1880-1890s Portland, Oregon and The Jewish and Black Communities

 Nadene Goldfoot                                           

During the 1880–1890 decade, Portland's Jewish community was well-established, prosperous, and culturally integrated, transitioning from pioneer German-Jewish merchants to welcoming early Eastern European arrivals. Prominent community features included established institutions, downtown commerce, and civic leadership.

Civic Power: Pioneer Jewish leaders like attorney Joseph Simon dominated local and state Republican politics, serving prominently in the Oregon State Senate throughout the 1880s.

 Joseph Simon (February 7, 1851 – February 14, 1935) was a German-born politician and attorney in the U.S. state of Oregon. He was born in Bechtheim, Hesse, and his family  (David Simon (1819–1901) and Elise née Leopold (1829–1890).) immigrated to the United States when he was one year old, settling in Portland, Oregon. Also of Reformed persuasion, he attended Beth Israel.  A Republican, Simon served on the city council before election to the Oregon State Senate. He was later elected to the United States Senate for one partial term, 1898 to 1903. He later served as mayor of Portland for one term, 1909 to 1911. He was also the first Jewish Republican senator. He never married.  

Institutions: Formed the Young Men's Hebrew Association (YMHA) in 1880 and maintained Temple Beth Israel as a central religious hub, which held Reform Judaism.  

Social Split: Wealthy German-Jewish elite formed separate social circles like the Concordia Club in the 1880s, though the overall community remained closely tied to broader civic life.  In the 1880s, the Concordia Club was an elite social organization founded by and for German-Jewish merchant elites in various U.S. cities like San Francisco, Pittsburgh, and Little Rock, serving as a Jewish counterpart to restricted gentile gentlemen's clubs. 

In the 1880s, the restriction of Jews from gentile social life was driven by the rise of racial pseudo-science, economic anxiety from recessions, and rapid social integration. This backlash manifested as elite social exclusion in private clubs, hotels, and resorts.  Merchants and Traders: Many worked as owners, importers, and workers in retail and wholesale storefronts downtown near Fourth and Washington Streets.  

Professionals: Individuals found roles in law, politics, and civic leadership, such as future U.S. Senator and state Republican chairman Joseph Simon, who practiced law in Portland during this period. 

General Labor: As the decade progressed into the late 1880s and 1890s, newly arriving Eastern European immigrants also engaged in trade and local labor.               

In 1883, African Americans march in a parade celebrating the Northern Pacific Railway’s arrival, the first transcontinental link to Portland. For the town’s fledgling black residents, trains bring two things: more African Americans, and many jobs for waiters, cooks, porters, and laborers.. yet other reference says: Pioneer Courthouse Square did not exist during the 1880–1890s; the site was instead occupied by Central School and later the construction of the grand Portland Hotel.

Students pose in front of Central School in 1865. The school was built in 1858. The Portland Hotel replaced this school… then Meier & Frank garage…and today Pioneer Square.

 In 1890, the Portland Hotel opens on today’s Pioneer Courthouse Square, employing 75 more African Americans to wait tables—while striking an informal agreement with other downtown employers to not hire any black waiter who quits. Nevertheless, this quasi-indentured servitude pays well, and a black middle class emerges.

Black individuals first arrived in the Portland area during the early-to-mid 19th century, led by explorers like York (with the Lewis and Clark Expedition in 1805) followed by early pioneer settlers and small community builders ahead of Portland's official incorporation in 1851.  

Mount Tabor Park Bust: A prominent temporary and later bronze portrait bust by sculptor Todd McGrain was installed in Portland's Mt. Tabor Park to honor York.

1805: York, an enslaved man traveling with the Lewis and Clark Expedition, reached the lower Columbia River and Clatsop Plains area, becoming the first Black person to explore the region that later became Portland.

Between 1880 and 1890, Portland's Black community grew due to the arrival of transcontinental railroads, leading to new jobs and the rise of a small Black middle class.  Black workers found jobs as cooks, waiters, porters, and laborers. The Portland Hotel: Opened in 1890 near Pioneer Courthouse Square, it hired 75 Black waiters, creating notable employment despite strict workplace rules.  Between 1880 and 1890, 699 African Americans moved into Oregon. It can be inferred that because of the development of railroads through Portland at the time, most of the 699 who moved to Oregon found their way to Portland. Subsequently, it can also be inferred that a large majority of the new inhabitants of the city settled in Albina because of the pre-existing African American communities there to welcome them. However, Albina was certainly not the only place where African Americans took up residency in the city. In fact, a growing population of African Americans began to emerge in Western Portland. However, the growth of African American communities outside of the Albina district proved to be rather short-lived.  Strict unwritten rules: Rigid social codes required Black individuals to show constant deference to whites, such as stepping off the sidewalk to let a white person pass or avoiding direct eye contact. 

Denial of titles: Whites refused to use respectful titles like "Mr.," "Mrs.," or "Miss" when addressing Black people, instead using first names or derogatory terms.Forced separation: Everyday social mix ing  was actively discouraged or barred, setting the stage for formal segregation.  

Resource:

https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/1787272385367494897/1898426569189217017  from Portland Monthly

https://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1147&context=younghistorians