Imagine taking a trip on the Willamette to check out the Port of Portland and its marine terminals on a jetboat among a crowd of tourists. The feeling of traveling by boat on the river is unbearable; the motion of the boat is sickening. The captain of the boat, while he is guiding the crowd to the terminals, clears his throat and starts his speech: "Besides the marine terminals and the shipyards, the Port of Portland also administers the airports in the city. Believe it or not people, it is true." The rumors heard of the airports being administered by city halls or the government turned out to be false. Debate ensues among the crowd of tourists. If this is what the captain mentioned about the port, then it is true. The Port of Portland is more than a shipping industry. This article will mainly focus on the development of Portland as a harbor. The first section in this article will explain the history of the Columbia and the Willamette Rivers along with the founding of the city of Portland. The next section will mainly focus on how Portland became the best site for port access and function. Finally, the last section will focus on the competitors of the city. Because of its location, flow of business, and other factors, the Port of Portland is judged to be the port with the most excellent service in the United States.
Fig 1- Map shows the Columbia River flowing through most of Washington and Canada, and the northern part of Oregon (Encarta Encyclopedia Atlas).
When the United States did not have the state as its own, Oregon was known by just its name. Its river was absolutely stunning to the eye. American navigators referred to the river as "The River of the West", while Hispanic navigators dubbed it "El Rio de la Reyes", which m ...