[Heritage] Oregon Heritage News 2009-08-28

Fri Aug 28 11:01:50 PDT 2009

In this issue:
1.  Historic quilts included in Benton exhibition
2.  Centennial production updated; performances slated
3.  Oregon Stories to be collected at State Fair
4.  Rypkema to evaluate green efforts Sept. 15 in Portland
5.  Portland pro baseball featured at History Pub
6.  Building re-developer Gerding dies
7.  Speaker series begins Sept. 2 at State Library
8.  Wagon encampment set for Sept. 5-7 at Baker City

HISTORIC QUILTS INCLUDED IN BENTON EXHIBITION

The Benton County Historical Museum is celebrating Quilt County and
Oregon's 150th Birthday with a juried quilt exhibition "Celebrating
Oregon's Heritage" Aug. 28-Oct. 17. 

The exhibition will include both contemporary quilts by Benton County
quilters and quilts from the museum collection that date from 1824-1985.
 Six of the museum's quilts were made in the 19th century.  All of the
quilts will be represented in an online museum exhibition at
www.bentoncountymuseum.org.  

The museum is open 10 a.m.-4:30 p.m.Tuesday-Saturday. Located at 1101
Main St., Philomath, the Benton County Historical Society operates the
museum for the preservation of history and culture. For more
information, call (541) 929-6230 or visit www.bentoncountymuseum.org 

CENTENNIAL PRODUCTION UPDATED; PERFORMANCES SLATED

"Oregon! Oregon! 2009," the spin off of a rollicking 1959 radio play,
begins its brief performance life with presentations in Salem, Bend,
Jacksonville and Portland.

"Oregon! Oregon! 2009" will debut at 8 p.m. Aug. 28 on the opening
night of the Oregon State Fair.  Pink Martini and the 234th Army Band -
Oregon National Guard will be joined by an all-star list of Oregonians,
who will perform the updated 21-minute musical originally penned by
Grammy Award-winning radio personality Stan Freberg.  
Former Oregon Governor Barbara Roberts will appear in Salem again as
governor - this time making a cameo in the 1959 play, Oregon! Oregon!,
originally commissioned for the state’s centennial celebration.

Metro Council President David Bragdon, Chariots of Fire conductor Harry
Rabinowitz (age 92), Thomas Lauderdale of Pink Martini, PICA Flash
Choir’s Sarah Dougher and Pat Janowski and the writers of Livewire!
have written a bonus Act IV, complete with new songs and a joyous,
carefree plot.

Award-winning musical director Greg Tamblyn will direct the show that
kicks off a full Pink Martini concert.  It includes Pink Martini’s
China Forbes in the role of Beaver Interpreter, Oregonian columnist
Margie Boule as the witch and sets designed by Portland artist,
Scrappers. 

"Oregon! Oregon! 2009" will also be performed Aug. 29 at the Les Schwab
Amphitheater in Bend, Aug. 30 at The Britt Festival in Jacksonville, and
Sept. 5 at the Oregon Zoo. For more information and tickets, visit
www.oregon150.org 

OREGON STORIES TO BE COLLECTED AT STATE FAIR                

Oregon Stories, a project of the Oregon 150 statehood sesquicentennial
organization, will have a collection booth during the Oregon State Fair
Aug. 28-Sept. 7.

The collection booth will be located in the southeast corner of the
Jackman-Long Building. You can share your favorite memory of the State
Fair, your favorite pie recipe, or a special story about Oregon. 
Afterwards, listen to an Entercom radio station broadcasting the story.
For more information, visit www.oregon150.org  

RYPKEMA TO EVALUATE GREEN EFFORTS SEPT. 15 IN PORTLAND

Donovan Rypkema, a historic preservation economist, will talk about
"Sustainable Development & Green Buildings Aren't Synonymous" at 6 p.m.
Sept. 15 in Portland. 

Green buildings in the United States have attracted the attention of
architects, builders, public officials and environmentalists. However,
according to Rypkema, the role
of historic buildings in sustainable development cannot be
overestimated. The greenest building is the one that's already built, he
adds, noting that the "green" application to new buildings may not
always be appropriate. 

Sponsored by The Nines Hotel and supported by Inner City Properties,
the presentation will take place at The Nines Hotel, 525 SW Morrison.
For information and tickets, visit the Architectural Heritage Center's
website at http://www.visitahc.org/content/upcoming-programs

PORTLAND PRO BASEBALL FEATURED AT HISTORY PUB

"Big-League Baseball in Slabtown, 1901-1956" is the theme of the
History Pub at 7 p.m. Aug. 31. The free program is sponsored by the
Oregon Historical Society, Holy Names Heritage Center and McMenamins. It
takes place at the McMenamins' Kennedy School, 5736 N.E. 33rd Ave.

Before Major League teams migrated from the East, the Portland Beavers
were part of an equivalent organization called the Pacific Coast League.
Over the Beavers' first 50 years, when its home field was at NW 24th &
Vaughn streets, the club posted championship seasons and played against
the likes of Joe Dimaggio and Ted Williams.  The team and its park
encouraged many Slabtown boys into professional baseball careers,
including future major league greats Johnny Pesky and Mickey Lolich. 
Featured speakers of the program are Jack Cain, a former Vaughn Street
Park kid turned Beavers senior advisor; Eddie Basinski, Beavers' star
player of the 1940s and 1950s; and a panel of notable "Slabtowners,"
including Pesky's brother Vince, and Dick Benevento, son of beloved
longtime groundskeeper.

For more information, visit www.ohs.org 

BUILDING RE-DEVELOPER GERDING DIES

Bob Gerding, a 71-year-old Portland native who transformed building
re-development in Portland and worldwide, died Aug. 17 of cancer. 

Gerding was most known for co-founding Gerding Edlen Development Co.,
the firm that redeveloped the former Blitz-Weinhard brewery into an
urban cluster of offices and shops that are studied worldwide for their
approach to mixed-use development and water and energy conservation.

The firm later became the world's biggest producer of buildings
certified for the highest environmental standards. 

The son of a  Portland homebuilder, Gerding studied science at the
University of Oregon, Portland State University and the University of
California. He earned a doctorate in biochemistry from U of O in 1967,
taught physiology at Purdue University and later held a clinical post at
Good Samaritan Hospital, in Portland. 

SPEAKER SERIES BEGINS SEPT. 2 AT STATE LIBRARY

The fall noontime speaker series at the Oregon State Library opens
Sept. 2 with "The Other Sesquicentennial (1855) Overview of Treaties in
Western Oregon" by David Lewis, manager of the cultural resources
department of the Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde. His
presentation will explain the 1851 Anson Dart treaties, as well the Joel
Palmer 1853-1855 treaties for western Oregon. Particular attention will
be paid to the creation of the western Oregon reservations and the
intent of the Federal
government and the Oregon territorial settlers during the era.

The library is located at 250 Winter St. NE, Salem. For more
information about the Sept. 2 presentation, visit 
http://library.state.or.us/services/training/treaties.pdf  For more
information on the series, visit 
http://library.state.or.us/services/training/lectures.php 

WAGON ENCAMPMENT SET FOR SEPT. 5-7 AT BAKER CITY

A wagon encampment event September 5-7 at the National Historic Oregon
Trail Interpretive Center near Baker City will recreate a pioneer rest
stop on the Oregon Trail as it might have looked 150 years ago.

>From 10 a.m.-2 p.m. daily, costumed interpreters will provide Dutch
oven cooking demonstrations at the center’s outdoor wagon encampment.
Samples are available for visitors. A variety of dishes will be
prepared, all using historic recipes and ingredients that were available
to overland pioneers. Dishes will include freshly prepared
bison, salmon, and lamb stews, cobblers, and biscuits. Traditional
pioneer fare of hard tack, dried fruit, and beans will also be on hand.

Sheryl Curtis will appear as “Bullwhackin’ Kass” with her team of
oxen. Curtis gives brief demonstrations of how the animals take commands
for basic tasks and she will answer questions about frontier teamsters
and early freighting. 

The National Historic Oregon Trail Interpretive Center, operated by the
Bureau of Land Management, is located five miles east of Baker City on
Highway 86. Take Exit 302 from I-84. The Center is open from 9 a.m. to 6
p.m. daily. Visit www.oregontrail.blm.gov  for more information about
the Center, or call 541-523-1843 for updates on programs and events. 
For information on this and other events in Baker County, call
1-800-523-1235.
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