About Gresham

Gresham was first settled in 1851, when brothers Jackson and James Powell claimed land under the Donation Land Claim Act and named their settlement Powell's Valley. The city was officially incorporated on February 11, 1905, with Lewis Shattuck as its first mayor and a population of just 365. It was later named for Walter Quintin Gresham, a Civil War general and U.S. Secretary of State, after a local merchant petitioned for a post office under that name in 1884. Located in Multnomah County east of Portland, Gresham covers about 23.65 square miles in the Willamette Valley, with Johnson Creek running through the city. Its economy was historically built on agriculture, especially berry farming, from the 1910s through the 1960s. Growth accelerated dramatically in the mid-20th century, from about 4,000 residents in 1960 to more than 10,000 by 1970; at the 2020 census, the population had reached 114,247, making Gresham the fourth-most populous city in Oregon. Three school districts serve the city — Gresham-Barlow, Centennial, and Reynolds — and Mount Hood Community College, located in Gresham, offers associate degrees along with bachelor's programs through a partnership with Eastern Oregon University. TriMet's MAX Blue Line runs through Gresham with nine stations, terminating at Cleveland Avenue, and Interstate 84 and U.S. Route 26 provide highway access. Gresham's park system includes Main City Park downtown, Hogan Butte Nature Park, and more than 20 miles of trails such as the Springwater Corridor and the 40-Mile Loop. The city is also home to several properties on the National Register of Historic Places, including the 1913 Carnegie library and the 1874 Jacob Zimmerman House. Gresham operates under a council-manager government, with a mayor and six council members, and maintains sister-city relationships with Ebetsu, Japan; Sokcho, South Korea; and Owerri, Nigeria.