A whole bunch of things you may not know about Providence Park and all its other names

The antique venue has played host to everything from ski jumping to dog racing

It’s always riled me up that the City of Portland has never felt the need to do anything about an outdoor sports venue. The fact is, unlike just about any other city in the world, old Drip City has never opted to erect a football or baseball stadium.

That ancient structure we have now was originally Multnomah Field when it came into existence north of the Multnomah Amateur Athletic Club, its owner, in the late 1800s. It was just an athletic field with some bleachers. But because of the absence of any other large gathering space in Portland, it came to be used for large crowds supporting the appearance of presidents, and athletic contests involving the University of Oregon and Oregon Agricultural College, which later became Oregon State.