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Collections
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Rev. Lee Owen Stone Collection

  • Org. Lot 651
  • Collection
  • 1903 - 1977

Photographs documenting the career of Rev. Lee Owen Stone, (4/24/1903-3/10/1977), at St. Philips Episcopal Church, 120 N. E. Knott St., Portland. Rev. Stone was Vicar of St. Philips from 1936 until his retirement in 1972. He was active in community agencies and the Episcopal Diocese of Oregon. Rev. Stone was a founder of the Portland Urban League. In addition, he established the St. Philips Church Cooperative (Lee Owen Stone) Preschool. Rev. Stone was Portland's first black Episcopal priest, and hist first wife, Leota A. Stone, was one of Portland's first black public school teachers.

Stone, Lee Owen, 1903-1977

Cracker Eagle Gold Mining Company records

  • Mss 55
  • Collection
  • 1903-1905

Collection consists of corporate records for the Cracker Eagle Gold Mining Company, operating in Baker County, Oregon. Records date from 1903 to 1905 and include expense accounts, business transactions, and stockholders' correspondence.

Cracker Eagle Gold Mining Company

Yasui Brothers business records

  • Mss 2949
  • Collection
  • 1904 - 1990

The Yasui Brothers records primarily document the business, personal, and community-related activities of the Yasui family in Hood River, Oregon, from the start of the 20th century until World War II, when they were among the more than 120,000 Japanese Americans incarcerated by the U.S. government.

The bulk of the collection consists of correspondence and records relating to the business activities of Masuo Yasui (1886-1957). These include the general store, Yasui Bros., that he ran with his brother Renichi Fujimoto; and orchards in the Hood River Valley and surrounding areas that the firm operated. Store records include a variety of advertising materials, while farming records include packing lists, crop reports, and records of local farming associations Masuo Yasui was involved with. The collection also reflects Yasui’s involvement in the local community, including his work assisting other Japanese immigrants to the United States. A small quantity of materials relates to the Yasui Bros. store’s forced closure and the management of the family’s property and assets while they were incarcerated during World War II.

The collection also includes personal papers of Masuo Yasui; his wife, Shidzuyo Yasui; his brother Renichi Fujimoto; and his children. These consist of correspondence, ephemera, and a personal history that Masuo Yasui wrote at the request of the Japanese consulate. Other materials in the collection include records from the 1970s and 1980s of the Japanese American Citizens League (JACL), in which Masuo Yasui’s son Homer Yasui and his wife, Miyuki Yasui, were active, and magazines and newspapers the family received in both Japanese and English.

A substantial amount of this collection is in a pre-World War II Japanese script that is distinct from modern Japanese. Some of these materials, particularly those in Series 1 (Business correspondence and related materials) and Series 6 (Personal papers) have been reviewed and summarized by translators. Selected documents have been translated into English and modern Japanese.

Yasui family

Glass negatives of Early Portland residential scenes

  • Org. Lot 1417
  • Collection
  • Circa 1905

Collection consists of glass plate negatives that depict Portland residents and houses, circa 1905. Several photographs feature Portland families or residents posing inside or outside their homes. All of the people pictured are unidentified except for a man who is likely Dr. O.C. Blaney, pictured next to a house displaying a sign that bears his name. The negatives do not include information about the locations depicted in the photographs, but the images likely portray early neighborhoods on the east side of the Willamette River. The negatives were found in a house in Northeast Portland, and a few images show places identifiable as the east side of Portland. Subjects include houses, porches, gardens, families, portraits, and construction projects. Other images depict the Oregon Coast and agricultural work.

Marie Holst Pottsmith photographs

  • Org. Lot 460
  • Collection
  • 1908-circa 1956

Digitized versions of 119 sheet film negatives taken by Marie Holst Pottsmith, many of them during the eight months in 1908 that she taught in the remote Finnish community of Hamlet, Oregon. These images document the people and community life in Hamlet, including farming, the school, and construction of the first wagon road to Necanicum by residents of the village, as well as a nearby community in Elsie Valley.

Along with Pottsmith's time in Hamlet, photographs in the collection document her life as a student at the University of Oregon; visits to family and friends in Portland, Salem, and Woodburn; teaching at Fisher, Washington; and her family life in Ellsworth, Washington, and in Oregon. The collection includes one image made circa 1956, when Pottsmith revisited Hamlet and photographed an abandoned farmstead she had previously photographed in 1908.

Undigitized materials in the collection include 129 access prints of the negatives made by the Oregon Historical Society Research Library in 1986. Ten of the prints in the collection do not have corresponding negatives.

Pottsmith, Marie Holst, 1882-1980

Burnham family photographs

  • Org. Lot 6
  • Collection
  • 1908-1909

Collection consists of approximately 109 black and white glass negatives, 11 black and white film negatives, and 34 black and white photographic prints that belonged to Howard J. Burnham. The prints are made from negatives in the collection. The photographs were taken circa 1908. The photographer is unknown but may have been related to the Burnham family. Primary subjects depicted in the collection include the Allison and Ella Burnham and their children, Howard and Myrtle, an expedition to climb Mount Hood, and mining and homesteading in the unincorporated community of Mountain in Josephine County, Oregon. The collection includes interior and exterior views of homestead cabins. This collection may be of interest to individuals researching photography, mining, and homesteading in Oregon.

Spruce Production Division lantern slides

  • Org. Lot 1062
  • Collection
  • 1917-1919

Lantern slides depicting activities of the Spruce Production Division in Oregon and Washington State during World War I.

United States. War Department. Spruce Production Division

Tsuboi Family home movies

  • MI Tsuboi
  • Collection
  • 1925 - 1960

The collection contains home movies filmed by members of the Tsuboi Family circa 1925-1960. The films depict Japanese American family scenes and feature locations around Oregon, Washington, California, and British Columbia, including the Columbia River Gorge, Mt. Hood, downtown Portland, Pendleton Round-Up, the Oregon Coast, Seattle, Yosemite National Park, and Los Angeles. Also included in the collection is footage taken in Northeast China, Japan, and on voyages across the Pacific Ocean.

Tsuboi family

Lee Owen Stone papers, 1903-1977

  • Mss 2423
  • Collection
  • 1930 - 1977

Collection includes: Correspondence, sermons, awards and certificates, files from his activity in the Urban League of Portland and other civil and philanthropic associations, minutes of meetings for Men's Club of St. Philip the Deacon Episcopal Church, missionaries' quarterly reports, etc.

Stone, Lee Owen, 1903-1977

Gilliam Portrait Studio and Camera Shop negatives

  • Org. Lot 1275
  • Collection
  • 1930-1970

Collection consists of approximately 600 negatives used to produce photographic postcards. The photographs date from 1930 to 1970 and depict landmarks, city streets, storefronts, and tourist destinations across Oregon. A selection of places and events represented in this collection include Breitenbush Hot Springs, the Columbia River Gorge, Crater Lake National Park, Oregon Caves National Monument, The Pendleton Round-Up, Petersen Rock Garden, and Singing Springs Ranch. Also included are street scenes from cities and towns in all regions of the state.

Many of the negatives have original postcard series numbering and a photographer's signature written directly onto the film. Three photographers are represented in the collection; their signatures identify them only as Christian, Perkins, and Ellis. About 70 percent of the work in the collection is attributed to Christian. It is unknown whether the photographers were employed by the Gilliam Portrait Studio and Camera Shop. The studio was likely a purchaser or publisher of their negatives.

Gilliam Portrait Studio and Camera Shop

Land Program Recreational Project, Columbia Gorge

  • Coll 927
  • Collection
  • 1935-06

The collection consists of a report with appendices authored by John Yeon, chair of the Pacific Northwest Regional Planning Commission's Columbia Gorge Committee. In the report, Yeon argues in favor of establishing an interstate park in the Columbia River Gorge on both sides of the river; describes specific areas of the Gorge, such as the Cape Horn area and the Beacon Rock area; and discusses lands that would need to be purchased to establish the park. The appendices, which make up the bulk of the collection, include fold-out maps showing areas of the Gorge, population density in Pacific Northwest, railroad facilities in the region, land ownership in the Gorge, and soil types in the Gorge; a list of currently owned properties in the Gorge; lists of delinquent taxes for properties to be purchased; photographs; and copies of statements and correspondence of officials regarding the proposed purchase of lands for a park.

Pacific Northwest Regional Planning Commission. Columbia Gorge Committee

Franklin D. Roosevelt dedication of Bonneville Dam

  • SR 23
  • Collection
  • 1937-09-29

This audio recording consists of a speech delivered by President Franklin D. Roosevelt on September 29, 1937, at the opening of the Bonneville Dam. It includes introductory remarks on traffic safety by Oregon Governor Earl Snell. The recording has been edited for radio broadcast and is a condensed version of Roosevelt's speech. A transcript, which was published in The Public Papers and Addresses of Franklin D. Roosevelt, includes the full text of his remarks.

In the speech, Roosevelt speaks about the challenges posed by urban growth, including traffic congestion, housing prices, and increased energy consumption. He then talks about the regional benefits of the Bonneville Dam and future dam projects on the Columbia River. He addresses his plan for rural electrification, as well as the arguments of those opposed to the plan. He closes the speech by again describing the benefits of the Bonneville Dam to the region.

Roosevelt, Franklin D. (Franklin Delano), 1882-1945

Vancouver Avenue First Baptist Church collection, 1940-2015

  • Coll 189
  • Collection
  • 1940 - 2015

The collection covers various aspects of the history of the church and of its leader, Rev. O.B. Williams, and his wife Willa Jackson Williams. It includes a variety of photographs, with a large percentage of the images relating to the various church groups, including choirs, youth groups, and ushers. A large collection of members’ memorial cards, the pastoral anniversaries of Rev. Williams, some bibles and hymnals (many annotated by Rev. Williams, including two dated 1867 and 1890), church financial records and meeting minutes, and a collection of materials from Dr. Martin Luther King’s 1961 visit are included. A small collection of the Williams’ personal photographs and ephemera can also be found in collection.

Vancouver Avenue First Baptist Church (Portland, Or.)

Stella Maris House collection, 1940-1973; bulk : 1960-1972

  • Mss 1585
  • Collection
  • 1940 - 1973

Ranging in date from 1940 to 1973, the Stella Maris House Collection consists of printed material, correspondence, and administrative, financial, and legal records created and collected by the Portland, Oregon-based social justice group during the course of their work. The collection demonstrates the local evolution of social issues key to the history of the United States during the 1960s. Over a third of the archive's content is dedicated to Oregon's migrant labor rights movement, and it also features records documenting the area's civil rights movement, urban renewal projects, interstate highway infrastructure, and social welfare programs initiated by the Economic Opportunity Act.

The bulk of the collection consists of printed material created by a number of local and national organizations between 1960 and 1972, then collected by the Stella Maris House. This portion of the archive includes programs, reports, studies, surveys, correspondence, brochures, and flyers generated by civil rights, migrant rights, and peace movement groups. Items of note include the Albina Neighborhood Improvement Project's plans for urban redevelopment (Series B), an African-American employment survey conducted by the Metropolitan Interfaith Commission on Race (Series E), and records documenting the Housing Authority of Portland (Series I). The collection also features printed material created by the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (Series E), the Valley Migrant League (Series J), and the United Farm Workers (Series J). Newspaper clippings that document events important to social justice movements constitute a substantial part of the collection.

A small but significant portion of the collection was created by the staff members of the Stella Maris House; it includes notes by the staff documenting the meetings of local groups. These meeting notes often provide remarkably candid insights into the workings of area groups. Additionally, Stella Maris House staff members also contributed group and program histories to the collection.

Stella Maris House (Portland, Or.)

The Bo's'n's Whistle

  • BW-OSC
  • Collection
  • 1941 - 1946

The Bo's'n's Whistle was a publication distributed to the employees of the Kaiser Shipyards in Oregon and Washington between 1941 and 1946. The first publication was released on July 18, 1941 under the editorial direction of Chick Johnson, and was given its distinctive name by Edgar Kaiser the General Manager of the shipyard. Subsequent issues released bi-weekly, along with a special issue on September 27, 1941 commemorating the launch of the "Star of Oregon". Distribution expanded to the Vancouver and Swan Island Shipyards in April 1942, with Hal Babbit, director of public relations for Kaiser Company serving as editorial supervisor.

The format of the Bo's'n's Whistle changed from a magazine to a weekly newspaper beginning March 10, 1944, with separate editions for each of the three shipyards - Oregon Shipyard, Swan Island, and Vancouver. On September 7, 1945 The Bo's'n's Whistle was again consolidated into one edition for all three shipyards, and on January 1, 1946 it was moved to a twice-monthly publication schedule. The final issue of The Bo's'n's Whistle was published on May 24, 1946. At its peak, The Bo's'n's Whistle was circulated to 90,000 employees, with over 4,000,000 copies distributed over its lifespan.

Oregon Shipbuilding Corporation

Photographs of Vanport, Oregon, circa 1948

  • Org. Lot 1364
  • Collection
  • 1942 - 1948

Photographs of Vanport, Oregon before and after the flood of 1948, including images of Dale Skovgaard and his family, who lived there at the time.

Skovgaard, Dale

Jerry Jiro Yasutome photographs

  • Org. Lot 762
  • Collection
  • 1945-1948

This collection consists of photographs of the Yasutome family, a Japanese-American family from Portland, Oregon, taken from 1945 to 1948. Most of the photographs were taken by Jerry Jiro Yasutome; a smaller number were created by other members of the Yasutome family and by unidentified students at the Northwest School of Photography in Portland, where Jerry Yasutome studied from approximately 1946 to 1948. Photographs taken by Jerry Yasutome and other family members document their experiences during incarceration at the Tule Lake Relocation Center in California from 1945 to 1946. These images include portraits of the Yasutome family, including Jerry Yasutome’s son, James Mamoru Yasutome, and his parents, Sadao Kurata Yasutome and Ju Jiro Yasutome; group portraits of electrical workers and a Buddhist Sunday School; and photos of a fire at the Tule Lake high school. The remainder of the photographs in the collection represent the work of students at the Northwest School of Photography. They include photographs of the processing lab and students in classes, as well as portraits taken by the students. Also included are photographs taken by Yasutome and other students depicting the aftermath of the Vanport Flood in May 1948.

Yasutome, Jerry Jiro, 1919-1994

Vanport flood photographs collection, 1948

  • Org. Lot 131
  • Collection
  • 1948

Photographs of the aftermath of the flood that destroyed Vanport, Or. on May 30, 1948. The images depict the damage to buildings, bridges, roadways, and other structures in both Vanport and Portland, Or. Includes postcards and snapshots, as well as photographs taken by the Camera Art Studio of Portland, Or.

Camera Art Studio (Portland, Or.)

Oregon Association of Colored Women's Clubs photographs, 1953-1988.

  • Org. Lot 587
  • Collection
  • 1953 - 1988

Photographs and other materials that were assembled for the Northwest Black Heritage exhibit at the Oregon Historical Society, documenting the history and activities of the Oregon Association of Colored Women's Clubs and its constituent groups. The photographs depict the presidents of the Oregon Association of Colored Women's Clubs, including Katherine Gray, the association's first president; state and regional conventions; affiliated clubs; community service activities; winners of the association's Katherine Gray Memorial Scholarship; and federated girls' clubs associated with the organization. Also included is a photograph of the exhibit panel and photocopies of newspaper clippings and other materials used in the exhibit panel.

Oregon Association of Colored Women's Clubs

Oral history interview with John G. Wyers

  • SR 2097
  • Collection
  • 1959-03-03 - 1959-03-21

This oral history interview with John G. Wyers was conducted by his son, Teunis J. Wyers, from March 3-21, 1959. The interview was conducted in four sessions. An unidentified woman was also present during the first session.

In the first interview session, conducted on March 3, 1959, Wyers discusses settling in the Klickitat County, Washington, area in 1891. He talks about the people who lived in the areas now known as White Salmon and Underwood in the late 19th century. He describes a ferry, the landscape, and buildings in the area.

In the second interview session, conducted on March 5, 1959, Wyers talks about the people who lived in the western area of Klickitat County in the late 19th century. He also speaks about conflicts between white emigrants and Native people who lived in the area.

In the third interview session, conducted on March 12, 1959, Wyers talks about the people who lived near the White Salmon River in the late 19th century, including the areas now known as Trout Lake and Glenwood.

In the fourth interview session, conducted on March 21, 1959, Wyers talks about the schools, churches, and roads in western Klickitat County in the late 19th century.

Wyers, John G. (John Gerbrand), 1871-1961

Tim Smith films

  • MIC 9
  • Collection
  • 1962-1982

The collection contains satirical and comedic short films and early film experiments by Portland, Oregon, filmmaker Tim Smith. The collection includes 9 complete films (three on one reel) and one reel of assorted home movies, experiments and outtakes. The collection includes the following titles: "The Orange"; "Irritation and Frustration"; "Come and Get it"; "The Salmon Street Saga"; "This is Portland"; "Drugs: Killers or Dillers"; "The Case of the Kitchen Killer"; "Infernal Voyage"; "Hyperactivity: The Facts." All films are 16mm. The collection also includes various picture and audio production elements for some films, including A and B rolls, magnetic soundtracks, answer prints, negatives, and assorted lab and printing paperwork.

Smith, Tim (Timothy John), 1955-

Oral history interview with Teunis Wyers, Jr.

  • SR 2099
  • Collection
  • 1964-08-06

This oral history interview with Teunis Wyers, Jr., was conducted by Elizabeth Strain at the Wyers Stage Company Barns in White Salmon, Washington, on August 6, 1964. An unidentified man was also present. In this interview, Wyers discusses the history of White Salmon during the late 19th century, and talks about a murder in The Dalles. He speaks at length about Native people who lived in the area. He talks about his stagecoach company and about caring for horses.

Wyers, Teunis, Jr., 1876-1965

Valley Migrant League photographs

  • Org. Lot 74
  • Collection
  • 1965 - 1968

Collection consists of photographs used by the Valley Migrant League (VML) for its program newspaper, "Opportunity News." Most of the photographs were taken by VML staff. Many of the individuals and places depicted in the prints and negatives in this collection were identified by Oregon Historical Society archivists from the corresponding articles in "Opportunity News."
Subjects depicted in the photographs include VML-sponsored adult education and vocational training programs, including photographs of classrooms, workshops, and businesses hosting work-training programs as well as portraits of program graduates and teachers. Also depicted are VML’s children’s daycare programs including photographs of children in the daycare centers and on educational field trips as well as community events, sports, and cultural celebrations including the Woodburn Fiesta Mexicana, May Day, and Christmas. Photographs in this collection also document living and working conditions for Migrant laborers including depictions of laborers in fields, operating agricultural equipment, and in labor camps, as well as rural healthcare and mobile medical clinics. Also represented in the collections is VML involvement in labor and community organizing, including meeting with political leaders and local picket lines in support of the Delano Grape Strike. The photographs in the collection also include portraits of many individuals associated with VML and the agricultural labor movement of the 1960s.

Valley Migrant League

Oral history interview with Flora Cushinway Thompson

  • SR 9504
  • Collection
  • 1966-04

This oral history interview with Flora Cushinway Thompson was conducted by Joan Arrivee Wagenblast in April 1966. Several unidentified people were also present. The interview was conducted as research for Wagenblast's biography of Tommy Kuni Thompson, titled "Flora's song: a remembrance of Chief Tommy Kuni Thompson of the WyAms." The audio recording is a digital copy made from Wagenblast's original reel tapes; the digital files were donated to the Oregon Historical Society Research Library by Wagenblast's daughter, Debra Arrivee, who retained the original tapes.

In this interview, Thompson discusses the family background and early life of Wyam Chief Tommy Thompson. She talks about the settlement that was negotiated by the U.S. government and the Warm Springs, Yakama, Umatilla, and Nez Perce tribes as compensation for the flooding of Celilo Falls; about the construction of the Wyams' new village after they were forced to relocate; and about Tommy Thompson's resistance to the relocation. She talks about the wind rock, which was stolen; describes the Wyam salmon feast; and talks about the spiritual beliefs and practices of the Wyam. She describes how Tommy Thompson always kept copies of federal treaties with him; talks about his rules for salmon fishing; and discusses caring for Thompson at the end of his life. She discusses burial sites along the Columbia River that were moved before the flooding, and also names some white people who were buried at Native sites. She also talks about her children and grandchildren. She closes the interview by speaking about gathering berries in the Columbia River Gorge.

Thompson, Flora Cushinway, 1893-1978

Oral history interview with Howard C. Tobin

  • SR 9364
  • Collection
  • 1968-01-25

This oral history interview with Henry C. Tobin was conducted by Ron Shay on January 25, 1968. In this interview, Tobin discusses his early life in the area of Fort Stevens, Oregon, between 1903 and 1905. He describes the landscape and surrounding towns, speaks at length about fishing in the Columbia River, and discusses hunting birds in the area. He also shares an anecdote about an arsonist in the Fort Stevens area around 1905. He briefly describes his travels with the U.S. Army as a major in the cavalry, shares his reasons for retiring in 1929, and talks about returning to Oregon in 1932. He closes the interview by discussing the changes to Fort Stevens over the 20th century.

Tobin, Howard C. (Howard Charles), 1892-1971

Vortex I music festival photographs

  • Org. Lot 666
  • Collection
  • 1970

The collection consists of 17 black-and-white photographs of attendees and performers at the Vortex I music festival. The photographs depict crowds arriving at the festival, performers on stage, audience members dancing, and attendees sunbathing in the park.

The Vortex I music festival, also known as Vortex I: A Biodegradable Festival of Life, was a rock festival held at Milo McIver State Park near Estacada, Oregon. Members of Governor Tom McCall’s staff in collaboration with members of the Portland counterculture community planned the state-sponsored festival. Vortex I officially ran from August 28 to September 3, 1970 to coincide with the American Legion annual convention held in Portland the same week.

Oral history interview with John A. Silvertooth

  • SR 463
  • Collection
  • 1970

This oral history interview with John A. Silvertooth was conducted by Jack P. Steiwer at Silvertooth's store in Antelope, Oregon, around 1970. In this interview, Silvertooth discusses the history of Antelope and the Wasco County area. He talks about his family background and early life in Antelope in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. He talks about the businesses he owned in Antelope, particularly the Idle Hours Tavern and a museum that burned down in 1964. He also briefly talks about his unsuccessful campaign for the Oregon Legislature. He speaks about homesteaders in the area, sheep and cattle ranching, and some of the families that lived in the area. Silvertooth tells a story about a bar brawl in his tavern; talks about some of the items in his store where the interview took place; and shares his memories of early automobiles and railroad lines in the area. He also talks about the origins of place names in Wasco County. He closes the interview by discussing running his tavern during Prohibition.

Silvertooth, John A. (John Addison), 1885-1972

Oral history interview with George S. Donnelly

  • SR 462
  • Collection
  • circa 1970

This oral history interview with George Donnelly was conducted by Jack P. Steiwer at Donnelly's home near Richmond, Oregon, around 1970. Bill Asher was also present.

In this interview, Donnelly discusses his father, Roderick Nelson Donnelly, and his father's role in the development of Wheeler County. He talks about his own life in the Richmond area in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, including sheep ranching, the history of the town, and people and businesses in the area. He also briefly shares his memories of the flood of 1911, which washed away a portion of Richmond. He talks about hunting and fishing in the area, recreational activities, and food storage. Steiwer closes the interview by reciting the history of the Donnelly family.

Donnelly, George S. (George Stanley), 1888-1973

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