eBeaverton

The Airport and Motion Picture Studios of Beaverton, Oregon

The glamorous and exciting world of motion pictures changed the face of Beaverton in 1920, when Premium Picture Productions built a movie studio near Erickson Street. Local residents frequently worked as extras or had small walk-on parts. The film company made about 15 motion pictures before it went bankrupt late in 1925.

When Premium Picture Productions closed down in 1925, the 32-acre studio site was turned into an aircraft hangar-factory. The financier behind the film venture in Beaverton was also an aviation enthusiast. Dr. G. E. Watts built Watts Airport. The hanger was on the west side of Erickson, along what is now Sixth Street. Before long, airplanes were being built and tested in Beaverton and many more pilots were using the Watts airstrip. Having outgrown the site, Charles Bernard was approached. Bernard built more wood frame hangars parallel to the what is now Cedar Hills Blvd. and the home-built airplane industry in Beaverton thrived. Bernard Airport was once known as the oldest continuously-operated airport in Oregon. On September 11, 1938 the Oregonian reported that Bernard Airport was “perhaps the busiest noncommercial airport in the United States – Beaverton – where exists the added distinction that most of the planes are amateur built.”

Read more: The Airport and Motion Picture Studios of Beaverton, Oregon

The Formation of Beaverton, Oregon

The original town charter in 1893 stated that the “…mayor and council shall receive no pay for their services… The indebtedness of said corporation shall never exceed the sum or $500, excepting for the purpose of supplying the town with water and light.”

The popularity of bicycling by the early 1900’s prompted the Beaverton City Council to create a special speeding ordinance: If a person or persons operated a bicycle at a speed of greater than eight mph the fine would not be less than $10 and not more than $50. If the violator couldn’t pay, he was looking at time in the town jail for not less than five days or not more than 30.

Read more: The Formation of Beaverton, Oregon

Painter’s Showcase 2009 36th Annual Art Exhibit & Sale at Jenkins Estate

Join us this weekend at Painter’s Showcase 2009 36th Annual Art Exhibit & Sale: “Escape with Art” at The Jenkins Estate in Beaverton!

Thursday—Sunday
October 8—11, 2009
10:00am—5:00pm

For more information, visit the THPRD website.

Read more: Painter’s Showcase 2009 36th Annual Art Exhibit & Sale at Jenkins Estate