Portland Facts and Trivia Facts

Population: 503,000 (1.7 million in the Portland metro area)

Area: 130 square miles

Elevation: 173 feet above sea level

Time Zone: Pacific

Miles to ocean: 78

Miles to a glacier: 65 (at Mount Hood)

Average Temps:  January, 33.5 degrees F; July, 79.5 degrees F

Average rainfall: 37 inches (less than Atlanta, Baltimore, Houston or Seattle, and without that nasty humidity)

Newspaper:  The Oregonian - www.oregonlive.com

Major Industry:         Trade, shipping and transportation services, tourism, business and financial services, electronics, and high technology. Oregon-based companies include NIKE, Norm Thompson, Avia, Adidas, Jantzen, Pendleton Woolen Mills, Columbia Sportswear, Precision Castparts, Tektronix, Mentor Graphics, Sequent Computer Systems and Freightliner.

Visitor Info:  1-87-PORTLAND or 503/222-2223

Weather: 503/275-9792

Road conditions: 503/222-6721

Ticket Central: 503/275-8358 (performing arts ticket information)

Web Sites:   www.travelportland.com

                      www.citysearch.com

                      www.traveloregon.com

Transportation

 Airport: Portland International Airport (503/335-1234)

Shuttle: Pacific Executive (503/234-2400)

              Prestige Limousine Towncar (503/282-5009)

              Gray Line Airport Shuttle (503/285-9845

Transit: MAX, Portland's light rail system (503/238-7433)

               Tri-Met Bus System (503/238-7433)

                Amtrak, Union Station - 800 N.W. 6th Avenue - Portland, OR  97209

                 (1-800-872-7245)

Taxi:         Broadway Cab (503/227-1234)  

                  Radio Cab (503/227-1212)

       Green Cab (503/234-1414)  

Trivia

• Saturday Market is the largest continuously operating open-air crafts market in the United States.  

• Powell's City of Books, occupying an entire city block, is the country's largest new-and-used book store.  

•  The Port of Portland is home to one of the world's largest floating dry docks, able to handle ships nearly three football fields in length.  The port's combined terminals handle $9 billion worth of cargo per year.  

• Portland is home to nine Fortune 500 companies:  Willamette Industries, Louisiana Pacific, Oregon Steel Mills, Pope & Talbot, Tektronix, PacifiCorp, Fred Meyer, Nike and U.S. Bancorp.  

• Portland's Junior Rose Parade is the largest children's parade in America.  

• Portlandia is the second largest hammered copper statue in the world (the Statue of Liberty is the first).  

• Portland's International Rose Test Garden is the oldest in the nation.  

• More Asian elephants (27 to date) have been born in Portland than in any other North American city.  

• Portland has more movie theaters and restaurants per capita than any other city in the United States.

•   Portland has the first youth symphony in the country.  

• Portland has more microbreweries and brew pubs than any other city in the nation.  

• Portland is home to Mill Ends Park, which, at 24 inches, is the world's smallest dedicated park.

• Portland is home to the nation's largest city park -- the 5,000-acre Forest Park.

• Portland has 37,000 acres of parks in the metro area.

• Portland is the only U.S. city with an extinct volcano (Mount Tabor) within its city limits.

• Portland’s nicknames include "Rose City," City of Bridges," "Rip City," "Rivercity," "Stumptown" and "Puddletown."

• Portland is one of the best places in America to live an active life (Men's Fitness magazine, January 1995)

• Portland is America's number one bicycle city (Bicycling Magazine, October 1995)

• April 6 is Portland's birthday.

• There is no sales tax in Oregon!