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Downtown Temples of Commerce Tour
The following description was submitted by the event organizer.
After repeated Willamette River flooding in the late 19th century, Portland's central business district began to move west of 2nd Avenue, embarking on an era of building construction that utilized popular new materials, often coupled with classical design motifs. The results included some of the city's first "skyscrapers," and by the 1910s, Fifth and Sixth Avenues had become the heart of this new business district.
This tour examines the downtown “temples of commerce,” mostly along Fifth and Sixth Avenues. Along the way, you’ll see banks resembling classical Greek and Roman temples and learn about the early 20th-century architects who left an indelible impression on Portland, particularly Albert E. Doyle, Whidden and Lewis, and the Reid Brothers from California.