Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Oregon Black Pioneers

@oregonblackpioneers.org

49 followers 12 following 34 posts

Oregon Black Pioneers is Oregon’s only historical society dedicated to preserving and presenting the experiences of African Americans statewide. Our Mission is to research, recognize, and commemorate the history and heritage of African Americans in Oregon.

Posts Media Videos Starter Packs

Pinned

Oregon Black Pioneers @oregonblackpioneers.org · Aug 13

Wherever you find Black history in Oregon, you'll find Oregon Black Pioneers.

3 6

Oregon Black Pioneers @oregonblackpioneers.org · 1d

Welcome to the former Henry H. Hawkins homestead. The house was built over a century ago and still stands today, a rare structure connected to the legacy of a Black Oregon homesteader. Let Mariah tell you more in this Oregon Black History Snap Shot!

#oregonblackhistory

1 5

Oregon Black Pioneers @oregonblackpioneers.org · 29d

Allen & Louisa Flowers had a prominent Black family in early Portland. They raised four sons, owned property, raised horses, and were active in local social & civic affairs. Read more in this Oregon Black History Spotlight!

oregonblackpioneers.org/black-history-spotlight-allen-and-louisa-flowers

Oregon Black Pioneers @oregonblackpioneers.org · 29d

Oregon's Black history, and future.

OPB @opb.org · Sep 7

Called Albina One, the 94-unit development sits on North Flint Avenue just north of the Moda Center. For decades, many families here were displaced and disenfranchised by city policies and development that leaders say prioritized growth over the lives of those who lived and worked there.

Portland Black leaders celebrate ‘homecoming’ with Albina’s new housing

The Albina One housing development is the first step in the effort to repair the harm done to Black Portlanders displaced by urban renewal and the construction of Interstate 5 decades ago.

www.opb.org

Oregon Black Pioneers @oregonblackpioneers.org · Aug 28

Have you ever driven through this beautiful canyon, traveling between Mount Hood and Central Oregon? Then you’ve seen the location of Central Oregon’s first Black homestead, which is now known as John Brown Canyon. Mariah has more in this Oregon Black History Snap Shot!

#oregonhistory

5 12

Oregon Black Pioneers @oregonblackpioneers.org · Aug 21

This October, Oregon Black Pioneers will bring together York scholars, thought-leaders, artists, and community visionaries to finally give Portland's first Black ancestor his due. Find details at yorkfest.com

Oregon Black Pioneers @oregonblackpioneers.org · Aug 13

Wherever you find Black history in Oregon, you'll find Oregon Black Pioneers.

3 6

Oregon Black Pioneers @oregonblackpioneers.org · Aug 11

Oregon educators, help shape our new lesson plans!
If you’re a K–12 educator, please take 5–10 minutes to complete our quick needs assessment survey. Your feedback will help ensure these new lessons and materials truly support your classroom. Thank you!

bit.ly/OBPEducatorS...

A promotional graphic on a back to peach gradient background that says, "Help shape OBP's new lesson plans" featuring five historical Black individuals and icons of books and magnifying glasses.

2 4

Oregon Black Pioneers @oregonblackpioneers.org · Aug 6

Elena Carter Richardson was a ballet dancer and instructor who was one of the most recognizable figures in the Pacific Northwest dance community for a quarter century. Read all about her in this Oregon Black History Spotlight!

Photo: Oregon Ballet Theatre

Black History Spotlight - Elena Carter Richardson - Oregon Black Pioneers

This Oregon Black History Spotlight is on Elena Carter Richardson, a ballet dancer and instructor who was one of the most recognizable figures in the Pacific Northwest dance community.

oregonblackpioneers.org

1 4 20

Oregon Black Pioneers @oregonblackpioneers.org · Jul 18

Hosted by Oregon Chinese Diaspora Project, Southern Oregon University Laboratory of Anthropology, Oregon Black Pioneers and the Clatsop County Historical Society for a trivia night. Come show us your chops!

Clatsop County Trivia Night
Weds, July 23, 6:30 PM
Breakside Brewery Astoria

1 4

Oregon Black Pioneers @oregonblackpioneers.org · Jul 18

Canning! Fishing! Timber! Nature! Culture! Arts! How much do YOU know about Clatsop County? Bring a team and join us for Trivia Night, Wednesday, July 23, 6:30 PM in Astoria at Breakside Brewery. There will be history nerds, there will be beer, there will be prizes!

1 3

Oregon Black Pioneers @oregonblackpioneers.org · Jul 8

Christopher’s research pieces together the story of Zilla, a Black woman who moved to Lostine, OR around 1900—a history that was lost until a quilt and a couple of index cards were uncovered in the archives of a small historical museum on the Oregon coast. Tune in July 30!

bit.ly/BHQFBLive

Redirecting...

bit.ly

Oregon Black Pioneers @oregonblackpioneers.org · Jul 8

Black History Quest is back! Who was Zilla, and why did she come to Wallowa County, Oregon at the turn of the century? Join host Mariah Rocker and Executive Director of North Lincoln County Historical Museum, Christopher Melton, on Wednesday, July 30 at 7:00PM as they explore this question.

A patchwork quilt with colorful stitches and a red letter "Z" is displayed on an orange flyer for a Black History Quest event exploring Who was Zilla in Oregon, scheduled for July 30 at 7:00 PM.

1 2

Oregon Black Pioneers @oregonblackpioneers.org · Jul 1

DYK there's an Oregon town named by a Black man? Welcome to Eagle Point! This small community was named by John Dudley Mathews, a formerly enslaved man who successfully led a small wagon train of Black and White families to Oregon. Mariah Rocker has more in this Oregon Black History Snap Shot!

1 2

Oregon Black Pioneers @oregonblackpioneers.org · Jun 23

Astoria, Oregon! We have a few tickets left! Our Black History Walking Tours will take you through the hidden stories, events, and places significant to Black history. Check the schedule at the link for Portland, Astoria, Eugene, and Salem dates.

oregonblackpioneers.org/tours/

A man in a plaid shirt and a backpack is explaining history. His photo is outlined in turquoise and he stands in front of a historic map of Astoria, Oregon. The image is on a purple background, and says: Black History Walking Tours July 19: Astoria!

1 7

Oregon Black Pioneers @oregonblackpioneers.org · Jun 19

Oregon Black Pioneers acknowledges and honors Oregon’s formerly enslaved Black men and women every day. If this work matters to you, we hope that you will make a donation in support of our mission. Please consider a $19 gift in recognition of the Juneteenth holiday!
oregonblackpioneers.org/donate/

Donate

Your donations to Oregon Black Pioneers make our work possible. Every gift matters to our hardworking non profit. Thank you!

oregonblackpioneers.org

Oregon Black Pioneers @oregonblackpioneers.org · Jun 19

Today we honor and celebrate Juneteenth, the day in 1865 when 250,000 enslaved African Americans in Galveston, Texas received word of their emancipation, nearly 2 1/2 years after the Emancipation Proclamation went into effect. Juneteenth has been a day to gather, reflect, and celebrate ever since.

1 5

Oregon Black Pioneers @oregonblackpioneers.org · Jun 16

Help us honor our state's Black history this Juneteenth with a donation of $19. Your gifts help keep stories like this alive! oregonblackpioneers.org/donate or linktree in bio

Donate

Your donations to Oregon Black Pioneers make our work possible. Every gift matters to our hardworking non profit. Thank you!

oregonblackpioneers.org

Oregon Black Pioneers @oregonblackpioneers.org · Jun 16

The Juneteenth holiday was born in Galveston, Texas, where the last enslaved African Amerians were made free on June 19, 1865. During WWII, Black men and women from Texas and across the South came to Oregon for jobs. They brought their traditions with them, including Juneteenth.

Oregon Black Pioneers @oregonblackpioneers.org · Jun 16

In 1945, a shipyard worker named Clara Peoples hosted Oregon's first Juneteenth celebration in Vanport. This became an annual gathering, and in 1972 Peoples founded the group “Juneteenth Oregon” which has organized Portland Juneteenth events ever since.

Photo: The Oregonian, 2010

1 2 6

Oregon Black Pioneers @oregonblackpioneers.org · Jun 14

Please help us honor Oregon's Black history this Juneteenth with a donation of $19. Your gifts help keep these stories alive! oregonblackpioneers.org/donate

Donate

Your donations to Oregon Black Pioneers make our work possible. Every gift matters to our hardworking non profit. Thank you!

oregonblackpioneers.org

Oregon Black Pioneers @oregonblackpioneers.org · Jun 14

1/1/1869 Black Portlanders met at the Multnomah Co. Courthouse for a Grand Emancipation Celebration, the largest of its kind in OR history. Songs, sermons, and a reading of the emancipation proclamation led the OR Herald to report: "highly creditable" to Portland's small but growing Black community.

A portion of a historical flyer announcing the 1869 Grand Emancipation Celebration in Portland, Oregon, commemorating the emancipation of four million enslaved people in the United States.

1 1 2

Oregon Black Pioneers @oregonblackpioneers.org · Jun 12

If this work matters to you, we hope that you will consider making a donation to Oregon Black Pioneers this Juneteenth in support of our mission. We're asking our supporters to make a gift of $19 in recognition of the June 19 date.

oregonblackpioneers.org/donate

Donate

Your donations to Oregon Black Pioneers make our work possible. Every gift matters to our hardworking non profit. Thank you!

oregonblackpioneers.org

3 4

Oregon Black Pioneers @oregonblackpioneers.org · Jun 12

On Juneteenth we remember the African Americans who experienced slavery in Oregon and across the US. The day is a chance for us to recognize how far we’ve come as well as the work we still have to do. We believe that begins by knowing where we come from and honoring the stories of our ancestors.

1 2 3

Oregon Black Pioneers @oregonblackpioneers.org · Jun 9

Help us honor Oregon's Black history this Juneteenth with a donation of $19. Your gifts help keep stories like this alive! oregonblackpioneers.org/donate

Donate

Your donations to Oregon Black Pioneers make our work possible. Every gift matters to our hardworking non profit. Thank you!

oregonblackpioneers.org

Oregon Black Pioneers @oregonblackpioneers.org · Jun 9

Ben Johnson and Amanda Gardner, brought to Oregon by their enslavers in 1853, met on the Oregon Trail. 15 years later, they reconnected at Salem's first Emancipation Day celebration (1/1/1868). Their freedom day reunion became a courtship, and they married in Albany on 4/12/1870.

#AddToBlacksky

Black and white image of Black pioneers Amanda Gardner Johnson and Ben Johnson, sitting side by side, dressed in 19th-century attire.

1 1 5