A Decade Amplifying, Honoring, and Preserving The SPIRIT OF VANPORT

Built as temporary housing in a state established as a 'white utopia,' Vanport was a place of belonging for a working-class, multiracial community.
In 1948, a flood erased the city from the map and the region’s memory. Today, only a few signposts and a concrete slab from the former movie theater remain as physical evidence of the 'Miracle City.'

This history presents unique challenges: How can we preserve and commemorate a significant cultural landscape when its built environment has been erased? Vanport survivors, now in their 80s and 90s, have kept this history alive, and over the past decade have worked with Vanport Mosaic “memory activists” to record their experiences. Together, we have built the most extensive collection of audio and video oral history recordings about Vanport community life, the flood, and its aftermath.

The stories that emerged from these gatherings inspired theatrical performances (with some of the survivors and their children involved in the creative process and on stage), visual artistic interpretations, and musical tributes. Every year, Oregonians of all ages and backgrounds explore this history during the multi-disciplinary Vanport Mosaic Festival, “a highlight of Portland’s cultural calendar, blending history, culture, arts, and activism into a living and highly creative memorial.”

Working alongside the Vanport Memory Keepers is the honor of our lives, and we are proud to share with you what this tiny but mighty organization has accomplished in the past decade, telling stories WITH, and not about the community.