Old-growth trees cover the West Hills of Portland.
Old-growth trees cover the West Hills of Portland.
Forest Park, located in Portland, Oregon, is a spectacular place to hike, run, bike or stroll while taking in the landscape of old-growth trees. Rare Northwest birds nest there and lush ferns call it home.
It's a park that almost didn't exist.
In the 1940s, recreational areas sprinkled Portland's West Hills, each managed individually. Because they were expensive to maintain, the parks soon fell into disarray. When rumors of underground oil began to circulate, community leaders formed a committee to save the parks.
G. E. Cannon, an actuary at Standard Insurance Company, served as chairman for the committee. His duties included helping to draft and present the plan. But after the proposal was submitted the plan stalled until the committee could rally public support. City officials then approved the plan.
In 1947, the various West Hills parks joined to make up the largest wilderness park in any city of the United States. Forest Park now contains more than 5,000 acres of land and more than 100 species of birds and mammals. And less than a decade later Cannon became the company's president.