Almost a Cracker Factory: A Brief History*

In 1946, The National Biscuit Company (Nabisco) began scouting for property to consolidate its small Portland and Seattle plants into one regional site with railroad siding access. After they were shown a few possible locations in the Portland area, Nabisco settled on the north side of Sullivan’s Gulch, west of 74th Street, adjacent to what is now the Rose City Golf Course. This location had the desired proximity to the Union Pacific railroad, as well as to a semi-residential area. Nabisco wanted their new plant to be located away from other heavily industrial plants and wanted to design and build a modern, attractive factory that workers would want to live near.

Deals were cut with the Portland Chamber of Commerce, the City Council and local business moguls to ensure Nabisco would be able to build their factory on this site. This would require zoning changes, property exchanges, newspaper editorials, and many compromises. However, as soon as residential owners heard of the project, there was strong opposition to having a factory in what they considered to be a residential neighborhood. Property owners filed suit in circuit court, property options expired, and, ultimately, Nabisco was forced to seek a new location. They settled for a site on Columbia Boulevard where they are still situated today.

L.C. (Jack) Binford was one of the business leaders invited to participate in the Nabisco project; when the project failed, he was left holding much of the property involved in the original plan. He ended up borrowing $2 million in federal housing funds and building the Binford patio apartments.

Nabisco's loss was the Binford residents' gain.

*As found in The Growth of a City: Power and Politics in Portland, Oregon 1915-1950 by E. Kimbark MacColl