Today I made a short pilgrimage to some sites of interest to those
interested in the Spanish American War in Portland.

Photography was involved and we shall see how the images will turn out.

First was the old Portland Armory (128 NW 11th Ave) Thsi structure has
undergone numerous changes in recent years. The southern half of the
building (known as the annex) was torn down several years ago. This part of
the block is now a high rise apartment complex. The Armory itself (what is
left of it) is undergoing renovation and will become a performing arts
center.

The Armory was built in the 1880's and served as a rallying point for
elemnets of the 2nd Oregon prior to their leaving for San Fransisco
(stageing area for the 5th Philipene expedition.

My next stop was the statue of Theodore Roosevlet "Rough Rider" statue in
the South Park blocks adjacent to the Oregon Historical Society. This staue
was created by Phimister Proctor and presented to the city of Portland by
Dr. Henry Waldo Coe-a personal friend of Roosevelt. It is interesting to
note that Roosevelt was present at the dedication of the statue. The
dedication reads "Dedicated to the Children of America".

Next was the Second Oregon Memorial at Lansdale Square east of the Portland
Building. This was the most difficult of the stops as the park in which the
memorial is located was serving as the terminus for the Portland Marathon
and traffic was practically at a standstill.

This is an impressive piece of statuary. The depiction of an Oregon
infantryman atop the large pedestal is made from bronze taken from captured
Spanish cannons. The pedestal bears the inscription "In Memory of the dead
of the Second Oregon Volunteer Infantry" on the west side and the names of
all the dead on the east side. Surrounding it are small stanchions bearing
the names of the campaigns and battles in which the regiment participated as
well as four 24 inch garrison howitzers from Fort Sumpter.

My last stop was Summers park (SE 17th and Taylor St) There is a basalt
boulder here with a mall bornze plaque bearing the image of Colonel Owen
Summers who created the Oregon National guard in 1886 and who commanded the
2nd Oregon during the War with Sapain and the Philipene Insurection.

There is a lot more to see here including several sites of interest to
Battleship Oregon fans and Vancouver Barracks on the Other side of the
Columbia where the 14 US was stationed.

Sam Kimpton