Brief History The neighborhood is named for Friendly Street, which bisects the neighborhood from North to South. The street in turn was named for Sam Friendly (pictured right), a much-loved 19th-century Mayor of Eugene and one of the far-sighted individuals who secured the University of Oregon for Eugene. His direct descendant was Fred Friendly, the internationally renowned broadcaster and journalist.

FAN History Project In a letter to a neighbor written in 2000, long-time neighborhood resident Ed Barthelemy describes Growing Up on Washington Street in the 1920's and 1930's. Ed Barthelemy shares the Saga of Little Joe. Early photos of Washington Street and College Hill. Do you have a photo or story regarding the history of the Friendly neighborhood you'd like to share? Please contact Andrew at andrewf@friendlyareaneighbors.org.

Walking Tour of Historic Residences of College Hill The history of Friendly Neighborhood can be understood by learning about the people who lived here and the homes they built. Explore the Walking Tour of Historic College Hill Residences.

Eugene's "Gut" Exposed Please select this hyperlink for a first-hand description of growing up around South Willamette and cruising the "Gut".

Early Transportation in Eugene, Oregon Did you know the sternwheeler City of Eugene once traveled the Willamette River from Salem to Eugene? Select this hyperlink to read about the early history of transportation in Eugene; produced in November 1991 as part of the Eugene Downtown Core Area Historic Context Statement.

College Hill Cultural Resources Survey Please select this hyperlink for an in-depth history of the College Hill neighborhood. Timeline 1846-1967 Historical timeline of Eugene and College Hill.

Area History

The following text is from A Brief History & Walking Tour - College Hill published by the City of Eugene in March 2001:

For many years, College Hill, like the surrounding Willamette Valley, was occupied by the Kalapuya Indians. These nomadic people practiced controlled burning of the valley floor to increase growth of edible plants and facilitate hunting.

While the Kalapuya had ceased burning long before Eugene Skinner first laid eyes on this area in 1846, the evidence remained. In the 1850's, the first U.S. Government survey of the area recorded the terrain as prairie with isolated white oaks. College Hill was also grass-covered with a group of trees on the Southwest slope.

The donation land claims of Daniel Christian, Charnel Mulligan, and William Breeding covered the area now known as College Hill during the 1840's, the earliest phase of white settlement in the Eugene vicinity.

Built in 1857, the Masterson house is the oldest remaining example of residential development in College Hill and the second-oldest in Eugene. The structure was built by pioneer William Masterson on a knoll on the west side of the College Hill.

Prior to subdivision in 1890, College Hill (and the rest of Friendly Neighborhood) was sparsely populated. Although an early survey listed the soils of College Hill as fertile, they were in fact composed primarily of clay. Early area inhabitants used the area primarily for grazing. Later residents planted small gardens and fruit trees. Until established transportation routes went through the area, improved residential development was limited.

Small early roads had passed to the east and west of the hill, but Willamette Street was the first major transportation route through the area. Henry Holden began a mule-drawn streetcar system through College Hill in 1891. Although Holden's enterprise only lasted into 1900, it was essential to area development. Almost all of the early residences sprung up around these established transportation routes...The electric streetcar system, which ran from 1907 (1910 in College Hill) to 1927, continued to boost residential development along its path.

The majority of residential development in the College Hill area occurred between 1900 and 1925. This is made evident by the preponderance of Bungalow and Revival style architecture which was very popular at the time. Development continued, with older professional homes primarily at the top of the hill, and later, often post-World War II working-class homes near the base of the hill. Today, College Hill remains a fashionable residential area with very few vacant building lots.

Neighborhood History topics

	Trolleys A system of electric and horse-drawn street cars once criss-crossed the City of Eugene. The Eugene & College Hill Street Railway was operating in 1891. It was mule-drawn. Electric streetcars began operating in Eugene in 1907. The College Hill Loop of this service saw service in 1910. Street car service in Eugene ended in 1927. Learn more about the street car history in Eugene by reading Eugene's Trolley Car Era written by Gilbert Hulin and published in the Spring 1973 edition of the Lane County Historian. You may also watch the online video Traveling Light: The Eugene Trolley Era produced by the University of Oregon. View the route the former street railway took through Friendly Neighborhood (the College Crest loop) with this map. No known evidence of this transit system remains visible in the Friendly neighborhood today. Street car rails are still visible in Eugene: - along Columbia Street in the Fairmount Neighborhood (photo) - along sections of University Street (between 18th and 24th) (photo) For additional information see Early Transportation in Eugene.
	Columbia College In 1856, Columbia College opened for classes. Less than a month later it was destroyed by fire under suspicion of arson. Rebuilt in 1857, it was again consumed by fire on February 26, 1858. It was partially rebuilt in sandstone, but ultimately abandoned due to controversy over the college's board of directors. A rock munument and plaque stands at the southwest corner of 19th & Olive Streets. The plaque reads: "Site of Columbia College 1856-1860". Carved into the stone base are the words "COLUMBIA COLLEGE FIRST SCHOOL OF HIGHER EDUCATION IN LANE COUNTY BUILT IN 1854" For additional information on Columbia College, see the web page College Hill Neighborhood and History.
	Friendly Garage Originally built in 1945 as Brumwell's Friendly Service, the Friendly Street Garage was torn down in 2004. It also served as a Shell gas station.
	College Hill Reservoirs The area of College Hill between Lincoln and Lawrence and 23rd and 25th is the repository for drinking water for the City of Eugene. When we turn on the kitchen tap or water the lawn or wash the car chances are the water we are using come from one of three reservoirs located on College Hill. The reservoirs and green water tower are owned and operated by the Eugene Water & Electric Board (EWEB). The oldest of these reservoirs is close to 23rd and Lawrence. This one is known as the 603 reservoir, which is the number of feet above sea level to the overflow pipe at the top of the reservoir. This large concrete tank began life about 1915. In the beginning it had an open top and was surrounded by a wrought iron rail, about 19 years later it was covered with the present concrete lid. This concrete tank holds about two and half million gallons of water when filled. Adjacent to this reservoir is the 607 reservoir, the large concrete structure with the pipe railing around the perimeter. The 607 reservoir was a product of the FDR Public Works Administration and constructed in 1939. This reservoir is divided into two sections, north and south, which when combined hold some fifteen million gallons of water. This facility is teamed with a larger reservoir near 25th and Hawkins and other facilities store a supply of drinking water for the City of Eugene. At the very top of the Friendly Area Neighborhood is the 703 reservoir, also completed in 1939. This steel tank is about thirty feet in diameter and twenty feet tall. Its six legs raise it some seven hundred feet above sea level where its red blinking light can be seen from most of downtown. This reservoir holds about one hundred thousand gallons and serves the homes in the immediate area which would have insufficient water pressure if gravity fed from the adjacent in-ground storage.
	Hill Crest Columns The following text is from A Brief History & Walking Tour - College Hill produced by the City of Eugene in March 2001: "Development of Subdivisions - Arrival of the California and Oregon Railway in 1871 and the subsequent opening of the University of Oregon in 1876 spurred development and expansion in the small city of Eugene. In 1890, J.F. Atherton purchased a tract of Eben Stewart's farm, formerly in the Mulligan Donation Land Claim atop College Hill. Speculating that he might be able to attracts professionals to the area, Atherton named the area College Hill Park, and plotted the land into blocks with 60 x 150 foot residential lots. Advertised as "The Nob Hill of Eugene" in the local press, other entrepreneurs quickly followed Atherton in purchasing land on College Hill. By 1903, when the area was annexed to the City of Eugene, five subdivisions had been created and development was well under way. Two columns were constructed at 20th and Willamette to mark the entrance to College Hill and are still standing. While growth stalled somewhat after the financial panic of 1893, College Hill had a promising future as one of Eugene's major residential areas."
	Civic Stadium Constructed in 1938, it became home to Eugene's own minor league baseball team, the Emeralds, in 1969. The roof and grandstand were constructed utilizing local, old growth Douglas Fir trees. According to the official Save Civic Stadium website, the stadium "meets National Register Criterion A for its initial and continued contribution to the entertainment and recreational needs of Eugene and the surrounding communities in the Pacific Northwest." To learn more, you may read the complete History of Civic Stadium.
	Eugene General Hospital/Mercy Hospital Across from Civic Stadium, a pair of concrete steps leads up from Willamette Street to the sidewalk. This is all that remains to indicate the site of the former Eugene General Hospital. Built in 1906, it was renamed Mercy Hospital in 1912 after being purchased by the Catholic Sisters of Mercy. The hospital closed around 1928 and sat empty for a decade before being razed in 1940. For additional information on the Eugene General Hospital/Mercy Hospital, see the web page College Hill Neighborhood and History. An additional set of steps leads from the sidewalk level up to the former location of the hospital.
	Ellendale A portion of the Friendly Neighborhood owes its' origins to a 10-phase housing development called Ellendale. This land was owned by a woman named Georgia Ellen Dale. She is known to have operated a showhorse stables named Ellendale Acres from approximately 1950 to 1955 at 26th & Chambers. The original Ellendale development (1955) was followed by 9 Ellendale additions. Around 250 total lots were created. The original development consisted primarily of a modern, tract house built using mid-century post & beam construction. About fifty of these houses were built in Ellendale. An additional three are located in the nearby Adamsdale development. To learn more about these unique, Friendly homes please visit the Ellendale website.
	Eugene Airpark Friendly was once home to Eugene's first airport; the Eugene Airpark. It was located in the northwest corner of current-day Friendly Neighborhood; the area mostly occupied by Westmoreland Park. Originally, a runway ran parallel to Chambers Street on the east side. A second runway ran from near the intersection of 18th and Chambers on a diagonal to the southeast (see image below left). The image to the left shows a stone marker and plaque commemorating the site's former life as an airport. The plaque reads: On this location was established the first municipal airport on the West Coast, circa 1919. On March 18, 1924 the first around-the-world flight of four US Army Douglas bi-planes stopped here enroute to Seattle, said to be the "origin" of the flight. Dedicated by the Eugene Airport Commission March 1986 The following text is from Eugene Modernism 1935-65: "The Eugene Airpark was located at Chambers Street, near West 19th Avenue, in what was considered the outskirts of town in 1935. The airport encompassed 640 acres and had minimum runway facilities and navigational aides. In 1938, United Airlines considered making Eugene a regular stop on its west coast commercial route; however, it first requested that the city purchase additional land for development and upgrade the runway conditions. Although a second hangar was constructed at the Eugene Airpark in 1939, increased air traffic strained the site and facilities. Mahlon Sweet, the chairman of the Eugene Chamber of Commerce aviation committee, convinced city officials that Eugene needed a larger and more modern airport. Later that year, the city purchased 900 acres of land in the northwest quadrant of town for a new airfield... Following the war, the Eugene Airpark continued to serve private airplane owners and small commercial ventures. However, in 1954, voters passed a ballot measure declaring the airport a hazard, especially due to the noise and traffic it generated. Two years later, the Eugene Airpark on Chambers closed. The Eugene School District purchased some of the property for the construction of Jefferson Junior high, completed in 1957."
	Eugene Country Club Originally, the Eugene Country Club was located on College Hill. The 9-hole course ran between 24th and 28th Avenues and Willamette and Lawrence Streets. The club was founded in 1899 and remained on College Hill into the mid 20's when a new 18 hole course was opened at the current location on Country Club Road.