Welcome to Portland ...
Although we found mention of Portland during our research, we have little information about it.<1> Given the context of how Portland was mentioned, we believe that it was a community rather than a locale or some type of landmark. We have done a cursory search and if it was a community, we haven't been able to find any evidence that it still exists..
We've added Portland to our Gazetteer with the hope that we can develop more information. If you can help us with Portland, please Contact Us.
The location of Portland has been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (ie- the GNIS).<2>
While we don't have a date for the founding of Portland, you might get a feel for it by knowing that during our research the earliest mention that we found (so far) was in a book dated 1895.
When the people of Portland refer to themselves (known as a demonym), they frequently use Portlander<3>
Portland is 860 feet [262 m] above sea level.<4>.
Time Zone: The area where we believe that Portland might be (or was) located is in the Eastern Time Zone (EST/EDT) and observes daylight saving time
We believe that Portland would be found within the (859) area code.
Communities Also Named Portland ...
While we believe that this Portland is located in Pendleton County, we know of another 2 Kentucky communities named Portland. Those communities are located in the following counties: Adair and Jefferson County.
Beyond Kentucky, there are 32 communities that are also named Portland - they are located in Alabama, Arkansas, Colorado (2), Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Illinois (2), Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Maine, Michigan, Missouri, New York (2), Newfoundland and Labrador, North Dakota, Ohio, Ontario, Oregon, Pennsylvania (2), South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, West Virginia and Wisconsin (2).
For more information, see our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Portland.
Communities near Portland ...
We have created a list of 10 communities that are near Portland.
- Florence
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Florence
- Florence is located in Boone County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 33,423 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Florence <5>
- Independence
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Independence have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Independence
- Independence is located in Kenton County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 28,903 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Independence <5>
- Alexandria
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alexandria
- Alexandria is located in Campbell County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 9,807 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Alexandria <5>
- Elsmere
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest) - Highland Heights
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Highland Heights have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Highland Heights
- Highland Heights is located in Campbell County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 7,037 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Highland Heights <5>
- Taylor Mill
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Taylor Mill have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Taylor Mill
- Taylor Mill is located in Kenton County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 6,820 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Taylor Mill <5>
- Cold Spring
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cold Spring have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cold Spring
- Cold Spring is located in Campbell County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 6,628 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Cold Spring <5>
- Union
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Union
- Union is located in Boone County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 6,116 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Union <5>
- Walton
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walton
- Walton is located in Boone County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 4,111 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Walton <5>
- Williamstown
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Williamstown have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Williamstown
- Williamstown is located in Grant County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,939 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Williamstown <5>
To Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
We have a couple of sections for those tracing their genealogy.
We created a list of cemeteries that are in the area around Portland. Our list includes the location of those cemeteries and we provide an overhead view. See our Cemetery List for Portland.
Using the information from an 1895 Atlas, we've created a list of communities that were in the area of Portland. Our list includes information such as whether the 1895 community had a post office or railroad service. See our List of 1890's Communities around Portland.
We also have a detailed list of newspapers that have been published in the area around Portland. See our Newspapers Page for Portland.
TripAdvisor Tourism Pages for Portland ...
Looking for more information about Portland? A wonderful source is the TripAdvisor website. We always start with the TripAdvisor Tourism page, where you can read an overview with links that will help you find lodging, restaurants and attractions.
While we are unaware of a Tourism page that is specific to Portland, there are neighboring communities that do have Tourism pages. A map of those communities can be found with our TripAdvisor Page for Portland.
Adding Portland to Our Gazetteer ...
We originally found mention of Portland in both the FIPS-55 and the GNIS. For more information, see the FIPS and GNIS Codes sections on our Miscellaneous Page.
From our notes, the earliest published mention we've found for Portland was in the book titled Business Atlas and Shippers' Guide (1895).
For more details, see References and Mentions for Portland.
Off-the-Road Links ...
The official website for State of Kentucky: https://kentucky.gov/
Footnotes ...
| <1> | If we encounter the name of what might be a community, our methodology is to add that name to our Gazetteer. For example, we might find a sentence like "He went north past Portland and then turned west". While Portland could be some kind of landmark, we think that it's more likely to be a community. We've added Portland as a placeholder with the hope that we'll be able to add more information in the future. Just as a reminder: Our definition of a community is rather broad and includes those places (or areas) where several families lived and had a name which identified that place. For example, you might hear somebody say that they are going over to Miller Creek to see Pete ... Miller Creek is just a gas station and a couple of homes at the crossroads. While it might not be on the map, everybody in the area knows it by that name. Places of interest include buildings at a crossroad, several families clustered in a hollow or maybe the location of a way station. It also includes places like mines, lumber camps, ferry crossings, etc. The community might still exist, is now gone or only existed for just a short period of time. Also keep in mind that Portland could have been on the original document by mistake, misspelled, the original/alternate name of a community that we've listed elsewhere or was placed in the wrong county. Sometimes a post office or train station would have a different name than the community where it's located, so two names might be referring to the same community - we're working to straighten it all out. |
| <2> | The location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required. |
| <3> | A demonym is the name for a resident of a community which is usually derived from (or is related to) the name of that community. In other words, it's how the residents of Portland refer to themselves. It's important to note that there aren't any rules for taking a community's name and turning it into a demonym. A demonym is informal and while the majority of Portland may use one name, keep in mind that others may use something different. |
| <4> | The elevation is an estimate for the area around Portland - it will be higher in some places and lower in others. |
| <5> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |