Day 226: Davis Block, Sam Moy & Co. Dry Goods, Portland, Oregon
📌APIA Every Day (226) - The Davis Block, constructed in 1890 at the northwest corner of Russell and Albina Streets in Portland's Albina neighborhood, was developed by Luther M. Davis, a dentist who served on the Portland City Council and in the Oregon Legislature. Initially, the structure served multiple functions, housing commercial spaces on the ground floor, a public hall used by fraternal organizations on the second floor, and residential units that would later be known as the Davis Apartments.
Beginning in the 1910s, Chinese immigrant Sam Moy established Sam Moy & Company Dry Goods Store in the corner storefront, selling men's and women's furnishings, specialty weave cloth, and Headlight Union Made Overalls. The business was later managed by Thomas Lang, who assumed ownership, while Lang's son Charles worked there before establishing his own dry goods store on SE Grand Avenue.
In 1921, the Davis Block became home to one of several Japanese-owned businesses. Eichi Saito, an immigrant from Hiroshima, Japan, opened the Home Laundry in the building's center storefront. The laundry operated continuously until 1941, becoming the building's sole ground-floor business from 1938 to 1941. The business ceased operations when Saito and his wife Haruno were sent to the Minidoka incarceration camp in Idaho during World War II, marking the end of Japanese business ownership in the building.
The Davis Block underwent several ownership transitions throughout the mid-20th century. Nancy Davis maintained ownership until 1932, when the Abe Weinstein family acquired the property. Following its subsequent sale in 1942 and the end of World War II, the building housed a succession of automotive businesses and retail establishments through the 1960s. The building experienced a period of decline in the late 1960s, coinciding with broader economic challenges in the Lower Albina district. Many storefronts stood vacant or were used for storage until William Wright purchased the property in 1984. In recognition of its historical significance, the Davis Block was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1999.
LEARN MORE:
National Archives Catalog: Davis Block NRHP Form
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