Progress, Oregon
45°27′25.42″N 122°46′55.35″W / 45.4570611°N 122.7820417°W
Progress is a former unincorporated community in Washington County, Oregon, United States.[1] It is now part of the cities of Tigard and Beaverton. It is located at the crossroads of Scholls Ferry Road and Hall Boulevard (unsigned Oregon Route 141).[2][3] The Progress area is home to Washington Square,[4] a large shopping mall that opened in Tigard in 1973–1974.
Geography
The portion of Progress located within Tigard's city limits is in the quadrant east of Scholls Ferry Road and South of Hall Boulevard.[4] This area is the site of the historic Crescent Grove Cemetery (aka Progress Cemetery), founded in 1852.[4][5] The remaining three quadrants of the crossroads at Progress are located in the City of Beaverton, with the portion north of Hall Boulevard in the Denny Whitford/Raleigh West neighborhood, and the portion south of Hall Boulevard in the Greenway neighborhood.[6] Progress Station #53 of Tualatin Valley Fire & Rescue is located in the Denny Whitford/Raleigh West neighborhood of Beaverton.[7]
History
Progress had a post office from August 28, 1899, to July 11, 1904.[2][8] The first postmaster was Joseph Hingley.[2]
In 1915, Progress was described as a village along the interurban Portland, Eugene & Eastern Railroad (P.E. & E.).[9] It had a Methodist and an Episcopal church, as well as a grade school.[9] At that time the primary economic activities were horticulture and agriculture.[9] The former P.E. & E. line is now the Tigard Branch of the Portland and Western Railroad, which is also in use by WES Commuter Rail (WES). WES' Hall/Nimbus station is the closest stop to Progress.
By 1989, Lewis A. McArthur noted that Progress was "part of a heavily built suburbia" between Tigard and Beaverton. In 1990, author Ralph Friedman commented that Progress had been "[e]ngulfed by the giant mart of Washington Square."[8]
View-Master plant
Sawyer's, later General Aniline & Film (GAF), the manufacturer of View-Master reels, built a large plant near Progress in 1951.[10][11][12] The plant closed in 2000,[13] and this area later became part of Washington Square Mall.[14] The View-Master factory supply well was investigated for possible chemical contamination in the early 2000's.
RedTail Golf Center
The City of Portland Parks and Recreation RedTail Golf Course in Beaverton was originally named "Progress Downs".[15][16] The land, a former farm, was purchased in 1954 by the city to replace the West Hills Golf Course, which was to be the new site of the Washington Park Zoo.[15][16] The course opened in 1966.[17] Progress Downs was renamed RedTail after a 1999 renovation.[16] In 2024, the city was considering selling the golf course to develop a Major League Baseball Park.[18]
References
- ^ "Progress". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. November 28, 1980. Retrieved March 21, 2025.
- ^ a b c McArthur, Lewis A.; McArthur, Lewis L. (2003) [1928]. Oregon Geographic Names (7th ed.). Portland, Oregon: Oregon Historical Society Press. p. 786. ISBN 978-0875952772.
- ^ Oregon Atlas & Gazetteer (7th ed.). Yarmouth, Maine: DeLorme. 2008. p. 28. ISBN 978-0-89933-347-2.
- ^ a b c "Tigard Maps". City of Tigard. Retrieved March 21, 2025.
- ^ "Historic Cemeteries in Oregon" (PDF). Oregon Parks and Recreation Department. January 15, 2025. Retrieved March 21, 2025.
- ^ "What's My Neighborhood?". City of Beaverton. Retrieved March 21, 2025.
- ^ "Fire Station 53". Tualatin Valley Fire & Rescue. Retrieved March 21, 2025.
- ^ a b Friedman, Ralph (1990). In Search of Western Oregon. Caldwell, Idaho: The Caxton Printers, Ltd. p. 382. ISBN 0-87004-332-3.
- ^ a b c Burke, Thomas C. Burke (1915). The State of Oregon: Its Resources and Opportunities; Official Pamphlet Published for the Information of Homeseekers, Settlers and Investors. Oregon State Immigration Commission. p. 284.
- ^ "Camera Uses 3 Dimensions". The Sunday Oregonian. April 6, 1952 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Gruber, Gretchen Jane (2014). View Master: The Biography of William B. Gruber.
- ^ "Federal Register, Volume 43, Issues 64-71". National Archives and Records Administration. April 3, 1978.
- ^ Frentress, Aaron (February 23, 2000). "Mattel Will Shut Beaverton Site". The Oregonian – via newspapers.com.
- ^ Schade, Liza J. "Beaverton". The Oregon Encyclopedia.
- ^ a b "Golf Course Gets Name". The Oregonian. January 9, 1962 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ a b c "Portland Parks Golf". City of Portland. Retrieved March 22, 2025.
- ^ "New Golf 9 Crowded". The Oregonian. May 11, 1966 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ Land, Joni Auden (April 13, 2024). "Selling RedTail Could Jeopardize Portland's Public Golf Courses, Committee Says". Oregon Public Broadcasting. Retrieved March 22, 2025.
External links
- Historic aerial image of Beaverton and the community of Progress from the City of Beaverton collection