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Oregon City Interpretive Center aka End of the Oregon Trail, or the Covered Wagons
April 22, 2023 Tour and Lunch
We initially wanted to do this tour in 2020.  Then came COVID.  Since then, every time I would call, I’d get a message saying they were closed due to COVID restrictions…  They finally reopened earlier this year. 

We scheduled our tour for April thinking we would certainly have decent Thunderbird weather by then.  Instead, it has been much colder and much wetter than the averages all winter long-plus, requiring all but the very brave to keep their Thunderbirds warm and dry in their garages. 

With the promise of a rare dry day, the first mid-60s day of the year, five Classic Thunderbirds – one top-down! (mine) – and one retro-Bird, plus assorted other vehicles ventured out into a bit of light drizzle and wet pavement the morning of April 22, 2023.  The weather turned out to be great the rest of the day.  Twenty-two of our members participated in this event.

The interpretive center is located at Abernathy Green, named for early settler and businessman George Abernathy, in Oregon City, the location of the official End of the Oregon Trail – or at least of the Barlow Road route – about 175 years ago.

We were greeted by our docent, John.  He first led us to the theater where he gave us a roughly half hour history lesson of the area, beginning in the 1500s.  Once we got to the migration of the pioneers coming west along what became known as the Oregon Trail, John started a very nicely done video presentation.  In a Disney-like fashion, we even had a couple of short talks by John McLoughlin of the Hudson’s Bay Co., who was a tremendous help to the pioneers that arrived in Oregon City.  After the video, we headed for another section of the museum to view artifacts from the migration era.  John was available to answer our questions. 

Following the tour, we headed east along scenic Clackamas River Dr. to the Carver Hanger where we all enjoyed a very nice lunch.

Text above and photos below courtesy Jim Sweet.

The photos below of John McLoughlin Jim took during a presentation look like a hologram, however the museum assures Jim that it is a projection on a flat screen. Pretty amazing technology!
  • Home
  • Our Story
    • News & Announcements
    • Cliff Noxon Service Award
  • Past Events
    • 2011 >
      • Allure of the Automobile
      • Great Oregon Steam Up
      • Carousel Trip
      • Veterans Dinner
      • Christmas Luncheon
    • 2012 >
      • 2012 Kick-Off Luncheon
      • Superior Glass
      • June 2012 Picnic
      • CTCI - Memphis
      • Gorge Tour
    • 2013 >
      • 2013 Kick-Off Luncheon
      • President's Day 2013
      • Guide Dog Graduation
      • SMS Auto Fabrics
      • July BBQ
      • August Rally
      • September Business Meeting
      • Oct Covered Bridge Tour
    • 2014 >
      • 2014 Kick-Off Luncheon
      • Feb Dessert Auction
      • 2014 40th Birthday party
      • May Tech Session
      • July Rally
      • August Progressive Dinner
    • 2015 >
      • 2015 Kick-Off Luncheo
      • March Tour of Ken Austin collection
      • April Air National Guard Tour
      • May PT Boat Tour
      • July Rally
      • August Gorge Tour
      • August CTCI Convention in Albuquerque
      • Sept Carlton Crush
      • Oct Tour & Lunch
    • 2016 >
      • Feb 2016 Valentine Party
      • March - World of Speed
      • May 2016 - John Lemmon's car collection
      • June 2016 - Timberline
      • July 2016 - Rally
      • September 2016
      • Oct 2016 - Model Railroad
      • NOV 2016
    • 2017 >
      • Jan 2017
      • Feb 2017
      • March 2017
      • April 2017
      • May 2017
      • June 2017
      • July 2017
      • Sept 2017
      • Oct 2017
    • 2018 >
      • Jan Kick-Off Dinner
      • Feb 2018
      • March 2018 Freedman Collection
      • April 2018 Tech Session
      • May 2018 WAAM & LeMay
      • June 2018
      • August 2018
      • October 2018
      • November 2018
      • December 2018
    • 2019 >
      • January 2019
      • Feb 2019 Albany Carousel
      • March 2019 Ken Austin Tour
      • April 2019
      • May 2019
      • June 2019
      • July 2019
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    • 2023 >
      • Jan 2023
      • April 2023
  • Up Coming Events
  • Photos
    • As seen at a local Cruise-In
    • Prisoners of Time
    • 1962 Budd XT Bird
    • 1961 Buick Flamingo
    • 1916 Gas Prices
    • Ford History Video
    • Consumer Reports
    • Fords of the 1950's
    • 57-58 Thunderbird
    • Driving to Wichita 2006
    • Circus Party at 2008 International Convention
    • Working on members' cars
    • 1957 Rebuild
  • Contact Us
  • Join Us
  • Tech Tips
    • Preparing for winter storage
    • Cooling System >
      • Anti Freeze information
      • Plugged Overflow Tube
      • Radiator Caps
      • Temp Sender Bushing Removal
      • Cooling Trick
    • Electrical >
      • Battery Safety
      • Ground Strap
      • Safety Circuit Breaker
      • Turn Signal Switch
      • Fuel & Temp Gauge Safety
      • Electrical Leaks
    • Slide Shows >
      • Engine Install slide show
      • Body Removal Slide Show
      • Another Engine Install
    • Cleaning Tips
    • Valve Adjust tip
    • 1955 Shop Manual error
    • Turning Rotors
    • Welding around Brake Cleaner
    • Paint on Chrome
    • Wind Wing Glass Removal
    • Automatic Transmission Removal
    • Arm Protection
    • Changing the Fuel Pump
    • Rusty Lug Nuts
    • Local Parts availability
  • Club Store
  • Bird Watcher
    • 2014 >
      • Sept 2014
  • Cruise-Ins
  • Auto Service Recommendations