Francis I. McKenna

rdf:langString Francis I. McKenna

rdf:langString Francis I. McKenna

rdf:langString Francis I. McKenna

rdf:langString Coe A. McKenna

rdf:langString Self-taught

rdf:langString Irish American

rdf:langString Real estate and land development; educator

rdf:langString Laura Linebaugh

rdf:langString Francis I. McKenna (February 25, 1859 – February 24, 1914) was a real estate and land developer, and architect from the 1890s to the 1920s in Portland, Oregon. McKenna moved to Portland in 1889 and purchased the land now known as the University Park neighborhood. He went on to establish the Portland Belt Line Company, which lobbied city officials to extend the cable car system to St. Johns, Oregon. The project was constructed in 1905. McKenna was also known as an advocate of civic improvement and industrialization. Born to farmers in Illinois, McKenna was orphaned at the age of 12. This forced him to find work in labor, including farming and building railroads. When he turned 18, McKenna had enough formal and informal education to ascertain a job at a rural Ohio public school. Eventually, he was offered a job at Creighton University which he held for two years. McKenna quit his profession and packed up for Oregon in 1889 with his wife Laura and son Coe. North McKenna avenue and McKenna park were named in honor of the University Park developer. His son, Coe, continued the family's real estate legacy.