During World War II, Oregon built an entire city for wartime laborers. Around 40,000 were living there before a flood erased it from the map within hours

In 1942, during World War II, a city called Vanport was built near Portland to house workers arriving for jobs in the region's booming shipyards. What began as a massive wartime housing project soon grew into Oregon's second-largest city, with around 40,000 people calling it home.

But Vanport's story lasted only about six years.