Episodes

  • ‘Crusade’ collapsed when leaders got too preachy

    ‘Crusade’ collapsed when leaders got too preachy
    Jul 17 2025
    The saloon owners won in court, but the temperance ladies absolutely destroyed them in the court of public opinion. Delighted, the preachers and patriarchs who fancied themselves their leaders geared up for victory in the upcoming election ... and seriously overplayed their hand. (Portland, Multnomah County; 1870s) (For text and pictures, see https://offbeatoregon.com/1902d.temperance-wars-4of4-536.html)
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    12 mins
  • Riot at bar led to charges … but not against rioters

    Riot at bar led to charges … but not against rioters
    Jul 16 2025
    Angry, surly saloonkeeper Walter Moffett attracted a large, hostile crowd with his harassment of a group of ladies holding a prayer service outside his bar. When the crowd rioted and trashed his saloon, he got the Portland police chief — also a saloon owner — to arrest them for instigating it. (Portland, Multnomah County; 1870s) (For text and pictures, see https://offbeatoregon.com/1902c.temperance-wars-3of4-535.html)
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    12 mins
  • Stubborn saloonkeeper refused to play nice (Temperance Riots of 1874, part 2 of 4)

    Stubborn saloonkeeper refused to play nice (Temperance Riots of 1874, part 2 of 4)
    Jul 15 2025
    Very few of Portland's saloonkeepers threw firecrackers at the ladies of the Women's Temperance Prayer League and called them 'damn whores' when they came by to hold prayer services at their bars. But, as the old song goes, there's one in every crowd ... and it's usually Walter Moffett of the Webfoot Saloon. (Portland, Multnomah County; 1870s) (For text and pictures, see https://offbeatoregon.com/1902b.temperance-wars-2of4-534.html)
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    11 mins
  • Portland’s “Temperance War of ’74”: The backstory (Temperance Riots of 1874, part 1 of 4)

    Portland’s “Temperance War of ’74”: The backstory (Temperance Riots of 1874, part 1 of 4)
    Jul 14 2025
    Inspired by the successes of temperance activists back east, a group of Portland ladies decided to join the “crusade against that terrible villain, Demon Rum” and take their message of abstinance out of the churches and into the streets. They may have been surprised by the reaction they got.... (Portland, Multnomah County; 1870s) (For text and pictures, see https://offbeatoregon.com/1902a.temperance-wars-1of4-533.html)
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    13 mins
  • Wife acquitted of murder after shooting husband

    Wife acquitted of murder after shooting husband
    Jul 11 2025
    DAWN WAS ONLY a couple hours away when 33-year-old lumber mill owner Gene Harington got home from a really long night. He pulled into the drive around 5:45 a.m., and immediately proceeded to wake up his pretty young wife, Virginia, along with their two babies (ages 1 and 2). Virginia tucked the two kids back into bed, and after that, an argument ensued. Virginia later said it was a bad one — at one point Gene threatened to kick her out of the house, and at another point he threatened to push her down the basement stairs. Finally, she said, around 7:45 a.m., he got undressed for bed. But then he got back up again, got into the closet, and got out his .38 Special. “I’m getting this so you won’t,” he said. Then he put it down on the floor beside the bed. The couple continued their argument. Virginia wanted Gene to stop drinking; Gene wanted Virginia to get off his back, and maybe have a drink or two herself (she was a teetotaler). She probably accused him of having an affair; after all, he had been out all night. Then — something happened. Precisely what, only Virginia really knew afterward — but after it was over, Gene Harington was dead, a pair of .38-caliber bullets buried deep in his brain.... (Eugene, Lane County; 1940s) (For text and pictures, see https://offbeatoregon.com/2504a.virginia-harington-shooting-696.517.html)
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    10 mins
  • When Portland flooded, locals raised the sidewalks

    When Portland flooded, locals raised the sidewalks
    Jul 10 2025
    But in 1861, the worst floods in state history turned the Willamette Valley into one giant half-million-acre lake and swept several burgeoning towns away. And, despite our flood-control dams, someday it will probably happen again. (Willamette Valley; 1860s, 1890s) (For text and pictures, see https://offbeatoregon.com/1704c.willamette-floods-1894-1861-439.html)
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    11 mins
  • Huge 1934 P-town dock strike paralyzed the state

    Huge 1934 P-town dock strike paralyzed the state
    Jul 9 2025
    Half a century of winning labor disputes left the waterfront employers feeling overconfident. When the Portland longshoremen walked out, they expected it would be a repeat of earlier victories for them ... it wasn't. (Portland, Multnomah County; 1930s) (For text and pictures, see https://offbeatoregon.com/1304a-1934-dock-strike-paralyzed-oregon.html)
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    11 mins
  • How Portland and Kaiser helped ‘save the Empire’

    How Portland and Kaiser helped ‘save the Empire’
    Jul 8 2025
    Arguably, the outcome of World War II became inevitable on the day the S.S. Star of Oregon slid into the Columbia River. It was followed by a torrent of new ships — far more than the Nazis could ever hope to sink. (Vanport, Multnomah County; 1940s) (For text and pictures, see https://offbeatoregon.com/1612c.portland-liberty-ships-saved-canada-422.html)
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    10 mins