CAMILLE BOHANNON

On this day in 1952, Richard Nixon gave his "Checkers Speech". At
the time he was a candidate for U.S. vice-president.

The expedition of Meriwether Lewis (Left) and William Clark
(Right) ended their trek to the Pacific Northwest on this day
in 1806.

A replica of Fort Clatsop in the National Memorial at the mouth of the
Columbia River in Oregon.

1970

Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen is 69 years old today.

Known simply as The Boss, rock legend Bruce Springsteen struck
fame in 1975 with his critically acclaimed album Born to Run and
again in 1984 with his rock anthem "Born in the U.S.A." He won his
20th career Grammy Award in 2009 when his song "Working on a
Dream" took Best Solo Rock Vocal Performance.

Rose Festival Parade, NW corner of 10th & Madison, 1908.

Portland, Oregon Rose Festival Grand Floral Parade in 1954.

(Oregon Historical Society)

Crater Lake National Park is located in southern Oregon. The lake is
in a dormant volcano and is an average of 1,943 feet deep, making
it the deepest lake in the United States. It was created by one of the
largest volcanic explosions in history when Mt. Mazama exploded
over seven thousand years ago, collapsing on itself.

The cataclysmic eruption of Mount Mazama 7,700 years ago began
with a towering column of pumice and ash, as depicted in this
painting by Paul Rockwood.
      
 

The history of the gas tax began when Oregon state lawmakers were
looking for a way to fund road construction. They passed the nation’s
first per-gallon tax on gasoline in 1919. The first gasoline tax was one 
cent per gallon. The revenue was used for early road building projects 
including the Pacific Highway and the Columbia River Highway (below).

The International Rose Test Garden is a rose garden in Washington Park in Portland, Oregon. There are over 7,000 rose plants of approximately 550
varieties. The roses bloom from April through October.

In 1917 a group of Portland nurserymen came up with the idea for a rose
test garden. Portland had a group of volunteers and 20 miles of rose
bordered streets left from the 1905 Lewis & Clark Exposition, and was
already dubbed "The City of Roses".  Between Portland Parks & Recreation
and the American Rose Society, the garden idea soon became a reality.