Chapter 3 | Portland Saloons and Gambling Dens:
BONUS VIDEO:
History of Henry Weinhard's brewing company: To start this chapter off, check out this wonderful short video clip from Blitz-Weinhard Brewing Co., back when they were an independent company.
Although the video is obviously keen to burnish the company's image, it presents some really great historical images and information. It recounts the history of Blitz-Weinhard from its founding in 1856 through the outbreak (if that's the right word) of Prohibition.
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Front Street looking northward from Yamhill Street in 1888. One of the businesses on the left side of this street is where, four years later, young J.P. Cochran was neatly fleeced in a series of faro games. (Image: The West Shore magazine)
BONUS AUDIO:
Gambling in Chinatown: This image links to a podcast from Doug Kenck-Crispin and Andy Lindberg's "Kick Ass Oregon History" series, in which they give the details of the various lotteries and games of chance played in Chinatown — including the dreaded game of Fan Tan.
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A table full of gamblers playing a game of faro in Reno in 1910, surrounded by spectators. The odds of this game having been an honest one are something on the order of 12,000 to 1 against; by the turn of the century cheating at faro had become endemic, and card-game rules books of this era warn that all faro games should be considered crooked. (Image: Library of Congress)
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Edouard Chambreau as a young man. (Image: Oil painting by Leland John)
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A portrait of James Lappeus, the former gold-field gambler who became Portland's city marshal and, later, its chief of police. (Image: Oil painting by Leland John)
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A view of the North End under water during the flood of 1894, as seen at the intersection of First and Stark streets, looking northward. At this time, the Stark Street Ferry was still operating, and the street signs to the right of the frame point toward the ferry landing. (Image: City of Portland Archives)
BONUS AUDIO:
The story of the great Portland fire of 1873: This image links to a podcast from Doug Kenck-Crispin and Andy Lindberg's "Kick Ass Oregon History" series, in which they tell the story of the great fire of 1873 — which was one of the two fires that destroyed saloons owned by Edouard Chambreau in the year leading up to the 1874 temperance riots.
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The Gem Saloon and Oro Fino Saloon and Theater, located on First Street between Oak and Stark, in 1876. The Oro Fino was half owned by Portland's city police chief, Edouard Chambreau's old gold-field gambling crony James Lappeus. (Image: Oregon Historical Society)
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The front cover of a booklet of sheet music for a song written in 1867 to be played and sung at temperance rallies. The temperance crusaders who finally convinced Edouard Chambreau to quit his liquor-and-gambling life would have been very familiar with this song.
If you'd like to read the lyrics to this song, you'll find them here. And if you're handy with a piano, feel free to download the PDF copy of the entire musical score ... you'll surely be a huge hit at your next cocktail party! (Warning: The PDF is huge.)
