for a fee.
Ellen Dittebrandt
Wow thank you so much for all these great photo’s you have posted on this site. It so nice to see our town like it has never before seen, in most of our live times. If you didn’t grow up here. I came from Portland OR. I feel getting to now your past grounds you in your present. It makes you yourself a part of it all. It great to read all the comments too Like Charlott she know a lot about all this area Thank Charlott! Thank you to everyone else also.
Arlen Sheldrake
Excellent photos and information……check went in the USPS today.
Arlen
l.e.
Jim Gray….we have often thanked Charlott for her input on the photos, but I want to thank you also for the information that you have contributed.
My check will be in the mail tomorrow. And I don’t even live in HR. In fact, I don’t even live in Oregon, but these photos have been a great joy for me and I anxiously await 7:00 AM on weekday mornings.
Janet Johnsen Brown
Greetings everyone! I’m the great granddaughter of J.C. Johnsen (John Christian Johnsen), granddaughter of Arthur ‘Art’ Johnsen and daughter of Albert ‘Al’ C Johnsen – the Johnsen Shoe Store owner family. I’m thrilled to see this photo of the Shoe Store with its very ‘ancient’ signage! Since I, too, was born in Hood River and have many fond and grateful memories of the town, the Shoe Store and the Valley I appreciate the photos shared on this website.
I’ll be sending a contribution to help with the photo digitizing work. Thanks again for all you’re doing to keep Hood River History alive.
Lori Adams
I am the Grand daughter of Charles Allen Hart 1885-1953 and Colada (Buchanan )Hart 1891-1928 . I saw that the Kayak shop had been in the Hart family since 1800,I was interested to learn history on the building. I use to have pics of what looked to be an Inn with donkey and a girl with a baby carriage in the front lawn. Charles had a wife following my grandma who died giving birth,
Wilma L Hart