Hosford-Abernethy Neighborhood – Your New Home
The Lindley Team at Mortgage Express | 503.517.8641
Hosford-Abernethy is a vibrant and diverse melting pot located in the Southeast section of Portland. It’s bordered by Buckman, Sunnyside, Richmond, Brooklyn & Creston-Kenilworth on land with Downtown Portland & South Portland across the Willamette River to its west. Flanked northwards by Hawthorne Boulevard and southward down Powell Boulevard – The neighborhood brings together industry and residential homes while meeting along 29th Avenue at an exciting juncture that forms part of greater PDX!
Entrance to the neighborhood from the west can be via the Hawthorne Bridge on the north boundary and the Ross Island Bridge on the south boundary. Coming into the neighborhood from the west, the first few blocks are all industrial that slowly turn into a mix of residential, including apartments, and industrial as you drive further east. Finally, at SE 13th Avenue, you’re in a residential area with detached single-family homes.
The Hosford-Abernethy neighborhood is comprised of several small neighborhoods, not receiving its official name (HAND) until the 1970s, as Portlanders began to create neighborhood associations. There is a tremendous wealth of history to the HAND neighborhood, a history that can be traced back to the area’s earliest settlements even before when it was part of the separate, incorporated city of East Portland. Hosford-Abernethy has undergone numerous changes since the mid-nineteenth century and continues its evolution to this day.
Step foot into the bustling hub of SE 26th and Clinton, two blocks below Division. This vibrant area is home to 15 unique establishments; a variety including but not limited to delicious restaurants, New Seasons food market, cozy cafes and coffee shops, record store vibes plus an art gallery – all scattered within a 5-6 block radius! All this place needs now? An authentic Portland bookstore to complete its charm.
Two major public works projects are also expected to help spur growth in the area. The Portland-to-Milwaukie light-rail line that opened in September 2015 includes a MAX stop at Southeast 12th Avenue and Clinton Street, which will make the area more accessible. A streetscape project that began in early 2012 included paving, public art, new trees, crosswalks, curb extensions and other amenities.
Ladd’s Addition:
The neighborhood map reveals an uncommon street pattern just south of SE Hawthorne in an area known as Ladd’s Addition which is part of the Hosford-Abernethy neighborhood. The streets are in an orderly geometric form — a rectangle crossed by two diagonals, which divides the plat into four isosceles triangles. These are further divided into smaller triangles, quadrilaterals, parallelograms, and trapezoids. Also included were four diamond-shaped parks located on the points of a compass. It looks like a British Flag from the air layered against the grid pattern of the rest of the area. Each of these “circles” contains one of Portland’s test rose gardens, with the northern garden’s rose bushes being in a slightly different layout than the other three.
William S. Ladd platted this subdivision in 1891, and he named all but two of the streets after trees. He named one street after himself (Ladd Avenue) and another after his wife, Elliot Avenue. Two streets were later renamed because they were continuations of the grid of streets surrounding the subdivision, and some others were changed because of duplication in other parts of Portland.
The efforts to enhance the public spaces were one reason the American Planning Association honored Ladd’s Addition, declared a city historic district in 1977 and listed it on the National Register of Historic Places in 1988. Criteria for being named a great neighborhood include architectural features, accessibility, functionality and community involvement. The American Planning Association, a not-for-profit educational organization, named Ladd’s Addition one of the “Top 10 Great Neighborhoods” for 2009.
Origin of the Names Hosford and Abernethy:
The neighborhood name came from two schools in the area: Hosford Middle School and Abernathy Elementary School. Chauncey O. Hosford was a one-time resident of Portland who owned 200 acres of land on Mt. Tabor. George Abernathy, like Hosford a Methodist missionary, was also Oregon’s first provincial governor. Neither of these men lived or owned property in the neighborhood that bears their names, but both were important in the history of Oregon and Portland.
Most of the houses in Ladd’s Addition as well as the rest of the area were built between 1905 and 1920. The neighborhood architectural styles can be described as “assorted” and the quality of maintenance varies from “needs work” to pleasantly preserved. Numerous apartment buildings are located on the west side of the neighborhood. You will see Bungalows, English Cottages, and Four-squares to name a few.
Hosford-Abernethy doesn’t have an official farmers market, but People’s Food Co-op, a community owned natural foods store, hosts its own year-round farmer’s market.
Public Schools in the Neighborhood:
- Elementary school: Abernathy
- Middle school: Hosford Middle School
- High school: Cleveland High School
Parks:
- Ladd Circle Park & Rose Gardens
The historic Ladd’s Addition neighborhood, known for its diagonal street pattern, is Portland’s oldest planned residential development. The rose garden sits at the center of the neighborhood. The beautiful tree-lined area is perfect for an afternoon stroll and in the center of a main bike corridor. - Piccolo Park
Piccolo Park, located between SE Division & Clinton streets at SE 28th Ave., was built in the early 1990s from a small cluster of vacant lots that were left over from the Mt. Hood Freeway project. The small park is now a popular playground for all ages, especially young children and their families. Includes paths – paved, and statue or public art.
Clinton Street: One Hip Strip:
- Southeast Clinton Street, also called Clinton, is a mini-hood within the larger Hosford-Abernethy neighborhood. It’s a charming strip with a lively mix of highly touted eateries (Broder Café, Burrasca, La Moule, Fifty Licks, Off the Waffle, Yama Sushi & Izakaya) and finely curated shops (Clinton Street Record and Stereo, Orn Hansen, The English Department).
Coffee & Sweets Mecca:
- We set out to find a few great coffee shops in Hosford-Abernethy and instead hit the mother-load. (Cellar Door Coffee Roasters, Farina Bakery, Grand Central Bakery, K & F Clinton Street Coffeehouse, Little T American Baker, Oui Presse, Palio Dessert & Coffeehouse, and Upper Left Roasters). We’ll be caffeinated for weeks.
- Cellar Door Coffee Roasters features house-roasted coffee and scratch pastries in a comfy, down-home space.
- Farina Bakery is famous for their hand-crafted macarons. And their cakes. And their sweet and savory pastries. We love them all.
- Fifty Licks Ice Cream redefines the genre. Impossibly rich and creamy, nestled in scratch crispy-crunchy waffle cones. Irresistible.
- K & F Clinton Street Coffeehouse is the most iconically Clinton coffeehouse in the hood. It’s old-school, funky, laid-back, and full of neighborhood regulars who greet each other by name. They roast their own beans (off premise) and are one of the oldest roasters in Portland.
- Little T American Baker is one of only two coffee shops in the hood that boasts a full-scale, bread-to-pastry bakery. In fact, it’s probably more bakery/café than coffee shop, but with Coava coffee, skilled baristas, minimalist Zen vibe, and wall-to-wall view of SE Division, whose complaining, right?
- Oui Presse is a blast from an idealized past. It’s grandma’s kitchen on steroids. If grandma was a superb baker. With an espresso machine. Definitely try the cake.
- Palio Dessert & Coffeehouse is where you would find us if we lived in Ladd’s Addition. Overlooking Ladd’s Park, sporting Coava coffee and a luscious collection of layer cakes, it’s the light-filled coffee and tea house of our dreams.
- Upper Left Roasters is one of a new breed of spacious, light-filled, uber-chic Portland coffeehouses. They roast a wide selection of carefully sourced, single origin beans on premise (of course) and feature Crema Pastries and Phillipe’s breads.
Dining:
- Because of the notoriety and acclaim of several high-flying Hosford-Abernathy restaurants – Bar Avignon, Burrasca, Cafe Broder, Castagna, La Moule, and Nuestra Cucina–this close-in southeast neighborhood reigns as one of Portland’s premiere dining destinations.
- Bar Avignon may become a habit. The atmosphere is classic French bistro, chic but cozy. The menu is also classic, but transcends ordinary. Every dish is prepared with uncommon skill. There’s no better potato gratin. Or roast chicken. Or panna cotta.
- Cafe Broder pairs a minimalist Swedish sensibility with seasonal Northwest ingredients. Think mind-blowing aebleskiver, tender potato pancakes, and a rotating Breakfast Bord in a comfy, homey space sparked with playful Scandinavian embellishments.
- La Moule is a mussel lovers dream come true. The best mussels in Portland, in six palate popping variations. And don’t skip the Belgian Liege Waffle for dessert.
- Nuestra Cocina is a celebration of peasant-style Mexican cooking with bold flavors from the high desert state of Zacatecas to the coast lines of Vera Cruz and Tampico. There’s almost always a a line of regulars waiting to get in. It’s worth the wait.
Vintage Wonderland:
One of our favorite weekend entertainments is touring Portland’s neighborhood vintage shops. Hosford-Abernethy has several of our faves, including the incredible Lounge Lizard for mid-century modern furniture, lighting, and glassware.
Gyms:
- CrossFit Primal Energy
https://www.crossfitpe.com/
2820 SE 8th Ave, Portland, OR 97202 - Northwest Women’s Fitness Club
https://www.nwwomensfitness.com/
2714 Northeast Broadway Street, Portland, OR 97232
Coming from Hosford-Abernethy Neighborhood? Here are easy to use directions straight to our office in Portland.
We love meeting with our clients face-to-face, whether you’re a first time home buyer, moving up to a newer home, looking to invest in real estate, or refinance, we’re here to be your preferred Portland Mortgage Lenders.
(Of course, a full application process is available online as well – just click here.)
