Portland Park System

In 1903, while working in Portland on the Lewis and Clark Centennial Exposition (02399), landscape architect John Charles Olmsted (JCO) was invited by the Portland Board of Park Commissioners to develop a comprehensive plan for the city’s parks. The resulting report envisioned a connected system of parks, boulevards, and scenic landscapes that would preserve Portland’s natural beauty as the city grew. 
 
JCO’s 1903 Portland Park Report presented an 18-point plan to expand Portland’s modest park system by protecting wooded areas in the West Hills and connecting downtown parks, Washington Park, and the city’s surrounding natural landscapes. The report also urged the city to act quickly, recognizing that protecting these landscapes would require sustained public investment, thoughtful planning, and long-term stewardship before development made land more difficult and expensive to acquire. 
 
A defining feature of JCO’s vision was connectivity. His recommendations helped inspire a regional network of trails, parks, and scenic routes that would eventually become the 40-Mile Loop. Today, the 40-Mile Loop Land Trust and its partners have expanded that vision into more than 400 miles of trails and connections across the Portland metropolitan region. 
 
As the city experienced rapid population growth and financial challenges, implementation of JCO’s recommendations moved slowly. Significant progress came after 1908 under the leadership of Park Superintendent Emanuel Tillman Mische, who had previously worked at the Olmsted firm. Mische helped translate JCO’s vision into reality by preserving native forests, expanding park holdings, and advancing projects such as Peninsula Park, Sellwood Park, Laurelhurst Park, and Mount Tabor. 
 
JCO’s vision extended well beyond his lifetime. Landscapes such as Rocky Butte and Forest Park—identified in his original plan but unrealized for decades—were eventually realized through the advocacy, investment, and stewardship of later generations. 
 
More than a century after JCO’s plan, Portland’s parks continue to be sustained through community stewardship. Dozens of friends groups and community organizations—including the Portland Parks Foundation and Portland Parks Alliance, a coalition of parks advocates that emerged in 2024 through conversations supported by the Olmsted Network—help care for, improve, and advocate for Portland’s remarkable park system. 
 
In September 2026, the Olmsted Network will host its annual conference, The Power of Connection: Shaping Resilient Public Landscapes, in Portland, Oregon.