Auto Freight Transport Building of Oregon and Washington
Auto Freight Transport Building of Oregon and Washington, also known as East Side Terminal and Eastbank Commerce Center, is a four-story commercial building in southeast Portland, Oregon. It sits at 1001 SE Water Avenue on about 0.85 acres, covering roughly 64,892 square feet. Built in 1924 by architects Houghtaling and Dougan, the U-shaped building has a flat roof, large industrial windows, and a simple interior of concrete floors and walls. The original open warehouse included a few offices on the second floor and has since been divided into spaces for light industry, business, and offices.
The building was part of an early 20th-century industrial area along the Willamette River. To speed freight moving into the city, a central eastside receiving station—the Auto Freight Transport Building—was created. It was served by river docks about 100 feet to the west, plus rail lines and streets, and could handle and store many kinds of cargo. Many small freight companies used it for offices and lounges.
The Auto Freight Transportation Association of Oregon and Washington, a group of small trucking firms, ran the terminal together until 1938, when they renamed themselves East Side Terminal, Inc., and moved to another building. After that, the structure served as a warehouse for various freight companies and included a small built-in service station. Around 1930, an adjacent building, the Auto Freight Terminal Service Station, was built across Southeast Water Avenue to provide fuel and repairs; it stayed open into the early 1940s.
In 1964, the relocation of Interstate 5 removed docks and waterfront structures and led to the demolition of many nearby buildings. Today, the Auto Freight Transport Building is the best-preserved historic waterfront building in the 680-acre district. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places on June 30, 2005 (NRHP reference number 05000641).
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 13:50 (CET).