Oregon 250

2025 Oregon Statewide Veterans Day Ceremony
2025-11-11 11:00 - 12:00 (America/Los_Angeles) | Oregon State Capitol State Park, 901 Court Street NE, Salem, 97301, United States
The Oregon Department of Veterans’ Affairs (ODVA) will honor all veterans of the U.S. Armed Forces during its Statewide Veterans Day Ceremony at 11am Tuesday, November 11, in view of the Oregon State Capitol building.
This event will feature remarks by dignitaries and special guests along with ceremonial elements including a color guard, singing of the national anthem, a wreath laying, and the playing of “Taps.”
The celebration will be hosted at the Oregon State Capitol State Park, located on Court Street Northeast in Salem — directly across the street of the front entrance of the Oregon State Capitol building.
The event is open to the public, and uncovered seating will be provided for attendees. Accessible pathways and seating areas for those needing accommodations will also be available. Attendees are reminded to plan accordingly for Oregon weather.
For those unable to attend in person, the ceremony will also be livestreamed on ODVA’s Facebook page.
Event Accessibility:

Wheelchair-accessible venue

Hood River Veterans Day Ceremony
2025-11-11 11:00 - 12:00 | River of Life Assembly Church, 979 Tucker Road, Hood River, 97031, United States
Highway 35 from Hood River to Government Camp was dedicated as the Oregon Nisei Veterans WWII Memorial Highway by Governor Brown on March 7, 2022. The highway commemorates the second-generation Japanese American soldiers who served America, even as many of their families were incarcerated in camps on American soil.
On Veterans Day 2025, a state-sponsored historical marker will be dedicated in Hood River that explains the significance of the Nisei contribution to our shared history. The event will take place on Tuesday, November 11 at 11am. in conjunction with the American Legion’s annual Veterans Day event.
The one-hour program will include a ringing of the peace bell, posting the colors, the national anthem, greetings from American Legion Post 22, history of Nisei service in WWII, fourth and fifth generation Japanese American descendants, comments by former Governor Ted Kulongoski, and recognition of all veterans. Refreshments and unveiling of the historical marker will follow the program.
Event Accessibility:

Wheelchair-accessible venue
Accessible parking

Free Admission to the Oregon Historical Society for Veterans Day
2025-11-10 12:00 - 17:00, 2025-11-09 10:00 - 17:00, 2025-11-08 10:00 - 17:00 | Oregon Historical Society, 1200 SW Park Avenue, Portland, OR, 97205, United States
In honor of Veterans Day, all veterans and family members accompanying them will receive free admission to the Oregon Historical Society Saturday, November 8 through Monday, November 10. OHS will be closed on Tuesday, November 11 in observance of the holiday.
Studying history deepens our understanding of the past, provides context for the present, and can give us the courage to persevere through difficulty. We remember Oregon’s veterans, those still with us and those who live in memory, and we express our gratitude for the hope they carried for a better tomorrow.
We honor the service of all veterans by remembering the stories of Oregonians whose valiant efforts highlight their collective grit, courage, and hope for the future. Our current exhibition, She Flies With Her Own Wings: Oregon’s Golden Age of Aviation, highlights pilot Hazel Ying Lee, who was born in Oregon in 1912 and was the first Chinese American woman to fly for the U.S. military, serving as a WASP (Women Airforce Service Pilots) in World War II. Another pilot, and later a legislator from Hood River, Ken Jernstedt, was known as the “First Ace Ever” for his service in the Flying Tiger Squadron during World War II. Jernstedt received the Distinguished Flying Cross in 1996 and said of his career in public service, “My success in politics has really just been a natural instinct to do my part as a citizen.”
Event Accessibility:

Wheelchair-accessible venue

Coburg Veteran Banners
2025-11-01 - 2025-11-30 | Downtown Coburg, 91119 Willamette Street, Coburg, OR, 97408
Each year, the Coburg Community Grange hangs 48 banners on light posts during the month of November honoring the service and sacrifice of veterans who live in the Coburg Fire District. The banners are double sided and contain a picture of the veteran, branch of service, and a thank you to the veteran’s family. Twelve new banners are added each year, selected from community submissions, printed and produced at no cost to the veteran’s families.

Consider This: Equality and the Constitution with Akhil Reed Amar
2025-10-27 19:00 - 20:30 | Alberta Rose Theatre, 3000 NE Alberta Street, Portland, OR, 97211
Join Oregon Humanities for a conversation with Akhil Reed Amar, one of the country’s leading thinkers on constitutional law. We’ll explore how equality has been a core part of our laws, history, and self-understanding, and consider how we strive toward this ideal today. We’ll also dig into the arguments and assumptions that informed the U.S. Constitution, how it has evolved over the past 238 years, and what the future may hold for our nation’s most basic laws.
Amar teaches constitutional law at Yale University. He is the author of several books about constitutional law and history, including America’s Unwritten Constitution, The Constitution Today, and, most recently, Born Equal: Remaking America’s Constitution, 1840-1920.
The event will be streamed live on YouTube and at public viewing parties in Clatskanie and La Grande.
Event Accessibility:

Wheelchair-accessible venue

Exhibit: “The Nez Perce in Oregon: Removal and Return”
2025-10-10 08:00 - 2025-10-30 17:00 | Oregon State Capitol, 900 Court Street NE, Salem, OR, 97301
The Nez Perce in Oregon: Removal and Return puts the oft-told story of the Nez Perce War and Chief Joseph into national and Oregon context. The Nez Perce today are descendants of tribal peoples living in the Intermountain west for millennia. Recent archeological findings at Coopers Ferry on the Salmon River put human habitation back to 16,000 years ago; there is a Nez Perce name for the site. The Nez Perce, who befriended and helped Lewis and Clark on their journey, had lands taken by treaty and by homesteader encroachment – and finally by war. Nez Perce were subjected to boarding schools, allotment, and other assimilationist efforts. But the people are resilient, and the Nez Perce Wallowa Homeland, a nonprofit with tribal and local representatives, has a dance arbor and a Longhouse on 320 acres near the town of Wallowa; Tribal Fisheries is restoring salmon runs in Eastern Oregon; and the Nez Perce Tribe owns land in the Wallowa.
This exhibit runs Sept. 29 through Oct. 30 and was one of three exhibits that were awarded Capitol History Gateway exhibit sponsorships in the first year of the program.
Event Accessibility:

Accessible parking
Wheelchair-accessible venue

Coburg Antique and Vintage Fair
2025-09-07 08:00 - 16:00 | Downtown Coburg, 91119 Willamette Street, Coburg, OR, 97408
For decades, the Coburg Antique and Vintage Fair has been enchanting visitors from near and far. This iconic event, set against the historic backdrop of Downtown Coburg, transports fair goers on a captivating journey into the past. Drawing thousands of attendees each year, this celebrated fair has become a beloved tradition for antique enthusiasts and collectors alike.
With close to 200 vendor booths, visitors can expect a treasure trove of remarkable finds, from exquisite Victorian era furniture to vintage clothing, delicate porcelain, and rare historical collectibles. Immerse yourself in the rich history and nostalgia that permeates every corner of town. Stroll leisurely through the streets, and discover hidden gems that hold stories of generations past, revealing a glimpse into a bygone era.
Join us for this cherished annual event, where time stands still, and the past comes alive.
Event Accessibility:

Wheelchair-accessible venue
Accessible parking
Large print or Braille materials
Service animals welcome

Oregon State Fair
2025-08-22 10:00 - 2025-09-01 22:00 | Oregon State Fair and Exposition Center, 2330 17th Street NE, Salem, 97301, United States
The Oregon State Fair and Exposition Center is a public/private entity owned by the people of Oregon. The Fair began in 1861 in Oregon City. In 1862, the Fair moved to the Oregon State Fairgrounds in Salem, the State Capitol. The Center hosts thousands of visitors from all over the world each year, with premier concerts, art, culture, rides, agricultural exhibits, and livestock exhibits. Throughout the year, the Fair and Exposition Center works with multiple agencies to help facilitate emergency and disaster response needs.
Event Accessibility:

Wheelchair-accessible venue
Accessible parking
ASL interpretation
Service animals welcome

Ken Burns Live in Portland: The American Revolution
2025-07-15 19:00 - 20:30 | Revolution Hall, 1300 SE Stark Street, Portland, OR, 97214, United States
Join OPB and Ken Burns for an expansive look at the virtues and contradictions of the Revolutionary War and the birth of the United State of America with Burns’ new film “The American Revolution.” Following dozens of figures from various backgrounds and individual stories, viewers experience the war through the memories of the men and women who lived through it.
The event will feature selections from the documentary, a behind-the-scenes conversation hosted by OPB’s Geoff Norcross with Burns, David Schmidt, and historian Alan Taylor who worked on the film.
Burns, Sarah Botstein, and David Schmidt directed the six-part, 12-hour documentary series, which premieres on OPB TV November 16, 2025, and explores the country’s founding struggle and its eight-year War for Independence.

Special Display of First American Flag Raised in Portland
2025-06-30 10:00 - 2025-07-11 17:00 | Oregon Historical Society, 1200 SW Park Avenue, Portland, OR, 97205, United States
In honor of Independence Day, the Oregon Historical Society (OHS) is hosting a special display of what is believed to be the first United States flag raised in Portland after Oregon became the 33rd state.
The flag was hand-sewn by Ann Elizabeth Bills in 1861 and is preserved in OHS’s museum collection (OHS Museum, 61-133). Ann Bills and her husband Cincinnati Bills traveled from Indiana to Oregon in 1853. Cincinnati Bills would serve as Multnomah County Sheriff and start Portland’s first hauling business, which became the Oregon Transfer Company.
The flag was donated to OHS in 1961, and the accession file notes:
As July 4, 1861, approached, Thomas Stafford, an employee of Mr. Bills, was anxious to see an American flag raised to celebrate Independence Day. Stafford suggested to Mrs. Bills that she make a flag, and he assisted her in securing the material. Mr. Stafford and Mr. Bills went to the Sellwood area and cut down a young fir tree, from which they carved the staff for the flag. Mrs. Bills would later remember, ‘Flags were not easily secured in those days, but I saw one was badly needed here, so I went right to work to supply the want. It was hard work, but with every stitch I grew more anxious to finish the task I had undertaken.’ The completion and unfurling of the flag was celebrated with a barbecue picnic at Fourth Street, between Burnside and Ankeny, and was attended by dozens of people from miles around.
Following this special display, we will be sending the flag to a textile conservator for important preservation work.

Two Lights for Tomorrow
2025-04-18 | Various Locations
On the night of April 18, 1775, Paul Revere, William Dawes, and others rode to Lexington, Massachusetts, warning minutemen and households about the approach of British forces. Behind him, lanterns in the steeple of the Old North Church were shining the agreed upon code made famous by poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, “One if by land, and two if by sea.” The next day, April 19, were the battles of Lexington and Concord — and the colonists were well prepared.
As part of the nationwide commemoration of the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, the America 250 Oregon Commission joins semiquincentennial commissions across the country in Two Lights for Tomorrow, a multi-state initiative that reminds citizens everywhere that our shared history is grounded in coming together to build a more perfect union.
Oregonians are called to participate by shining two lights on April 18, 2025, in their homes and community spaces.
