While today Portland is known as one of the whitest cities in the U.S., its multicultural and immigrant history is rich and storied. Old Town/ Chinatown shows the challenges faced by Portland’s ethnic communities, as well as their many contributions to the city’s economy, industry and culture.
Past Events
seedy, seamy & sinful portland tour
Join Doug as we visit sites of famous saloons and bordellos, opium dens and card rooms, some of which are still in operation today. The tour will “end” outside of Mary’s Club, one of Portland’s most venerated strip clubs.
hidden portland tour
What if the City was a Museum? Hidden Portland: City Treasures! attempts to answer this question by allowing tour goers to discover and appreciate the often unnoticed parts of the city.
keep portland wired! a tour of portland’s tech community
Board the bus for an afternoon ride through Portland’s technology industry, including some of the major institutions our city is known for, as well as some of our emerging start ups.
crafty wonderland super colossal spring sale
Catch Know Your City tabling our wares at the Crafty Wonderland Super Colossal Spring Sale!
seedy, seamy & sinful portland tour
Join Doug as we visit sites of famous saloons and bordellos, opium dens and card rooms, some of which are still in operation today. The tour will “end” outside of Mary’s Club, one of Portland’s most venerated strip clubs.
stumptown comics festival
Catch Know Your City tabling our wares at the 10th Annual Stumptown Comics Fest!
Tom McCall’s 100th Birthday Party
Join us for the release of a new comic about former Governor Tom McCall and his contributions to Oregon, with live music by Dirt Vortex, film clips, speakers and more.
3rd annual perfect pickle
Join us for the 3rd Annual Perfect Pickle, the Dill Pickle Club’s annual awareness event in which we challenge local chefs to craft the ultimate pickle, with proceedings benefiting our mission of broadening knowledge of Portland’s past, present and future. The evening is set to a backdrop of a local music and entertainment.
Don’t Move Out! poster release
Join We Are Oregon and Dill Pickle Club for the release of “Don’t Move Out! Foreclosure resistance in Portland,” a free over-sized poster on the foreclosure crisis in Oregon. 5,000 posters will be distributed to homeowners facing evictions. Along with the poster release, there will be a short program and refreshments.
seedy, seamy & sinful portland tour
Join Doug as we visit sites of famous saloons and bordellos, opium dens and card rooms, some of which are still in operation today. The tour will “end” outside of Mary’s Club, one of Portland’s most venerated strip clubs.
east portland tour
A tour to meet the personalities, immigrant and refugee organizations, businesses, and high school teachers, that are making SE 82nd Ave’s optimism, civility and unabashed ambition, possible.
chinatown/ old town tour
While today Portland is known as one of the whitest cities in the U.S., its multicultural and immigrant history is rich and storied. Old Town/ Chinatown shows the challenges faced by Portland’s ethnic communities, as well as their many contributions to the city’s economy, industry and culture.
hidden portland tour
What if the City was a Museum? Hidden Portland: City Treasures! attempts to answer this question by allowing tour goers to discover and appreciate the often unnoticed parts of the city.
there’s no place like home tour
A bus ride to hear first-hand accounts from currently and formerly homeless persons, as well as individuals and groups who work for social change around housing and homeless issues.
seedy, seamy & sinful portland tour
Join Doug as we visit sites of famous saloons and bordellos, opium dens and card rooms, some of which are still in operation today. The tour will “end” outside of Mary’s Club, one of Portland’s most venerated strip clubs.
north portland gentrification tour
A tour to educate participants as to the rise, fall and efforts to reunite Portland’s Black neighborhoods.
north portland gentrification tour
A tour to educate participants as to the rise, fall and efforts to reunite Portland’s Black neighborhoods.
hidden portland tour
What if the City was a Museum? Hidden Portland: City Treasures! attempts to answer this question by allowing tour goers to discover and appreciate the often unnoticed parts of the city.
chinatown/ old town tour
While today Portland is known as one of the whitest cities in the U.S., its multicultural and immigrant history is rich and storied. Old Town/ Chinatown shows the challenges faced by Portland’s ethnic communities, as well as their many contributions to the city’s economy, industry and culture.
seedy, seamy & sinful portland tour
Join Doug as we visit sites of famous saloons and bordellos, opium dens and card rooms, some of which are still in operation today. The tour will “end” outside of Mary’s Club, one of Portland’s most venerated strip clubs.
chinatown/ old town tour
While today Portland is known as one of the whitest cities in the U.S., its multicultural and immigrant history is rich and storied. Old Town/ Chinatown shows the challenges faced by Portland’s ethnic communities, as well as their many contributions to the city’s economy, industry and culture.
hidden portland tour
What if the City was a Museum? Hidden Portland: City Treasures! attempts to answer this question by allowing tour goers to discover and appreciate the often unnoticed parts of the city.
peripheries preview party
Join us for the announcement of our upcoming Peripheries programs: a series of cross-cultural tours examining the peripheries of Portland. Get a preview of what’s in store this fall as we hear from our program staff, partners and several of our distinguished guest speakers. The event’s purpose is also to raise funds — which are desperately needed in order to make these programs possible. (for full description and details, click title)
A Place Called Home: Documentary
Join us on Sunday, June 24th, for the fourth and last installment of A Place Called Home: Lectures on Filmmaking in Portland, a monthly lecture series focused on the history of movie-making in the city, at the Whitsell Auditorium, with guests Tom Chamberlin, Dennis Nyback and Tom Robinson (co-presented with the Northwest Film Center).
the oh so (queer) history of portland
Join us for a walking tour of our city’s past and present queer culture — including the history of the struggle for gay rights and current challenges faced by the LGBTQ community. Learn about old “camp” sites, haunts and hideouts of Vaseline Alley, gay bathhouses, gay liberation, Portland’s gay press and more. Guest speakers include infamous drag queen Darcelle (Walter Cole), David Kohl (Historian, Gay and Lesbian Pacific Northwest Archives) and Dr. Ann Mussey (Professor, PSU, Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies), as well as speakers from Cascade Aids Project and Basic Rights Oregon.
A Place Called Home: Experimental
A Place Called Home: Lectures on Filmmaking in Portland continues with presentations by Jim Blashfield, Brooke Jacobson and Matt McCormick at the Clinton Street Theater.
Crafty Wonderland
DPC will be a participating vendor at the CRAFTY WONDERLAND SUPER COLOSSAL SPRING SALE at the Oregon Convention Center.
A Place Called Home: Animation
A Place Called Home: Lectures on Filmmaking in Portland continues with presentations by Rose Bond, Joan Gratz and Joanna Priestley at the Hollywood Theater.
stumptown comics fest
On Sunday, April 28th, the Dill Pickle Club will be tabling the 2012 Stumptown Comics Fest. In addition, Oregon History Comics Editor Sarah Mirk will present THE FUTURE OF HISTORY, a presentation on new ways to engage audiences on history (with trivia!).
people places politics: a tour of portland’s activist history
Board the bus for an afternoon ride through more than 100 years of Portland activism, including the fight for woman suffrage, civil rights, transportation activism, protection of the environment and much more.
A Place Called Home: Narrative
A Place Called Home: Lectures on Filmmaking in Portland kicks off with presentations by David Cress, Walt Curtis, Shawn Levy and David Walker at Cinema 21.
Oregon History Comics Release Party
Join us March 4th at Powell’s Books for the public release of Oregon History Comics: Vol. 1-10. Writer Sarah Mirk will present a brief slideshow about the project, followed by a round of history trivia (with prizes for the winners!). Meet some of the participating artists and check out and purchase original artwork made for the comic series, which will be on display for one-night-only.
The Second Annual Perfect Pickle
On Monday, February 6th, the Dill Pickle Club hosts The 2nd Annual Perfect Pickle at Holocene (1001 SE Morrison St). The event is a fundraiser that brings together some of the city’s top chefs, musicians and entertainers to raise support to sustain the organization’s work to “broaden knowledge about Portland’s past, present and future.”
How Does the River Work?
Long known as a port town, Portland’s location on the Willamette River is central to the vitality of the city. Join us for a Saturday bus ride to learn more about the past, present and future of Oregon’s working waterfront.
The 99%: A Teach-in on Occupy Portland
The Dill Pickle club presents a series of speakers who bring together various perspectives on the current occupations movement, focusing on the economic, political and social factors that have led to the emergence of occupations in Portland and throughout the country.
Where Does Garbage Go?
Although plenty of Portlanders are proud of how “green” their city is, not many know what happens to their waste. This bus tour will provide an insider’s perspective to trash, recycling and waste reduction in the Rose City.
Dill Pickle Book Club: The Right to the City
In conjunction with our City Works trips, we will host a discussion group and book club. This provides an informal setting where we can examine in greater detail the issues explored on the tours. At this meeting, we will discuss Henri Lefebvre’s “The Right to the City”, in Writings on Cities (Blackwell Publishing, 1996).
How Is News Made?
How does journalism contribute to public life? What is the media’s civic responsibility? Join us as we examine these issues and explore the ecology of local news media.
How Is Justice Served?
Criminal justice is often an invisible but important element of society. This walking tour aims to provide participants with a better understanding of the city’s justice system. Guests include: Chris O’Connor (Attorney, Metropolitan Public Defender), Sergeant Jacobs (Multnomah County Sheriff’s Department) and Jason Renaud (Spokesperson, Mental Health Association of Portland), while sites encompassed include: the Federal Courthouse Building and the Multnomah County Justice Center.
Dill Pickle Book Club: City Limits
In conjunction with our City Works trips, we will host a discussion group and book club. This provides an informal setting where we can examine in greater detail the issues explored on the tours. At this meeting, we will discuss David Oates’ City Limits: Walking Portland’s Boundary (Oregon State University Press, 2006).
How Is The City Planned?
Portland is known worldwide as a city at the forefront of urban planning, but how did the city become known for its progressive policy and what are its current initiatives? Join us for a walking and public transit tour to meet with city experts and take in some of the Portland’s notable urban design sites.
Dill Pickle Book Club: The Death and Life of Great American Cities
In conjunction with our City Works trips, we will host a discussion group and book club. This provides an informal setting where we can examine in greater detail the issues explored on the tours. At this meeting, we will discuss Jane Jacobs’ The Death and Life of Great American Cities (Random House, 1961).
Where Does Water Come From?
Kick off our 2011 City Works tours with a day-long bus trip examining the source of the city’s water supply. Board the bus as we visit with representatives from the Portland Water Bureau, who will guide us through the Bull Run watershed. Known for its exceptionally high quality, the Bull Run facility provides drinking water to more than 840,000 people in the Portland metropolitan area.
Oregon Rocks Concert & Exhibition Opening
Celebrate the opening of Oregon Rocks: A History of Popular Music in Oregon with a concert on the patio of the Oregon Historical Society. From “Louie, Louie” to today’s contemporary scene, the opening concert will feature performances by: Ural Thomas, The Kingsmen, Pierced Arrows, Quasi & DJ HWY 7, in addition to short talks by prominent members of the Portland music community.
Portland’s Black Panthers Presentation
Join writer Sarah Mirk, artist Khris Soden and Black Panther Kent Ford for a talk on the process of creating the illustrated pamphlet and the Panthers’ legacy in Portland.
City Works Preview Party
Celebrate the release of our City Works Scout Book, the launch our new Website and the second year of Dill Pickle Club (DPC) programs on a rooftop overlooking Mount Hood. We’ll be announcing DPC programs for the rest of the year, with a presentation on our upcoming tours (with opportunity to get first crack at saving your seat on the bus) and our collaboration with Oregon Historical Society. This is a members-only party, but you are cordially invited to bring a guest and join us for drinks, hors d’oeuvres and birthday cake.
PDX RE-PRINT: Burnside: A Community
Burnside: A Community assembles photographs of the Old Town/ Chinatown area by self-taught photographer Kathleen Ryan. Documented here are the flophouses, theaters and saloons of skid row, with attention to the neighborhood’s ethnic and historical origins. The book opens a wider examination of the history of homelessness in Portland as well as current struggles.
PDX RE-PRINT: Voices of Portland
Voices of Portland Thursday, May 26th, 7PM Project Grow 2156 N Williams Voices of Portland documents the history of Portland’s neighborhoods through oral histories conducted in the mid 1970s. Self-published by Christine Emenc with a CETA grant in 1976, the book presents a conversational and non-authoritative telling of changes in the city. Celebrate the reprinting [...]
PDX RE-PRINT: Rubbings from the Rose City
Rubbings from the Rose City documents Portland through one-of-a-kind handmade etchings of building façades, gravestones, street signs, manhole covers and more. Self published by Christopher Gossett in 1983, the book provides a unique snapshot of the city and its many familiar landmarks. Celebrate the reprinting of this out-of-print book, with a panel discussion on the interface of art and the built environment.
PDX RE-PRINT: Twenty Seven Installations
On Thursday, March 31, YU in collaboration with the Dill Pickle Club and Publication Studio, partner to present Twenty Seven Installations, a lecture on Portland Center for the Visual Arts (PCVA). A book of the same title, originally produced in 1989, will be made available again in a new edition.
1st Annual Perfect Pickle
1st Annual Perfect Pickle
Fundraiser & Membership Drive for The Dill Pickle Club
Wildmen, Wobblies & Whistlepunks
Prepare for the long winter with a bus trip highlighting the Northwest’s rich logging history.
Walls of Pride: A Tour of African American Public Art
Walls of Heritage Committee, Mallory Avenue Community Enrichment and the Dill Pickle Club proudly partner to present Walls of Pride, a tour celebrating Portland’s African American public art. Tour participants will have the opportunity to experience approximately a dozen murals and other works of public art in their North and Northeast Portland community context, including pieces by: Adriene Cruz, Henry Frison, Lewis Harris, Charlotte Lewis, Isaka Shamsud-Din, Charles Tatum and Clifford Walker. Two of the featured artists, Adriene Cruz and Isaka Shamsud-Din, will be guest speakers at the sites of their work.
Ghosts of Times Past: A Field Trip to Boom Towns of Central Oregon
Join Keith May, author of Ghosts of Times Past: A Road Trip of Eastern Oregon Ghost Towns (Sigh Drighed, 1998) for a not-to-missed two-day bus tour of ghost towns of central Oregon.
Oral Histories 101
The Dill Pickle Club will facilitate a panel discussion focused on recording and preserving oral histories, including approaches and methods for documenting, as well strategies in preserving, presenting and distributing these stories.
Northwest Passage Release Party
Northwest Passage is a book and audio CD highlighting the history of Portland’s burgeoning independent music scene, and includes contributions from: The Dill Pickle Club, Mississippi Records, Oregon Historical Music Society, PDX Pop Now!, Joe Kregal, Ural Thomas, Valerie Brown, Fred and Toody Cole, Vanessa Renwick and Erin Yanke, Calvin Johnson and Cool Nutz.
Dill Pickle Club 1-Year Birthday Party
The Dill Pickle Club cordially invites its members and their guests to our 1-Year Birthday Party, Thursday, August 12th!
Where Does Energy Come From?
What’s the connection between our contemporary energy crisis and our region’s history? Board the Pickle Bus for a day-long field trip and find out from the experts!
Sweet Cakes: Long Journey – A Walking Tour of Portland’s Chinatown
The Dill Pickle Club and Friends of Portland Chinatown proudly partner to present Sweet Cakes, Long Journey, two behind-the-scenes community tours of Portland’s Chinatown. The tours offer a unique opportunity to learn about the neighborhood through its architecture, oral history and little-known cultural heritage. A rare lecture by visiting scholar Dr. Marie Rose Wong offers a broader sociological and historical view of the area.
Northwest Passage, pt. 3: Calvin Johnson, Vanessa Renwick, and Cool Nutz
A lecture series examining the history of Portland’s burgeoning independent music scene, with presentations by: Joe Kregal, Ural Thomas, Valerie Brown, Eric Isaacson, Fred & Toody Cole, Cool Nutz, Vanessa Renwick, Calvin Johnson and Cary Clarke.
Northwest Passage, pt. 2: Fred & Toody Cole, and a tribute to Dead Moon
A lecture series examining the history of Portland’s burgeoning independent music scene, with presentations by: Joe Kregal, Ural Thomas, Valerie Brown, Eric Isaacson, Fred & Toody Cole, Cool Nutz, Vanessa Renwick, Calvin Johnson and Cary Clarke.
Northwest Passage, pt. 1: Ural Thomas, Joe Kregal, and Valerie Brown
A lecture series examining the history of Portland’s burgeoning independent music scene, with presentations by: Joe Kregal, Ural Thomas, Valerie Brown, Eric Isaacson, Fred & Toody Cole, Cool Nutz, Vanessa Renwick, Calvin Johnson and Cary Clarke.
WORK | PROGRESS Dinner & Show Closing
An intimate evening, with dinner prepared by Mrs. Lucy Rockwell and presentations by people who have helped the Dill Pickle, including: Vontundra, Eberhardt Press and Matthew Stadler.
New Economy Comedy Night
Jokes? In this economy?!? Distract yourself from your dwindling bank account with a dose of comedy featuring stand-up, videos and speeches all dealing with the new economy. We promise, we are not debt collectors. Programmed by Notorious M.I.K.
Red Tour of Portland
Michael Munk (author of The Portland Red Guide: Sites & Stories of Our Radical Past) leads a two-hour walk highlighting the city’s tradition of progressive activism, class struggle and race politics — a history often taken for granted by Portlanders today.
WORK | PROGRESS Opening
Join us for the opening of the exhibition during the First Thursday art walk, with beer donated by Ninkasi and live music by Cape Perpetua and Niekrasz/ Jenkins Duet (of Why I Must Be Careful).
Icky A | Brad Adkins | Moe Bowstern | Carye Bye | Bill Daniel | Dyslexxis | Harrell Fletcher | Sarah Gottesdiener | Sam Gould | Anna Gray | MK Guth | Tad Hirsch | Ariana Jacob | Kendra Larson | Ian Lynam | Eric Mast | Justin Scrappers Morrison | Michael Parich | Ryan Wilson Paulsen | Brittany Powell | Khris Soden | Bwana Spoons | Matthew Stadler | Nim Wunnan | Pete Yahnke
Where Does Food Come From?
With nearly 40 farmers markets and over 30 local farms offering Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) programs, Portland has become internationally-recognized for its prodigious food production. Despite the region’s plentiful bounty, the public’s concern over food policy continues to rise — including food security, pesticide use, depleting honey bee population, inconsistent federal standards — and, most strikingly, hunger — which saw some sections of the city experience a 30% rise in demand for emergency relief this year.
How Are Things Made?
Located on the outskirts of town, Portland’s industrial manufacturing is often overlooked by its urban dwellers. Yet our industries provide the raw materials that make up our everyday urban experience and enable Portland’s “creative class” to exist. What things are made in Portland and how are they produced?
Art for the Millions: The Enduring Legacy of the WPA
During the height of the Great Depression, the Works Progress Administration (WPA) provided economic relief to millions of idle workers by employing them in the creation of public works projects and arts education programs. Although highly controversial in its time for its leftist political leanings, the WPA is cited as a major factor for the re-stabilization of the American economy leading up to WWII. Join the Dill Pickle Society for our grand opening event, Art for the Millions: The Enduring Legacy of the WPA, as we take a leisurely bicycle field trip/ tour of WPA-sponsored projects in Portland and hear from leading authorities on the subject.
