Community > Employers

Employers

Oregon Washington Railroad and Navigation Company Picnic at Bonneville in 1915.
The Oregon Washington Railroad and Navigation Company annual picnic at Bonneville in 1915. Courtesy of Karen Spady Gallio.
As with most immigrant groups around the turn of the century, hard work was a prerequisite for success and upward mobility in their new homeland. The Volga Germans had a strong work ethic, and this philosophy was expressed in a traditional saying: Arbeit macht das Leben süß  (Work makes life sweet).

In Portland, many early settlers found employment with private companies, while others established businesses.

​A partial list of companies employing Volga Germans from 1881 to 1945 is shown below.
  • Albina Fuel Company
  • Albina Engine and Machine Works
  • Albina Lumber Company
  • American Can Company
  • B.P. John Furniture
  • Columbia Cabinet Works
  • Columbia Shipbuilding
  • Columbia Steel Company
  • Carman Manufacturing
  • Cassady Fixture Works
  • Commercial Iron Works
  • Doernbecher Manufacturing Company
  • Eastside Mill & Lumber Company
  • Grand Rapids Equipment (752 E 22nd)
  • Hyster Company
  • Irvington Drug
  • Jantzen Knitting Mills
  • John S. Beal Boat Works
  • John Wood Iron Works
  • Jones Lumber Company
  • Jones Stevedoring
  • M&M Woodworking
  • Meier & Frank Company
  • New System Laundry (507 E. Flanders)
  • Nicolai Sash and Door Company
  • Nicolai-Neppach Planing Mill
  • Northern Pacific Railroad (North Pacific Terminal Company)
  • Northwestern Steel
  • Oregon Iron and Steel Company
  • Oregon Laundry (54 E. 6th - NE corner near Oak)
  • Oregon Shipbuilding Corporation
  • Oregon Washington Railroad and Navigation Company (later Union Pacific Railroad)
  • Pacific Bar and Foundry Company
  • Portland Cordage Company
  • Portland Cracker Company
  • Portland Railway Light and Power
  • Portland Laundry (324 Union Ave)
  • Rushlight Tin and Plumbing Company
  • Smith and Watson Iron Works
  • Southern Pacific Railroad
  • Stadler Fixture Works
  • SweetArts Candy Factory
  • Tru-Blu Biscuit Company
  • Union Pacific Railroad
  • W.C. Noon Bag Company
  • Western Baking Company
  • White-Mann Company
  • Willamette Iron and Steel Works
Picture
1926 Doernbecher Furniture Advertisement
Picture
Volga German employees of the Tru-Blu Biscuit Company. Photo contributed by Marcia Staunton
Albina Engine & Machine Works
Albina Engine & Machine Works photograph courtesy of Sheryl Scarbrough.
Work group at the Nicolai-Neppach Co. Planing Mill at 227 Davis in Portland. Theodore Nicolai, President; William Nicolai, Secretary; Anthony Neppach, Manager. Georg Kildow is seated first on the left. Carl Kildow may also be in this group. Source: Geraldine Kildow.
Work group at the Nicolai-Neppach Co. Planing Mill at 227 Davis in Portland. Theodore Nicolai, President; William Nicolai, Secretary; Anthony Neppach, Manager. Georg Kildow is seated first on the left. Carl Kildow and other Volga Germans may also be in this group. Source: Geraldine Kildow.
Contact us if you have information about companies that employed Volga Germans in Portland between 1881 and 1945.

Sources

Albina and Portland City Directories

U.S. Censuses 
Last updated November 16, 2023