124 SW Ash Street
The Phoenix Building is slightly deceiving today when we look at its exterior. Like many buildings from the late 1880’s , it was constructed of cast iron in the Italianate style, with tall windows and brick walls that gave it a strong and elegant appearance.
It was once the home of the Povey Brothers Art Glass Works, a famous stained-glass company sometimes called the “Tiffany of the Northwest.” The Povey Brothers created colorful glass windows for churches, homes, and public buildings all over Oregon and the Pacific Northwest. Their studio in the Phoenix Building was one of their earliest locations, and it helped shape Portland’s reputation for fine craftsmanship.
Over time, the Phoenix Building went through changes that affected its appearance. In the 1950’s, the building was “modernized,” which means that new materials were added over the original front. It was partially covered in gunite, a highly durable material that is almost impossible to remove, without damaging the surface of the building. Much of the building’s cast-iron storefront on the ground floor is mostly hidden today. However, if you look closely you can still see clues of the older design in the shape of the windows, the layout of the few remaining cast-iron columns.
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Discussion Questions:
Can you see the cast iron parts of the building ?
Compare this building to the reconstructed Hallock McMillan Building.
Vocabulary: Modernization – adapting to more current needs and ideas
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State Education Standards
Social Studies 3.13: Apply research skills and technologies to gather information about the past in a region.
Social Studies 3.14. Explain why individuals and groups in the same historical period differed in how they viewed and interpreted events. Historical Perspective
Social Studies 3.16. Identify how people and events of the past have influenced the present. Historical Knowledge
Social Studies 3.17: Use a variety of historical sources including artifacts, pictures, and documents to identify factual evidence. (Note: Restoration efforts utilized vintage artifacts like prescription ledgers and medicine bottles).