A Streetcar Named Des-Irvington

A riverboat captain by the name of Irving buys a large parcel of land on the east side of the Willamette. He builds a home on the narrow strip by the river leaving the wider tract undeveloped. Then moves to Canada, leaving charge of the land to his wife’s brother-in-law, another riverboat captain by the name of Shaver. In the late 1880’s during an economic boom era, the Irving family subdivided their land into nearly 130 blocks and the neighborhood of Irvington was established.

But it was the newly connected streetcar service that brought the people to this far-flung (at that time) area. It started with the horsecars, then as our know-how modernized, so too our conveyances. Next came the steam-powered, tiny locomotives often disguised as streetcars so as not to spook the horses. Followed then by the cablecars whose design allowed them to surmount graded hills otherwise insurmountable until with the advent of electricity at the close of the 19th century, the trolley became the go-to means to go.

And this area, named for the river-man and his family, became a more easily accessible and desirable place to call home. Irvington, like other similar communities, grew into what’s known as a Streetcar Suburb. These neighborhoods began popping up all over the country outside of rapidly increasing urban areas where the land was available, the air was cleaner and the residents could commute greater distances than just their feet would allow.

Julie Davis

Broker | Earth Advantage | ADU Specialist | OR

She/Her

Julie Davis believes finding home is a story we write ourselves. To Julie, finding home describes the way the buying process itself reveals our style, preferences, and priorities—not to mention what “just feels right,” according to Julia and Evelyn, just two of Julie’s happy homeowners...

Read More

• T: 503-718-4629
• F: 503-961-8224
• juliedavispdx@gmail.com