Oregon commemorates the start of the Civil War with a ceremony at Portland's Fort Sumter memorial in Lownsdale Plaza April 12, 2011

The Fort Sumter War memorial in the center of Lownsdale Plaza in downtown Portland was the location for the noontime event commemorating the 150th anniversary of the beginning of the American Civil War on April 12, 1861 with the shelling of Fort Sumter in Charleston, S.C. An opening benediction and a moment of silence was held to honor the soldiers and civilians who died in the Civil War. It was followed by a reading of the names of Civil War veterans who moved to Oregon to raise families and live out their lives in peace. Visitors to the plaza and those who came specifically to look at the Fort Sumter War Memorial had their Civil War and Oregon-related questions answered by volunteers from Northwest Historical Perspectives.

The Fort Sumter Memorial was a 1906 gift to the City of Portland from leading citizen and Civil War veteran, Colonel Henry Ernst Dosch. There were no other historical groups holding any ceremonies today to mark the importance of April 12, 1861 at the Fort Sumter memorial, so the NW Historical Perspectives group came out to fill in the gap. "Every history- based anniversary should always be used as a platform for teaching...an opportune moment to learn about what makes us uniquely American and Oregonian," said Frank, as he turned tha page to read off another list of Civil War veterans who moved to Oregon after the war.