This event will be held at the ST. JOHNS COMMUNITY CENTER, 8427 N. CENTRAL ST.  Tickets are required for this event.  Tickets available at St. Johns Booksellers, 8622 N Lombard St. Price of admission includes a copy of A Pictorial History of St. Johns (Your purchase of a ticket reserves one copy of the book from the first printing--you may pre-order additional copies) $20 in advance/$25 at the door Light refreshments will be served St. Johns Booksellers will host a book launch event for A Pictorial History of St. Johns, a new collection of historic photographs of St. Johns, Portland's own small town in the city. Author Don Nelson will give a visual presentation, discuss the process of selecting images for the book, and answer questions from neighbors. This event will take place at the St. Johns Community Center Auditorium. Light refreshments will be served. Tickets to the event include a copy of A Pictorial History of St. Johns, and may be purchased at St. Johns Booksellers. Many Oregon history books include images of the St. Johns Bridge, North Portland's iconic and beautiful river crossing. Few explore the St. Johns neighborhood's rich history before and after the building of the bridge. For the first time, Don Nelson presents a visual history covering over 125 years of the life of our town. Besides James John, the Ohio-born settler who platted the township in the 1850s, you'll get to know Wan Jower, a Chinese immigrant whose workingman's supply store remained in operation for 100 years; Dr. Luzana Graves, who graduated medical school in 1908 and practiced in St. Johns for over 50 years; shipbuilders and coopers and many others who built the town that today is one of Portland's most attractive and close-knit historic neighborhoods. Neighborhood bookseller Nena Rawdah notes that St. Johns neighbors are a mix of longtime residents and recent arrivals. Folks who grew up in the area often visit Rawdah's bookstore, St. Johns Booksellers, hoping to find new resources to share with friends and family. New neighbors come in to learn more about their adopted home. And visitors hope for something attractive to take with them when they leave. The neighborhood heritage society's last illustrated publication appeared fourteen years ago. Recent books by a local history columnist are mainly prose. Rawdah observed a lack of current pictorial materials that would satisfy neighbors' and visitors' curiosity. She urged experienced Portland historian Don Nelson to take on the task of gathering images and information for a book that would fill this niche. Don Nelson is the author of several previous illustrated history books about Portland and its neighborhoods. In addition to drawing on public and museum archives, Nelson gathered photographs and ephemera from the private collections of history enthusiasts and St. Johns neighbors. Interviews with members of long-established St. Johns families provided the context and detail that enrich the captions and text of A Pictorial History of St. Johns. Nelson also shot photographs of present-day buildings and businesses. Praise for Don Nelson's earlier book, Portland's Washington Park: A Pictorial History "Don Nelson has accomplished the remarkable: He's taken a fresh look backwards. Nelson's gift for unearthing historical nuggets is enhanced by this book's brilliant photographs, many of which are previously unpublished...a welcome addition to coffee tables and research libraries." --Bart King, author of The Architectural Guide to Portland