in my walks home, i always walk by the Mulnomah Hotel and yet forget to take a picture to share with the interweb. well, today is the day. last friday, a beautiful day in portland, i was on my way to Dante's to get some tickets and the opportunity presented itself. i have been fascinated by this hotel since i was a kid and it was a run down heap (actually, when i was a kid, i think it was still being used as government offices, but i digres..)
the multnomah hotel has a rich history. built in the early 1900s, it became a hub for portland's elite travelers in the 1920's. according to PDXHistory.com, the hotel once housed KXL radio. I seem to remember also, an OPB show highlighted the hotel stating it had been host to FDR or Truman. Not sure which, but that's pretty darn cool.
The reason i'm so excited about this hotel is that i remember in 1997, someone was trying to repeat an historic airplane stunt from the rooftop of this hotel. the hotel was in the middle of being remodeled with the pilot approached it about the affair. on June 10, 1912, Silas Christofferson, landed a "Pusher" 40hp bi-plane on the roof to settle a bet he had made the day before (and which had been published by the Oregonian.) the bet was that Silas could fly his bi-plane from the rooftop of the Multnomah Hotel to Pearson Field in Vancouver WA. Silas did such a feat on an tuesday afternoon. one thing people don't highlight though is that Silas didn't carry his plane up in the elevator, he actually had to land on the roof first before he could carry out his stunt.
Like I said, I remember in 1997 when someone tried to repeat the stunt. It was a cloudy stormy day in the spring I think and I remember driving over the broadway bridge wondering if they got off the ground. i know they did later in the day and successfully replicated the history flight.
another interesting fact about the multnomah hotel - one of the top floor corner rooms was used as Sylvester Stalone's apartment for the movie Assassins. The hotel was under repair at the time. just a quick fact.
next time you're looking into portland and see the famous hotel, think of a bi-plane landing or taking off. kinda strange huh?
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