History of the Oregon Trail Chapter

Oregon Trail Chapter photo archive

Today, we look back with pride on the legacy that thousands of dedicated volunteers have built. We truly have a history of caring.

When the chapter was granted a charter in 1917, board members and volunteers faced the monumental task of responding to war-related needs as well as community concerns.

Throughout the World War I, Red Cross volunteers made garments, bandages, and surgical dressings. A Red Cross canteen, at the Portland Union Depot, provided comfort to service personnel traveling through Portland.

In addition to war efforts, the chapter organized home hygiene and nursing classes to teach routine illness treatment and disease prevention.

During the influenza epidemic of 1918, Red Cross assisted overtaxed health agencies. The chapter recruited nurses and provided necessary items such as pneumonia jackets and masks. A dental clinic was opened for public school children and books translated into Braille for the public library. During the depression, Red Cross volunteers made and distributed food and clothing to needy families.

In response to the war in Europe, Red Cross volunteers stepped up production of surgical dressings and called upon local residents to support these efforts. The community responded by volunteering thousands of hours and committing more than $4 million between 1939 and 1945.

During World War II, the chapter recruited nurses, blood donors, and volunteers. The Union Depot Canteen was again opened and served thousands of soldiers passing through Portland. Motor Corps drivers traveled hundreds of miles delivering blood and transporting veterans.

In addition to these war-related projects, dedicated Red Cross volunteers continued to provide vital assistance to the community. Home nursing programs, assistance to veterans, disaster relief, and life-saving classes expanded.

In 1948, thousands of residents along the banks of the Columbia and Willamette Rivers were evacuated due to the Vanport Flood. Red Cross disaster workers responded, opened shelters, and provided food and clothing. Motor Corps drivers carried volunteers and supplies to the stricken area.

When President Harry S. Truman made a personal inspection of the damaged area, he commended local Red Cross workers for their response and assistance to more than 6,000 families.

In the 1950s, local volunteers again supported the needs of military families separated by the Korean War. Family support groups were formed and care packages organized and sent to lonely soldiers across the ocean. Meanwhile, volunteers continued to serve veterans in local hospitals and provided home hygiene and safety training.

On Columbus Day, 1962, 80 mph gusts left 27 dead and 100 injured in Oregon and Clark County, Washington. The chapter immediately sent two portable generators to the Physicians and Surgeons Hospital when they lost power. More than 1,000 families were financially assisted, or provided with loaned auxiliary power and emergency transportation.

During the 1960s, Red Cross paid and volunteer staff collected paperback books, ditty bags, and athletic equipment for service personnel in Vietnam. The chapter helped local families and taped messages to their loved ones serving overseas.

In the early 1970s, a new lifesaving technique was introduced, Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR). Thousands of residents signed up to learn.

During the 1970s and 1980s, the chapter responded to changing family needs by developing parenting and youth classes. During this time, local immunization programs and blood pressure clinics were also supported.

In 1978, a United Airline plane crashed in a neighborhood east of Portland's airport, and Red Cross volunteers were there to provide comfort and assistance to emergency workers. The chapter dispensed blankets, met blood needs, and provided an emergency information center for national health and welfare inquiries.

In 1980, Mother Nature gave a wake up call in the form of the massive eruption of Mt. St. Helens. Red Cross volunteers provided temporary shelter to displaced residents, distributed masks, and provided the information link for concerned family members around the world. Red Cross services continued for more than a year after the eruption.

In 1986, when students from a local school were stranded on Mt. Hood during a devastating blizzard, Red Cross volunteers provided canteen services to rescue workers and comforted families waiting for word of their children.

During the 1990s, Red Cross volunteers continued to meet the challenges of an expanding and changing population. Materials were translated into other languages and Oregon Trail Chapter spearheaded the effort to use Internet technology to provide virtual safety training.

In 1996, when flooding displaced hundreds of people, the Chapter headquarters building on North Vancouver was transformed into a disaster operations center complete with sandbags, phone banks and mobile feeding stations. Instead of volunteers from Oregon traveling to assist those in need in other parts of the country, Red Cross volunteers from other parts of the country came to help us.

The new century was ushered in with a familiar disaster as a fatal apartment fire left 40 people homeless one week before Christmas. The Chapter opened a shelter in a nearby high school and worked to ensure that each family was provided for.

September 11, 2001 was a bleak day for the world, and for the American Red Cross, the beginning of months of intense work. As blood donors waited for hours to donate blood in the headquarters building, volunteers from throughout the state prepared to fly east to offer support to victims and relief workers. Oregon sent more Red Cross volunteers per capita in response to the attacks of 9/11 than any other state in the nation.

In the spirit of Oregon ingenuity, the Oregon Trail Chapter developed the "Prepare Oregon" campaign in response to the community asking, "What can I do now?" By encouraging Oregonians to do four simple things: build a disaster supplies kit, make a family emergency plan, get trained in first aid and CPR and schedule regular blood donations, the Chapter helped our state become a model of preparedness. In 2003, the American Red Cross adopted our local campaign and launched, "Together We Prepare" throughout the country.

For almost 90 years, thousands of Oregon Trail Chapter volunteers have provided disaster relief, blood and blood products, health education and services to military families in Clackamas, Clatsop, Columbia, Multnomah, Tillamook, Washington and Yamhill counties. We count on the generosity of our donors and the commitment of our volunteers to ensure our history continues well into the future. Clara Barton once said, "It is not in its past that the glories of the Red Cross lie, but in the possibilities it has created for the future."

More information on the history of the American Red Cross and Clara Barton.