National Park Service includes Black Historic Resources in Oregon, 1788-2002 document in the National Register of Historic Places

The Black Historic Resources in Oregon, 1788-2002 Multiple Property Submission and an update to the Hannah and Eliza Gorman House designation in Corvallis are the newest of Oregon’s entries in the National Register of Historic Places. Oregon’s State Advisory Committee on Historic Preservation (SACHP) recommended the submission at their June 2024 meeting.

Black Historic Resources in Oregon, 1788-2002, Multiple Property Document (MPD), provides an expansive history of African Americans in Oregon beginning with the first known Black person to have set foot on Oregon’s land and ending with the removal of race-related language from Oregon’s constitution. By mapping the people and the places associated with Black history in Oregon across more than two centuries, this document demonstrates that Black Oregonians had, and continue to have, a unique and significant role in the history of the state.

This document provides an overview of the history of African Americans in Oregon through six different historical contexts and establishes a framework for identifying and listing Oregon’s African American resources in the National Register of Historic Places. This thematic document provides information and structure for individuals interested in listing properties significant in Black history in the National Register. For information about this document or if you would like to learn more about how to use this document, please contact Caitlyn Abrahms at Caitlyn.ABRAHMS@oprd.oregon.gov

Thematic Contexts discussed in the document include:

Exploration, Expedition, and Pre-Territorial Government Actions (1788-1842)	Interwar Years, the Great Depression, and the KKK (1920-1941)
Black Pioneers and Government Measures to Exclude Black People (1843-1867)	World War II, War on Poverty, and the Civil Rights Movement (1942-1969)
Anti-Black State Amidst a Post-Emancipation Nation (1868-1919)	The Recent Black Past (1970-2002)

Submitted with the MPD is an update to the nomination for the Hannah and Eliza Gorman House property in Corvallis. This amendment discusses the archaeological significance of the site and its potential to yield significant information about the lives of Oregon’s early Black pioneer residents, women in particular, during the non-Native settlement period and the era of exclusion laws.

This project is the result of several years of outreach and documentation through a partnership with the State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) and Oregon Black Pioneers. SHPO received funding through an Underrepresented Communities Grant from the National Park Service and Oregon Cultural Trust funds.

The University of Oregon’s Museum of Natural and Cultural History joined the project to coordinate and collaborate with Oregon Black Pioneers and Moreland Resource Consulting LLC to draft the complex document. Additional authors include Kimberly S. Moreland, Christopher Ruiz, Ann Craig, Ishalom Keren, Jessica Engeman, Milo Reed, and Erik Hovmiller.

The inclusion of this document in the National Register of Historic Places supports the goals of the Oregon Historic Preservation Plan. “Working hand-in-hand the community whose story is told in this document reinforced for us how was critical partnerships are to the success of historic preservation work in Oregon.” noted Chrissy Curran, Deputy State Historic Preservation Officer. “This is another step forward in acknowledging Oregon’s diverse history.”

This document pairs nicely with the African American Resources in Portland, Oregon, from 1851 to 1973 MPD at that was accepted in 2020. Several properties have been listed using this tool since its submission including: Dean’s Beauty Salon and Barbershop, Golden West Hotel, Mallory Avenue Christian Church, Mt Olivet Baptist Church, Williams Avenue YWCA (also known as the Billy Webb Elks Lodge). This new MPD expands similar possibilities throughout the state.

The National Register is maintained by the National Park Service under the authority of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966. Properties listed in the National Register are:

• Recognized as significant to the nation, state, or community;
• Considered in the planning of federal or federally assisted projects;
• Eligible for federal and state tax benefits;
• Able to apply for historic preservation grants when funds are available;
• Eligible for leniency in meeting certain building code requirements;
• Subject to local laws pertaining to the conservation and protection of historic resources.

State law in Oregon requires local governments to offer a minimal level of protection for properties listed in the National Register of Historic Places; the decisions about how to accomplish that goal reside with local governments, which also have the authority to create and regulate local historic districts and landmarks.

More information about the National Register and recent Oregon listings are online at oregonheritage.org (under the heading “Designate”).