31st
In 2006, a strange story involving large amounts of cash, used cars and the IRS brought Portland’s insular Gypsy population into the public eye. Police raided the home of Bobby Ephrem, owner of a pair of 82nd Avenue used-car lots and patriarch of a Portland Gypsy clan, seizing $2.7 million in cash on the suspicion of tax evasion. But long before this reminder of their presence, evidence of Portland’s Gypsy community was literally carved in stone at Rose City Cemetery (5625 NE Fremont St.). Amid the graves of Oregon governors, a mayor and a decorated Civil War hero, the tombs of Romany locals dating back to the mid-20th century can be spotted, often gaudily decorated and featuring embedded photos of the deceased. They are refreshingly un-solemn and bare evidence of frequent visits: flowers, pinwheels, teddy bears. These headstones aren’t designed to blend in and be forgotten, and they clearly haven’t been. (Kudos to James Creely! - via “Best Sights” | Willamette Week | July 22nd, 2009
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