Offbeat Oregon: Horse racing, and horse-race fixing, used to be wildly popular
Horse racing is a sport largely faded from the scene in Oregon. There’s still an active community, and plenty of money changes hands at racetracks — but it’s more or less a niche ...
Offbeat Oregon: No fishing fleet quite like the dories of Pacific City
The Cape Kiwanda dory fleet of Pacific City Offbeat Oregon Finn J.D. John, an instructor at OSU, writes about unusual and little-known aspects of Oregon history.
Offbeat Oregon: Haystack Rock once drew daredevil climbers
One could think of late June and early July of 1968 in Cannon Beach as the Summer of the Dead Baby Birds. Offbeat Oregon Finn J.D. John, an instructor at OSU, writes about unusual and little-known ...
Offbeat Oregon: Higher education got off to rough start in Eugene
The University of Oregon, as most alumni can tell you, was founded in 1876 as the flagship of Oregon’s university system. Offbeat Oregon Finn J.D. John, an instructor at OSU, ...
Offbeat Oregon: Mining claim was a decent spot to wait out Depression
It was, most historians agree, the nadir of the Great Depression. The entire country had gone from singing “Happy Days are Here Again” to “Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?” in a few ...
Offbeat Oregon: New law foiled plan to seize mines by force
In the years that followed the American Civil War, the federal government was gasping for cash. Offbeat Oregon Finn J.D. John, an instructor at OSU, writes about unusual and little-known ...
Offbeat Oregon: Prospectors chasing rumors pass up a fortune — twice
It was the spring of 1862, and prospector William C. Aldred had been in the gold fields of California since the Gold Rush first broke out — about a dozen years. And he’d hit just enough ...
Offbeat Oregon: Bootlegger trap was huge – but expensive – success
“Lobster trap for bootleggers” was a huge but wildly expensive success Offbeat Oregon Finn J.D. John, an instructor at OSU, writes about unusual and little-known aspects ...
Offbeat Oregon: Was legend of the Bridge of the Gods true? Probably
In the opening scene of “The Warlord of Mars,” Edgar Rice Burroughs’ third “John Carter of Mars” book, the hero is paddling up the great River Iss as it flows out ...
Offbeat Oregon: How a banana peel changed the course of Oregon history
On your next visit to the beach, you might want to bring along a banana. One of these humble fruits played a small but important part in the historical chain of events that led to the state’s beaches ...
Offbeat Oregon: Confederate refugees made big changes in state politics
The urban-rural divide in Oregon is something that’s gotten quite a bit of press recently, after a group of Republicans left the state to deny a quorum for a bill they opposed. But it’s a ...
Offbeat Oregon: 1890s ‘Hold-Up Session’ featured giant house party
At the time of this writing, the Oregon Legislature was stuck, unable to do anything; a group of lawmakers had gone off to Idaho for the express purpose of denying the legislature’s leaders ...
Offbeat Oregon: Bungling attempt marked end of shanghaiing era
The election of 1904 didn’t end the practice of shanghaiing in Portland, but it did put a huge and (eventually) fatal dent in it. Offbeat Oregon Finn J.D. John, an instructor at OSU, ...
Offbeat Oregon: In regulation attempt, Oregon granted shanghaier monopoly
Things were looking a bit grim for former Welterweight Champion of the World William “Mysterious Billy” Smith and his partners in almost-crime, brothers Harry and Jim White. Offbeat ...
