Tape 8, Side 2. This oral history interview with Bernard Jolles was conducted by Robert D. Bulkley at Jolles’ office in Portland, Oregon, from September 27, 1990, to April 22, 1991. In this interview, Jolles discusses his family background and early life in New York, including his Jewish upbringing and facing antisemitism; his education; and the Depression. He describes attending New York University and his growing interest in Marxism. He then discusses working in the New York Garment District and at the waterfront after graduation, and talks about his involvement with various unions. He describes being a communist during the height of the McCarthy era, as well as his reasons for leaving the Communist Party in 1956. Jolles discusses relocating to Oregon in 1957 and attending the Northwestern College of Law in Portland. He talks about working as an investigator for a personal injury lawyer after graduation and the trouble he had passing the bar exam due to his communist ties. He discusses his appeal to the Oregon Supreme Court of the Bar’s decision to reject him. Jolles discusses his career as a trial lawyer in Portland, including arguing cases before the federal and state courts, working with other lawyers, and some of the cases he tried. He briefly describes Judge Gus Solomon and other judges he argued before. He also discusses the types of cases he took, particularly those representing workers and labor unions. He talks about his own law firm, Jolles, Sokol, & Bernstein, formed in 1979; the changes in the profession over the decades; and his involvement with the A.C.L.U. and the Christic Institute. He closes the interview by talking about his involvement with the Oregon State Bar, including serving on the board of governors and as president.

This oral history interview with Betty Roberts was conducted by Katherine Huff O'Neil at Roberts' home in Portland, Oregon, from October 24 to November 16, 2005, as part of the United States District Court Oral History Project. In addition to the audio recording of the interview, the collection includes a transcript; 50 digital photographs depicting Roberts' childhood, family, and later judicial career and activities; and one photographic print of Roberts. The collection also includes an index to the digital photographs. The interview was conducted in five sessions. The audio for session five was not donated, but its content is available in the transcript.

In the first interview session, conducted on October 24, 2005, Roberts discusses her family background and early life in Texas, including her father's disability and the financial strain her family suffered during the Depression. She also talks about her early education, including playing on a girls football team. She talks about attending Texas Wesleyan College; meeting Bill Rice and their subsequent marriage; and moving to Southern Oregon in 1946. She describes raising a family, and returning to college later in life to pursue a teaching career.

In the second interview session, conducted on November 7, 2005, Roberts briefly speaks further about her experiences during the Depression. She then talks about getting involved in Democratic politics while attending Portland State University; the difficulty of balancing school, work, politics, and family; and her 1960 marriage to Frank Roberts. She also discusses some of the discrimination she faced due to her age and gender. She talks about studying at Northwestern College of Law, including her professors and fellow students. She discusses serving in the Oregon House of Representatives from 1965 to 1968. She talks about her experience as one of the few women in the Legislature, some of the legislation she worked on, and passing the Oregon bar in 1967. She talks about meeting Keith Skelton in the Legislature and their subsequent marriage in 1968. She then talks about serving in the Oregon Senate from 1969 to 1977. She describes the lack of a women's restroom in the Senate and other forms of discrimination she faced. She speaks about legislation on abortion that she worked on.

In the third interview session, conducted on November 10, 2005, Roberts continues to discuss serving in the Oregon House of Representatives. She speaks at length about legislation she worked on, including bills allowing married women to choose their names, and legalizing abortion. She talks about other women legislators and the formation of the women's caucus in 1973, as well as much of the legislation on women's rights they worked on. She also discusses her committee assignments, practicing law in Portland while serving in the Legislature, and the formation of the Oregon Court of Appeals in 1977. She discusses her appointment as a judge to that court.

In the fourth interview session, conducted on November 16, 2005, Roberts discusses serving as a judge on the Oregon Court of Appeals from 1977 to 1982. She discusses her appointment; her fellow judges, particularly Herb Schwab; and the sexism she faced. She then discusses serving as a justice on the Oregon Supreme Court from 1982 to 1986. She talks about her appointment, her fellow justices, and her experience as the first woman on the court. She also talks about some of the cases she heard and precedents set by her opinions. She then talks about her reasons for retiring in 1986, as well as her work as a mediator. Roberts and O'Neil discuss the formation of Oregon Women Lawyers and some of that organization's activities.

In the fifth and final interview session, conducted on February 26, 2007, Roberts revisits several topics from earlier in the interview, including her experiences at Portland State University, her early involvement in Oregon politics, and balancing education, career, and family. She closes the interview by talking about the increase in the number of women in the legal profession. The content of this session is available only in the interview transcript.

Photograph 1. Betty Roberts at age three, 1926. Born in 1923 in Arkansas City, Kansas. Moved to Wichita Falls, Texas at age 5 after her father lost the use of his arms and legs and became permanently disabled as a result of drinking bootleg liquor during prohibition.

Photograph 2. Pearl Cantrell with three children, 1927. Her mother, who had only a high school education, became the sole provider for their family of five. (Betty is pictured in the lower left.)

Photograph 3. Cantrell Family on porch, 1927. Father Murray, Mother Pearl, Sister Mary, and Brother Bob. Betty is on her mother’s lap.

Photograph 4. Bob, Betty, and Mary on porch, 1927.

Photograph 5. Pearl Cantrell with Betty and Mary, 1930s. By now the Depression had set in. Her mother took in washing which she did on a scrub board and then boiled in a tub over a fire in the backyard. While this provided food for the family, she had no utilities, except water, and little money for clothes. As soon as Roosevelt’s New Deal programs started, her mother worked in a WPA sewing room.

Photograph 6. Betty Roberts in Texas, 1930s. In Texas: Depression era and tom-boy days in the 1930s.

Photograph 7. Betty Roberts, 1941. Betty graduated from high school in 1939 and went to Texas Wesleyan College in Fort Worth for one year where she worked in a department store to pay her tuition and expenses.

Photograph 8. Betty Roberts with Bill Rice, 1942. In 1942 Betty married a soldier from Oregon, Bill Rice. 09

Photograph 9. Betty Roberts with children, 1953. After World War II, Betty and Bill moved to Oregon and had four children. Said Betty, “According to Betty Friedan, many women were restless and dissatisfied in the 1950s. So was I.”

Photograph 10. College graduation, 1958. She returned to college at Eastern Oregon College for one year. Then graduated from Portland State College in 1958 with a degree in Education at age 35. 11

Photograph 11. Betty Roberts with David Douglas, 1966. Betty taught high school, and as a single parent, started night law school at Northwestern School of Law in 1962 when her oldest daughter started at Stanford University and the other three children were in middle school and high school.

Photograph 12. Betty Roberts on House floor, 1967. In 1964 she won election for State Representative where she served while completing law school. Between biennial legislative sessions, Betty continued to teach high school. In 1966 Betty received her law degree as one of two women in her graduating class.

Photograph 13. Betty Roberts on Senate floor, 1969. In 1968 she won a seat in the State Senate. Pictured here on the Senate floor in 1969. Among the legislative work she is noted for is passage of Oregon’s first legalized right to abortion, consumer protection legislation, Oregon’s path-breaking environmental and land use legislation, including Oregon’s bottle bill. She was a leader in women’s rights issues of the 1970s and advocated for ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment in Oregon and elsewhere in the West.

Photograph 14. Betty Roberts and Keith Skelton, 1978. In 1968 Betty marries lawyer and state representative Keith Skelton and combined their families.

Photograph 15. The Roberts-Skelton clan in front of the State Capitol, 1971.

Photograph 16. Betty Roberts campaign leaflet Governor, 1974.

Photograph 17. Betty Roberts and unidentified man, 1974. Campaigning for Governor in 1974.

Photograph 18. Betty Roberts in her law office, 1974.

Photograph 19. Betty Roberts debates Bob Packwood, 1974. Former US Senator Wayne Morse’s death after the 1974 Democratic primary created a vacancy to which Betty was appointed by the Democratic Party. In this picture, Betty is shown debating US Senator Bob Packwood.

Photograph 20. Betty Roberts with Bella Abzug, 1974. Campaigning for US Senate with Congresswoman Bella Abzug [1995 Margaret Brent Award winner]. 21

Photograph 21. Betty Roberts with Lloyd Bentsen, 1974. Senator Lloyd Bentsen of Texas campaigning with Betty in her race for US Senate. Although it was a close race, Bob Packwood was re-elected.

Photograph 22. Betty Roberts teaching a class, 1975. Back in the classroom as a college professor in political science and business law.

Photograph 23. Betty Roberts, 1977. Back at the Legislature.

Photograph 24. Betty Roberts with Governor Bob Straub and judges, 1977 In 1977, the first woman appointed to the Oregon Court of Appeals, Judge Roberts is shown here with Governor Bob Straub and other new appointees to the Oregon Court of Appeals.

Photograph 25. Betty Roberts with Kathleen Bogan, 1977. Shown here at the Oregon Court of Appeals with her law clerk Kathleen Bogan.