The Cotton Club was a

nightclub A nightclub (music club, discothèque, disco club, or simply club) is an entertainment venue during nighttime comprising a dance floor, lightshow, and a stage for live music or a disc jockey (DJ) who plays recorded music. Nightclubs gener ...

located in

North Portland, Oregon North Portland is one of the six sextants of Portland, Oregon. North Portland is a diverse mixture of residential, commercial, and industrial areas. It includes the Portland International Raceway, the University of Portland, and massive cargo faci ...

. Located at 2125 N. Vancouver Avenue (and N. Tillamook Street), the club gained attention during the 1960s as the "only nightclub on the West Coast with wall-to-wall

soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun '' soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest atte ...

." Celebrities such as Cab Calloway, Sammy Davis, Jr., Cass Elliot, the

Kingston Trio The Kingston Trio is an American folk and pop music group that helped launch the folk revival of the late 1950s to the late 1960s. The group started as a San Francisco Bay Area nightclub act with an original lineup of Dave Guard, Bob Shane, ...

, Joe Louis, and

Archie Moore Archie Moore (born Archibald Lee Wright; December 13, 1913 – December 9, 1998) was an American professional boxer and the longest reigning World Light Heavyweight Champion of all time (December 1952 – May 1962). He had one of the longest ...

would visit the nightclub when they were in town.

Background

The Cotton Club, located within the Albina area of North Portland, was a jazz nightclub that rose to fame in the 1960s after being purchased and renovated by Paul Knauls. Paul Knauls moved to

Portland, Oregon Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the list of cities in Oregon, largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, Columbia rivers, Portland is ...

1963 Events January * January 1 – Bogle–Chandler case: Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation scientist Dr. Gilbert Bogle and Mrs. Margaret Chandler are found dead (presumed poisoned), in bushland near the Lane Co ...

in order to purchase the club. The jazz club was one of many black owned businesses that occupied the area at the time. It was located in a neighborhood where

African-American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ensl ...

s settled after Vanport was destroyed by flooding in 1948 and

Interstate 5 Interstate 5 (I-5) is the main north–south Interstate Highway on the West Coast of the United States, running largely parallel to the Pacific coast of the contiguous U.S. from Mexico to Canada. It travels through the states of Californi ...

and the Memorial Coliseum uprooted a number of black-owned business. By the 1960s, it was part of a thriving area that included the Blue Ribbon Barbecue, Lew's Men's Shop, and the House of Fortune Cafe.

Paul Knauls

Paul Knauls was born in Huntington, Arkansas in 1931. He joined the Air Force in 1949 just 17 days after graduating from high school, and was the first African-American to be stationed at Fairchild Air Force Base in

Spokane, Washington Spokane ( ) is the largest city and county seat of Spokane County, Washington, United States. It is in eastern Washington, along the Spokane River, adjacent to the Selkirk Mountains, and west of the Rocky Mountain foothills, south of the Cana ...

. Knauls worked up to three jobs at a time in order to save up enough money to fulfill his goal of owning a business. In addition to working as a typewriter repairman, he also worked as a dishwasher in a hotel and ski instructor on weekends. Knauls decided to pursue his dream of owning a nightclub in the Portland area due to the city's proximity to the skiing areas at Mt. Hood. He discovered the Cotton Club while visiting the Portland area, and learned the nightclub's owner was willing to sell. After 12 years of saving, Knauls had $17,000, which was enough to begin the process of purchasing a nightclub. After securing a loan of $50,000, Knauls purchased the Cotton Club in 1963. A photo mosaic of Paul Knauls was created for his 90th birthday honoring his life by community people who love, admire and appreciate him

History

The Cotton Club was named after a famous nightclub located in

Harlem, New York Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and Central Park North on the south. The greater Harl ...

. The Cotton Club was initially an unpopular and rundown location under the ownership of a man named Mr. Thompson, who owned the nightclub leading up to 1963 when it was purchased by Paul Knauls. The Cotton Club was part of the Chitlin' Circuit, which was a network of venues on the West Coast that were safe for African American performers to play their music. Many of the celebrities that came to the Portland area to perform would finish their evening at the Cotton Club. In addition to being a popular spot for celebrities on the Chitlin's Circuit, the club gained traction among white community after being featured in the column “Baker’s Dozen” written by Doug Baker of the ''

Oregon Journal ''The Oregon Journal'' was Portland, Oregon's daily afternoon newspaper from 1902 to 1982. The ''Journal'' was founded in Portland by C. S. "Sam" Jackson, publisher of Pendleton, Oregon's ''East Oregonian'' newspaper, after a group of Portlander ...

''. The club was successful for about seven years until its doors closed in 1970. Notable performers included: *

Sammy Davis Jr. Samuel George Davis Jr. (December 8, 1925 – May 16, 1990) was an American singer, dancer, actor, comedian, film producer and television director. At age three, Davis began his career in vaudeville with his father Sammy Davis Sr. and the ...

and Cab Calloway * Duke Ellington * Mel Brown, who went on to be the drummer for Diana Ross * Calvin Walker, The Sander's Brothers, Seven Souls, and Sunday's Child were all involved with the cotton club early in their musical careers * Ron Steen *

Renn Woods Renn Woods (born Ren Woods; January 1, 1958) is an American film, television and stage actress, vocalist and songwriter. She is best known for her role as Fanta in ''Roots'', and also for her performance of Aquarius in the film version of '' Hai ...

References

{{Jazz in Portland, Oregon African-American cultural history African-American history in Portland, Oregon Defunct nightclubs in Portland, Oregon Eliot, Portland, Oregon Jazz clubs in Oregon Jazz in Oregon North Portland, Oregon

Background

Paul Knauls

History

See also

References