James John, the founder of St. Johns, settled on his land claim in the 1840s and was soon followed by others. Schools, churches, and stores were established, and industrial development followed. St. Johns was originally annexed to the city of Portland in 1891. Shipyards were developed in North Portland during World War I and World War II. Among the landmarks of the community are St. Johns Bridge and the nearby city hall building. Longtime businesses include Slim's Restaurant and Lounge, Peninsula Iron Works, the Man's Shop, and the Wishing Well Restaurant. Moonstruck Chocolate Company has been located in St. Johns since 2002. Well-known individuals, such as members of the Jower and Leveton families; Howard Galbraith, a founder of the St. Johns Heritage Society; and Walt Morey, author of Gentle Ben, have called St. Johns home. Today, St. Johns comes alive every year with events such as the St. Johns Parade, St. Johns Bizarre, and the Cathedral Park Jazz Festival. The recent influx of people of coming to Portland has influenced redevelopment within the community.

Portland neighborhoods owe their location, alignment, and growth to a splendid, 19th-century innovation: the streetcar. This city still bears the imprint of the carlines that once wove their way out to suburbs in every direction, including Fulton, Portland Heights, Goose Hollow, Nob Hill, Slabtown, Willamette Heights, Albina, Saint Johns, Irvington, Rose City, Mount Tabor, Montavilla, Mount Scott, and Sellwood. As routes developed, people used them for more than just getting to work; they also discovered the recreational function of street railways while visiting friends, parks, and shopping areas farther from the center of town. The time of the trolley peaked during the 1910s. In 1927, the local street railway system entered a period of slow decline that ended in 1950, when Portlands last city streetcars gave way to buses. This is the history of those classic lines.