One of the nation’s most ambitious projects to reclaim a gentrified community is happening right here in Portland. https://www.koin.com/hidden-history/black-history-month/black-project-reclaim-portland-gentrified-albina-community/#/questions/5294859?cid=bluesky_ 

Eugene, go see this exhibit! Jeremy Okai Davis talks about his stunning portraits of some of Oregon's earliest Black pioneers.

Oregon's Black History Keepers: 1970s Dr. Darrell Millner came to Eugene in 1970 to attend the University of Oregon. After earning his doctorate, Darrell began teaching History and Afro-American Literature at Portland State University.

Must-see vintage Portland Black Community TV from our friends at Albina Music Trust.

Did you know Oregon has Black history everywhere?

Oregon's Black History Keepers: 1960s Martha Anderson was born in 1910 and spent the first 30 years of her life in Colorado, Idaho, and Nevada. In 1940, she married Walter Anderson and moved to his ranch in Harney County, OR. When Walter’s health worsened in 1953, the couple moved to Portland.

Shout out to the Astoria Heritage Museum in Oregon. "Blocked Out: Race and Place in the Making of Modern Astoria" documents some of Astoria's lesser known history. Thanks to @oregonblackpioneers.org and James and Janet Aalberg for making this exhibition possible and asking the important questions.

Oregon's Black History Keepers: 1950s Verdell Burdine Rutherford moved with her family to Portland in the 1920s. She married Otto Rutherford, and for decades they fought for civil rights as leaders with the NAACP, Urban League, and other groups.

Oregon's Black History Keepers: 1940s During WWII, African Americans from across the country made their way to Vanport to work in the shipyards. One of them was Clara Mae Peoples of Muskogee, Oklahoma.

Oregon's Black History Keepers: 1930s Reverend Daniel G. Hill, Jr. was born in Annapolis, Maryland, in 1896. After studying divinity in Pennsylvania and Colorado, Daniel became minister of Portland’s Bethel AME Church in 1928.

Oregon's Black history, present, and future in Eugene. Don't miss this exhibit!

Oregon’s coast has more stories than you think 🌊 This Black History Month (and beyond), take the road trip, learn the stories, and see the coast through a deeper lens. visittheoregoncoast.com/travel-guide...

Looking for Oregon Black Pioneers’ Black History Month events? Find them at the link! oregonblackpioneers.org/where-is-oregon-black-pioneers-2026

Oregon's Black History Keepers: 1920s In honor of the 100th anniversary of Black History Month, we're highlighting a century of Black history keepers here in Oregon. Without them, so many stories would be lost. We honor and appreciate their essential work this month, and all year round.

Oregon Black Pioneers’ revised educational curriculum and a new Education newsletter are here! Guided by feedback, ideas, and passion from educators, we’ve refreshed our materials to better support classrooms around the state. OBP brings Oregon’s Black history to life—lesson by lesson. Link below

Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, and a Happy New Year.

This is what we do. Showing up for families at events like OMSI’s Black Community Science Night. If this work matters to you, like it does to us, we hope we can count on your support! oregonblackpioneers.org/donate/

Things are difficult for people everywhere, and the last thing you need right now is to worry about whether or not our organization is going to survive. I have good news for you: Oregon Black Pioneers is gonna be alright. oregonblackpioneers.org/donate

"We're here and we're making our marks, we're telling our story. We're a constant thread in Oregon's fabric, that's who we are. And this organization strives every day to make sure of that. ~ Willie B. Richardson, Oregon Black Pioneers

You can't know the U.S.'s history without knowing the U.S.'s Black history. “America does not have a full accounting of itself without the historic Black press,” says Nicole Carr, author, investigative journalist, and professor at Morehouse College in Atlanta.

Explore the stories of six Black Oregon pioneers with colorful NEW Black Oregon Pioneer posters and fun, fact-filled digital storybooks for K-5 classrooms, plus a map activity for 4th grade learners. Free to download, these materials bring Oregon history to life oregonblackpioneers.org/educators

Abner Hunt Francis was an abolitionist, social activist, and business owner in early Portland. He and his brother Isaac opened a mercantile along the Portland waterfront. They were targeted for expulsion under Oregon's Black exclusion law. But something unique happened...

Welcome to the former Henry H. Hawkins homestead. The house was built over a century ago and still stands today, a rare structure connected to the legacy of a Black Oregon homesteader. Let Mariah tell you more in this Oregon Black History Snap Shot! #oregonblackhistory

Allen & Louisa Flowers had a prominent Black family in early Portland. They raised four sons, owned property, raised horses, and were active in local social & civic affairs. Read more in this Oregon Black History Spotlight! oregonblackpioneers.org/black-history-spotlight-allen-and-louisa-flowers

Oregon's Black history, and future.

Have you ever driven through this beautiful canyon, traveling between Mount Hood and Central Oregon? Then you’ve seen the location of Central Oregon’s first Black homestead, which is now known as John Brown Canyon. Mariah has more in this Oregon Black History Snap Shot! #oregonhistory

This October, Oregon Black Pioneers will bring together York scholars, thought-leaders, artists, and community visionaries to finally give Portland's first Black ancestor his due. Find details at yorkfest.com

Wherever you find Black history in Oregon, you'll find Oregon Black Pioneers.

Oregon educators, help shape our new lesson plans! If you’re a K–12 educator, please take 5–10 minutes to complete our quick needs assessment survey. Your feedback will help ensure these new lessons and materials truly support your classroom. Thank you! bit.ly/OBPEducatorS...

Elena Carter Richardson was a ballet dancer and instructor who was one of the most recognizable figures in the Pacific Northwest dance community for a quarter century. Read all about her in this Oregon Black History Spotlight! Photo: Oregon Ballet Theatre

Canning! Fishing! Timber! Nature! Culture! Arts! How much do YOU know about Clatsop County? Bring a team and join us for Trivia Night, Wednesday, July 23, 6:30 PM in Astoria at Breakside Brewery. There will be history nerds, there will be beer, there will be prizes!

Black History Quest is back! Who was Zilla, and why did she come to Wallowa County, Oregon at the turn of the century? Join host Mariah Rocker and Executive Director of North Lincoln County Historical Museum, Christopher Melton, on Wednesday, July 30 at 7:00PM as they explore this question.

DYK there's an Oregon town named by a Black man? Welcome to Eagle Point! This small community was named by John Dudley Mathews, a formerly enslaved man who successfully led a small wagon train of Black and White families to Oregon. Mariah Rocker has more in this Oregon Black History Snap Shot!

Astoria, Oregon! We have a few tickets left! Our Black History Walking Tours will take you through the hidden stories, events, and places significant to Black history. Check the schedule at the link for Portland, Astoria, Eugene, and Salem dates. oregonblackpioneers.org/tours/

Today we honor and celebrate Juneteenth, the day in 1865 when 250,000 enslaved African Americans in Galveston, Texas received word of their emancipation, nearly 2 1/2 years after the Emancipation Proclamation went into effect. Juneteenth has been a day to gather, reflect, and celebrate ever since.

In 1945, a shipyard worker named Clara Peoples hosted Oregon's first Juneteenth celebration in Vanport. This became an annual gathering, and in 1972 Peoples founded the group “Juneteenth Oregon” which has organized Portland Juneteenth events ever since. Photo: The Oregonian, 2010

1/1/1869 Black Portlanders met at the Multnomah Co. Courthouse for a Grand Emancipation Celebration, the largest of its kind in OR history. Songs, sermons, and a reading of the emancipation proclamation led the OR Herald to report: "highly creditable" to Portland's small but growing Black community.

On Juneteenth we remember the African Americans who experienced slavery in Oregon and across the US. The day is a chance for us to recognize how far we’ve come as well as the work we still have to do. We believe that begins by knowing where we come from and honoring the stories of our ancestors.

Ben Johnson and Amanda Gardner, brought to Oregon by their enslavers in 1853, met on the Oregon Trail. 15 years later, they reconnected at Salem's first Emancipation Day celebration (1/1/1868). Their freedom day reunion became a courtship, and they married in Albany on 4/12/1870. #AddToBlacksky

How will you celebrate Juneteenth? Check Oregon Black Pioneers' blog of statewide Juneteenth events for a celebration near you. Have an Oregon event to add? Reply here of send a link to hello @ oregonblackpioneers.org oregonblackpioneers.org/2025-juneteenth-events-in-oregon

George Fletcher is one of Oregon’s most celebrated cowboys and rodeo performers. He began competing in rodeo competitions at age 15 and developed a unique style of his own. Read all about this cowboy pioneer in this Oregon Black History Spotlight! oregonblackpioneers.org/george-fletcher/

OBP has all the Oregon Black history news YOU can use! Sign up now for the Oregon Black Pioneers monthly newsletter and get up-to-date info about walking tours, events, projects, and programs. bit.ly/OBPNews

We've got Black History walking tours all summer long! Thanks to the generous support of The Collins Foundation, tours through Portland's historically-Black Albina neighborhood are only $10. Tours are scheduled through September, but don’t wait, they sell out! Check oregonblackpioneers.org/tours/

Tonight! It's Black History Quest! Who were the people behind the Vanport Tenants’ League–fighting to get reparations for Vanport flood refugees? Join host Mariah Rocker and public historian and Vanport Mosaic Program Manager Greta Smith Wisnewski tonight at 7:00PM PT to find out!

Discover Oregon’s Black History with @oregonblackpioneers ⤵️ Roscoe’s First Class Oyster Saloon, Astoria 1880-1885 Check out the whole series in the merch store: oregonblackpioneers.org/merch/