Snow is on the way, but fear not: Portland’s snowfall record, which paralyzed the city during WWII, is safe Updated Feb 10, 2021; Posted Feb 10, 2021 A January 21, 1943, snowstorm in Portland caused streetcars to be stranded overnight at N.E. Broadway and Union (now Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.). Facebook Share Portland is expected to get snow Thursday and Friday, the first significant flurry of the winter. But it won’t come close to the record. Just over 78 years ago, on Jan. 21, 1943, the City of Roses saw the most snowfall ever recorded on a single day in the city. More than 15 inches dropped on downtown, with slightly less recorded at the airport.