Lost City, Living Memories: Vanport Through The Voices of Its Residents

Project directed by Story Midwife, Laura Lo Forti

Since 2014 Story Midwife Laura Lo Forti has been facilitating a participatory oral history project to capture, honor, and preserve the memories of those who lived in Vanport, Oregon’s second largest city and  WWII largest federal housing project, wiped out by a flood in 1948.

Media makers, educators, activists, historians, family members with ties to Vanport, continue to work together in this “history from the bottom up” effort. Through archival footage, historic photographs, and compelling first-person narratives, this collection of community-produced short films creates a rich and elaborate “mosaic” of the vibrant multi-racial community that called Vanport home.

Check our calendar for upcoming screenings, or get in touch at info@vanportmosaic.org to host one.

This on-going project has been made possible by:
Oregon Arts Commission, The Kinsman Foundation, Oregon Historical Society.

The entire oral history collection is in the process of being archived and made available online by Portland State University as part of  their Special Collections & University Archives.

The entire oral history collection is in the process of being archived and made available online by Portland State University as part of their Special Collections & University Archives.

 
This project is very important. It tells the true history because the people who lived it are the ones telling their story.
— Marge Moss, Vanport resident
Refugees, 1948. Oregon Historical Society, Neg. OrHi 90163. (Oregon Historical Society)

Refugees, 1948. Oregon Historical Society, Neg. OrHi 90163. (Oregon Historical Society)

A Place Called Home:
From Vanport To Albina

Project directed by Story Midwife, Laura Lo Forti

Through archival footage, historic photographs, and compelling first-person narratives, this collection of short films and audio narratives traces the story of Portland’s African American community from the 1940s to 1970s. It is a story of struggle, perseverance, and resilience that continues today. Since 2018 we’ve been sharing these stories in schools and public libraries, collaborating with Vanport descendant Velynn Brown to create a space to reflect on the meaning of home and belonging, and on the impact of displacement.

Check our calendar for upcoming screenings,
or get in touch at
info@vanportmosaic.org to host one.

Thanks to our partners
University of Oregon School of Journalism and Communication, University of Oregon School of Architecture Preservation Program, Open Signal, Stream PDX.

Made possible by:
Regional Arts And Council, Oregon Heritage Commission, Oregon Historical Society.

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