The Oregon Centennial was the 100th anniversary of the statehood of the U.S. state of

Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...

. The day of the anniversary was February 14, 1959, but centennial events took place throughout the year. Festivities were held all over the state, with the major attractions at the Oregon Centennial Exposition and International Trade Fair, located at the Expo Center in Portland's Kenton neighborhood, which took place from June 10 to September 17, 1959. The chief dramatic event of the Oregon Centennial Exposition was the presentation of ''The Oregon Story'' at the Exposition Arena, a spectacular featuring more than 700 actors, the Hollywood Bowl Ballet and the Portland Symphonic Choir. Music was composed by Meredith Willson with the production directed by

Vladimir Rosing Vladimir Sergeyevich Rosing (russian: Владимир Серге́евич Розинг) (November 24, 1963), also known as Val Rosing, was a Russian-born operatic tenor and stage director who spent most of his professional career in the United ...

. Entertainment included Roy Rogers & Dale Evans, Lawrence Welk,

Harry Belafonte Harry Belafonte (born Harold George Bellanfanti Jr.; March 1, 1927) is an American singer, activist, and actor. As arguably the most successful Jamaican-American pop star, he popularized the Trinbagonian Caribbean musical style with an internati ...

, and

Art Linkletter's House Party ''House Party'' is an American radio daytime variety/talk show that aired on CBS Radio and on ABC Radio from January 15, 1945 to October 13, 1967.Dunning, John''On the Air: The Encyclopedia of Old-Time Radio''(Oxford University Press, 1998), p. 3 ...

broadcast on CBS. The exposition's theme was "Frontier of the Future". Centennial-related events and attractions included a play, a musical, parades, specially commissioned artworks by muralist Carl Morris, and a railroad line that used two trains built for the Portland Zoo Railway (now the

Washington Park and Zoo Railway The Washington Park & Zoo Railway (WP&ZRy) is a Narrow gauge railway, narrow gaugeDrury, George (ed.) (1995). ''Guide to Tourist Railroads and Railroad Museums, 4th Edition'', p. 213. Waukesha (WI), US: Kalmbach Publishing, Kalmbach. . recr ...

). Local communities created monuments to celebrate the anniversary, including a totem pole located at the Oregon Zoo''Native American totem poles restored, reinstalled at zoo.''
Oregon Zoo. Accessed 30 October 2014. and a huge statue of Paul Bunyan in Kenton. Many communities had to raise money to finance their celebration plans. One method used to raise funds was the sale of

Oregon Centennial Tokens Oregon Centennial Tokens were a type of trade token (also known as a "So-Called Dollar") issued during the 1959 Oregon Centennial. Many localities sold them as a fundraiser to finance their Centennial celebrations. Design The Northwest Specialt ...

. Many private companies also created Centennial items for sale. In 2009, the state celebrated the

Oregon Sesquicentennial Oregon () is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of its eastern boundary with Idaho. ...

, also known as "Oregon 150".

References

External links

*
Historic images of events of the Oregon Centennial
from Salem Public Library
Biennial Address of Robert D. Holmes Governor of Oregon to the Fiftieth Legislative Assembly January 12, 1959 Salem, Oregon
from the Oregon State Archives
Oregon 150
History of Oregon United States historical anniversaries

Centennial {{other uses, Centennial (disambiguation), Centenary (disambiguation) A centennial, or centenary in British English, is a 100th anniversary or otherwise relates to a century, a period of 100 years. Notable events Notable centennial events at a ...

Regional centennial anniversaries {{Oregon-org-stub

See also

References

External links