I first experienced Benson Polytechnic High School in 2007. I began working on its modernization project a decade later, then the 2017 Portland Public Schools (PPS) bond (partially) funded the reconstruction. As the new design nears completion, and with construction including substantial demolition slated to begin later this year, I have explored the history of the school through its buildings.

1916 Master Plan

Benson fills a six-block campus in inner northeast Portland. Extensive career-technical-education programs present a unique collection of building uses, from manufacturing shops to healthcare-education clinics. The original main building, boiler house, north shops, and foundry building date to 1916. The corresponding master plan envisioned a series of neoclassical brick building “units” separated by courtyards. Single-loaded corridors connected the units and defined a large eastern athletic courtyard.

From PPS Archives: a 1917 construction photograph taken at the southeast corner of the campus shows the original buildings at various stages of completion. From left to…