St. Johns: Main Street, Cathedral Park, and the Bridge
Stand at the top of Cathedral Park on a clear evening and look up: two green Gothic towers, arches shaped like church windows, and the Willamette sliding underneath on its way to the Columbia. That’s the St. Johns Bridge, and the place at its feet is St. Johns, a neighborhood in North Portland. If you’ve ever pulled up St. Johns Portland photos, you’ve already seen this exact frame.
A short walk uphill puts you on N Lombard Street with a slice of pizza baked inside a 1939 gas station. Bridge, river, main street. Let’s go.
What is St. Johns, Portland known for?
Three things: the St. Johns Bridge, Cathedral Park beneath it, and a main street along N Lombard. St. Johns was its own city until 1915, and downtown still centers on a small plaza at N Lombard and N Philadelphia.
The St. Johns Bridge
The bridge opened in 1931. Its main span runs 1,207 feet, the towers rise about 400 feet, and it is the only steel suspension bridge in Portland. The park underneath got its name from a 1968 Oregon Journal photo by Al Monner that likened those arches to a cathedral. It stuck.
Local landmarks
- St. Johns Twin Cinemas, 8704 N Lombard St. The theater turned 100 in 2026, and its original mural of Venice still stretches above the auditorium. Open daily.
- St. Johns Library, 7510 N Charleston Ave. The 1913 Carnegie building reopened in June 2026 with a forest mural by Carson Ellis inside and three Alebrije sculptures by Victor Trejo out front. One is a salmon named Metzli.
- St. Johns Bizarre. A free street fair every second Saturday in May since 2007. The 2026 fair brought 220 vendors.
Where to eat and drink in St. Johns
- Signal Station Pizza, 8302 N Lombard St. The building opened as a Signal service station in 1939, was restored in 2003, and has served pizza since 2006.
- Occidental Brewing, 6635 N Baltimore Ave, near the park. German-style beer since 2011, outside food welcome, and Urban German Wursthaus sits across the courtyard if you want bratwurst with that lager.
- St. Johns Farmers Market, Saturdays 9 am to 2 pm through November 21, 2026, at N Charleston Ave and N Central St.
Love a Portland main street with room to wander? Our Mississippi Avenue guide is a good next read.
Parks near St. Johns
Cathedral Park is the anchor: 21.85 acres on the Willamette under the bridge, with a boat ramp, an outdoor stage, an off-leash dog area, and a flowering nature garden of native and ornamental plants finished in 2024.
William Clark and eight men camped here in 1806. In the early 1970s, Howard Galbraith led a local drive to turn the land beneath the span into a park. Eight years and $7.5 million later, with public funding joining in, it was dedicated on May 3, 1980.
My favorite detail: a time capsule sealed into the park’s Wall of History that June, with ash from Mount St. Helens inside, is set to open in 2030. It’s on my calendar.
In June 2024, a $900,000 floating swim dock opened. The city recommends it for advanced swimmers because the water beside it is deep. The small beach slopes in gently.
Cathedral Park Jazz Festival
Free, all ages, and held right in the park. The 46th festival ran July 17 to 19, 2026.
More green space
- Pier Park: 85 acres with disc golf through tall trees, a skatepark with a 20-foot full-pipe, and a summer pool.
- Baltimore Woods: a 7-acre wildflower meadow. Enter at N Reno and N Decatur and walk south for bridge views.
- Kelley Point Park: where the Willamette, the Columbia and the Columbia Slough meet. Enjoy it from shore; the city posts no-swimming signs because the currents are powerful.
- Smith and Bybee Wetlands Natural Area: about 2,000 acres with a paved one-mile trail and three wildlife lookouts.
Getting around St. Johns
St. Johns sits on the North Portland peninsula between the Willamette and the Columbia. The bridge carries you west toward Linnton and Forest Park. TriMet Line 75 serves the Cathedral Park area, parking near the water is limited, and cyclists can ride the Marine Drive Trail out to Kelley Point.
Beyond the postcard view
That green bridge shows up on a lot of Portland postcards. People know its silhouette long before they visit.
What surprises them is everything down below: a movie house that just hit 100, a park built on eight years of local fundraising, a capsule counting down to 2030. Consider this the rest of the picture. For more places worth a wander, browse our best Portland neighborhoods roundup.
If you go
- Make it a Saturday. Hit the market on N Charleston first, then stroll Lombard to the plaza.
- Walk down to the park for evening. Portland Parks calls Cathedral Park a wonderful sunset spot.
- Pack a swimsuit in summer. Strong swimmers take the dock. Everyone else wades in from the beach.
- Check before you paddle. The Kelley Point canoe launch is closed for trail work through late fall 2026.
- End with a movie. That Venice mural at the Twin is worth the ticket on its own.
FAQ
Where is St. Johns in Portland?
St. Johns is a neighborhood in North Portland, on the peninsula near where the Willamette River meets the Columbia. The St. Johns Bridge links it across the Willamette to Linnton and the Forest Park side of town. Cathedral Park and the main commercial stretch along N Lombard Street form the everyday center of the neighborhood.
What is Cathedral Park?
Cathedral Park is a Portland Parks & Recreation riverfront park of 21.85 acres under the St. Johns Bridge in North Portland. Community fundraising helped create it; a drive that raised about $7.5 million, joined by public funds, led to its dedication on May 3, 1980. It has paths, river access, an outdoor stage, and picnic tables.
What is the St. Johns Bridge?
The St. Johns Bridge is a steel suspension bridge over the Willamette River that opened in 1931. Portland Parks notes a 1,207-foot main span and cathedral-like tower arches, and it is Portland’s only steel suspension bridge. Cathedral Park sits beneath its eastern end and takes its name from those Gothic arches.
Is there a jazz festival at Cathedral Park?
Yes. The Cathedral Park Jazz Festival is a free, all-ages annual festival held in Cathedral Park under the St. Johns Bridge. Organized by the Jazz Society of Oregon, it has run for decades, reaching its 46th year in 2026, and is described as the longest-running free jazz festival west of the Mississippi River.
Can you swim or launch small craft at Cathedral Park?
Yes. Cathedral Park has Willamette riverfront access, including a boat ramp and dock. In June 2024, a new multi-use dock opened for swimming and recreation, replacing an aging wooden floating dock. The Human Access Project helped fund it, and it added swim ladders and better water circulation near the park beach.
