In the days before Montavilla became a popular suburb in the early 1900s, it was largely farmland. Gradually, fruit, vegetables, nuts, and other crops were displaced by houses and commercial buildings. But as late as the 1920s, there were still pockets of arable land in sections of northeastern and southeastern Montavilla. I recently learned about the Newell and Matsen cut-flower farm on NE 87th Avenue that may deserve the distinction of being Montavilla’s last farm.

Harry L. Newell (1891-1976) and Hank F. Matsen (1894-1962) established the business in 1922. Hank’s son, Kenneth H. Matsen (1921-2024), continued it until 1973.

I learned about this business from two of Kenneth Matsen’s daughters, Nancy Palomino and Marje Rhine. They suggested that I speak with their mother, 100-year-old Janice Urquhart Matsen, who knew a great deal about it. So, I interviewed Janice, and she generously shared her memories and allowed me to use photos from the extensive family collection. 

Janice has a remarkable memory. She has stories to share about her life in Montavilla and about the flower business. She lived in Montavilla for most of her life, and her memories go back to her earliest years. She remembers, for example, entering Vestal School‘s first kindergarten class in 1930. In the 1930s, she walked to school along Glisan Street, and she can tell you stories about nearly every business on her route. She also told me about a Depression-era “shanty town” just west of NE 67th Avenue and how her father gave food to the men who knocked at the back door of their nearby home.

Janice’s memories of the Newell-Matsen flower farm date back to her marriage to Ken Matsen in 1946. At that time, he worked on the farm, and for a time, the newlyweds lived in his parents’ house located on the farm property. Ken worked on the farm until it closed in 1973. So even though Janice did not work in the business—although she lent a hand from time to time—she was in a position to know how it operated.

The business was founded by two young men, Harry Newell and Hank Matsen, just after their service in World War I. The two men had known each other for several years, and Newell married Matsen’s sister Rose in 1920. Newell had been employed in the floral business for several years, but Matsen had established himself as a dentist after the war. Somehow, Newell convinced his new brother-in-law that a flower business was worth trying.

Newell knew there was money to be made in this trade. He had worked for Rahn and Herbert, one of the largest nurseries in Oregon, with greenhouses in Clackamas. The flower trade was growing, according to the 1920 U.S. census. So, Matsen gave up his dental practice and purchased a large plot of land on 87th Avenue, just north of Glisan from his mother Christina Matsen Tranberg (1852-1934).

The 1928 Sanborn map below indicates the location and scale of the Newell and Matsen greenhouses. It was opposite another farm, the Benedict Nursery, which grew shrubs and trees. The Benedict Nursery, by the way, is now the eastern portion of the Multnomah University campus.

The Newell and Matsen nursery sold its flowers in a variety of ways. They supplied local florist shops. They did wholesale business through the Oregon Flower Growers Association warehouse on Grand Avenue. Some flowers were shipped by train to other locales. And they also created funeral sprays.

Ken Matsen continued working in the business after his father died in 1962, and he became the sole proprietor when Newell retired in 1967. He renamed the business Matsen Greenhouses.

In the early 1970s, Ken faced at least two significant challenges. One was the deadly tornado that swept through Portland and Vancouver on April 5, 1972. Vancouver suffered greater losses — in both lives and property — but the Matsen greenhouses were among Portland’s few damaged properties. When the Portland tornado touched down on his property, it struck the greenhouses, breaking so much glass that it took months to repair, and lifted a tree into the air.

Janice told me about another challenge to the Matsen business: the increasing competition from California flower growers, who did not have the expense of oil heating required during Oregon’s colder winters. By 1973, petroleum prices had skyrocketed due to OPEC’s oil embargo against the U.S. Consequently, California growers could ship flowers by rail and undercut Oregon prices. 

Ken Matsen closed the nursery business in 1973, but he stayed in the flower trade, working for flower wholesalers on Swan Island.

If you want to see a remnant of the Newell and Matsen flower farm, you can find the remodeled 1908 Matsen farmhouse at 750 NE 87th Avenue. Now it’s surrounded by mostly single and multifamily housing. But a bit of the more open, rural land is preserved in Montavilla Park and the Multnomah University campus.

Note:

Some of you may remember when Montavilla still had open spaces other than parks and school playgrounds. Please feel free to share your memories about remnants of Montavilla’s rural past. You can email them to me at history@montavilla.net.

Acknowledgements:

Much of the information in this story was generously supplied by Matsen family members. I want to thank Janice and her daughters for their help. Janice shared her invaluable memories with me in two interviews. Her daughter Marie Matsen sorted through thousands of family photos and selected most of the ones appearing in this article; she also provided additional details about the Newell-Matsen business. Janice’s daughters, Marje Rhine and Nancy Palomino, brought my attention to the Newell and Matsen flower business, setting me on this quest.

Correction: An earlier version of this article had Janice Urquhart Matsen’s first name typed at Joyce in several locations and Marje Rhine’s first name spelled as Marjae. The text is now corrected and Montavilla News regrets this error.