Portland boasted of the largest flour mill on the Pacific coast.
The Forestry Building in 1956 in Portland.
This resulted in the Lewis and Clark Centennial Exposition in 1905.
Italy had the biggest pavilion with a large collection of marble statues.
The majority of the buildings erected on the fair grounds were temporary, constructed of plaster over wooden frames.
The Forestry Building was an exception.
It was an enormous structure, measuring 206 feet long by 102 feet wide and 72 feet high.
Most of the giant logs that comprised the building, came from old-growth trees in Columbia County, Oregon.
Some of these logs were six feet across.
The interior of the Forestry Building featured colonnades of 54 massive, unpeeled Douglas Fir logs.
The logs supported a 2-story center aisle, cruciform in plan, and lit by skylights.
A vintage postcard showing n interior scene in the Forestry Building.
There were exhibits showing Oregons abundant Natural Resources and there were taxidermy displays of animals native to the region.
However, the state also refused to pay for repairs.
By then, the building had turned into a safety hazard and was closed to the public.
In the late 1940s, there was another fire started by sparks from a caretakers stove.
It burned a hole in the roof about 15 feet in diameter.
Finally, in the 1950s the Chamber of Commerce raised enough money to began repairing the aging structure.
An old Logging Train and other equipment used in the forests were added to the grounds.
Pretty soon, the Forestry Building became a favorite field trip destination for local school children.
It was also a favorite spot to bring out-of-town guests.
Photo: Portland Fire Department
The flames were almost ten stories high, reported an eye-witness.
The fire illuminated the sky for miles, the neighborhood was an orange glow.
The windows on the entire south side of the Montgomery Park Building were blown out.
The heat was so intense that the windows were popping out.
Glass was falling down to the street below.
Ashes the sizes of large snowflakes fell to the ground within a mile of the structure.
It was surreal, an amazing sight.
A new, more fire-resistant forestry building designed by Oregon architect John Storrs was built in Washington Park.
It opened to the public in 1971.
The Forestry Building in 1959.
Two women on upper balcony of Forestry Building.
Photo:Oregon Historical Society
References:#Pdxhistory.com# Finn J.D.
John, Oregon lost worlds biggest log cabin in spectacular 1964 fire,Offbeat Oregon#Wikipedia
