Weird Things about Oregon

Most Oregonians are aware that their state is not exactly “normal.” With shows like Portlandia and slogans like “Keep Oregon weird” that constantly portray the eccentric qualities of Oregonians, it is no secret that Oregon is unique in its own way.
Located in Portland, in the median strip of SW Naito Parkway, lies the world’s smallest park. Created in 1948 by Dick Fagan, a columnist from the Oregon Journal, Mill’s End Park was originally intended to be the new location of a light pole. Fagan began planting flowers in the spot and claimed that a leprechaun named Patrick O’Toole visited the spot often with his leprechaun friends. On Saint Patrick’s Day of that year, the city of Portland made Mill’s End an official park. Stretching 452 square inches, the park holds the Guinness World Record of being the smallest park in the world.
“I went there when I was little, so I really don’t remember everything, but it’s just really small. It’s not what you would expect a normal park to look like,” Abigail Gunn ‘18 said.
In 2014, Aug. 9 was made a statewide holiday across Oregon, known as Boring and Dull Day. This holiday was created to bring attention to the city of Boring in Clackamas county. Founded by farmer William H. Boring in the 1870s, Boring, Oregon, is sister to the city of Dull in Scotland, which also shares this holiday. Despite its uneventful-sounding name, the people in this town still manage to have fun recognizing their city’s holiday, hosting a celebration annually at Boring Station Trailhead Park with free ice cream and music.
One of Oregon’s more odd roadside attractions includes the Harvey the Giant Rabbit Statue in the city of Aloha. The statue, standing at a height of twenty-six feet, was created to replace a damaged Texaco Big Friend statue that was damaged in October 1962. The statue is based off of the film Harvey, that follows the story of an invisible, giant rabbit. An estimated 50,000 cars pass by Harvey daily and pay tribute to him.