This oral history interview with Travis Cross was conducted by Jim Strassmaier in Cross' office at St. Vincent's Hospital and at the Oregon Historical Society in Portland, Oregon, from October 8 to November 23, 1987. In this interview, Cross discusses his family background and early life in Salem, Oregon, including growing up in the same neighborhood as Mark Hatfield. He then talks about attending Willamette University at the same time as Hatfield, and how they became more closely acquainted. He talks about Hatfield's early life, military service during World War II, and college experiences at Stanford University and Willamette University. He talks about Hatfield's admiration for Herbert Hoover and Dwight D. Eisenhower; and about working at Willamette University at the same time as Hatfield.

Cross then discusses acting as an aide throughout Hatfield's Oregon political career, from 1957 to 1967. He discusses Hatfield as Oregon secretary of state, including helping with campaigns, and the make-up of Hatfield's staff. He describes the duties of the secretary of state, including running the elections division and serving on the board of control; some of their accomplishments during that time; and working with Governor Bob Holmes.

Cross talks about Hatfield as Oregon governor from 1959 to 1967. He discusses the appointment of Howard Appling as secretary of state, Hatfield's relationship with the Oregon Republican Party, and Hatfield's attempts to reorganize state government. He discusses working with the Oregon Legislature, appointments Hatfield made, and dealing with the press. Cross talks about Hatfield's political opponents, including Howard Morgan and Robert Y. Thornton. He also discusses Hatfield's opposition to the Vietnam War, and his support for Barry Goldwater during the 1964 Republican presidential primary. He talks about Hatfield's 1966 campaign for the U.S. Senate, and his decision to leave Hatfield's staff. He discusses Hatfield's Washington, D.C., staff, including Gerry Frank. He also describes Glenn Jackson and Monte Montgomery. Cross closes the interview by discussing his activities after leaving Hatfield's staff and their continued friendship.

This oral history interview with Warne H. Nunn was conducted by Jim Strassmaier at the Oregon Historical Society in Portland, Oregon, from October 20 to November 3, 1987. In this interview, Nunn discusses his family background and early life on a farm outside Salem, Oregon, including his memories of the Depression and his education. He talks about attending Willamette University, including his professors. He talks about his career in civil service for the state of Oregon, beginning with a job at the Civil Service Commission in 1945, on the Public Utilities Commission in 1952, and as director of the Department of Motor Vehicles in 1956. He speaks about working with Mark Hatfield as assistant secretary of state from 1957 to 1959, and describes the make-up of Hatfield's staff, including Travis Cross. He also talks about Hatfield's relationship with the Oregon Republican Party; Hatfield's campaigns for Oregon governor; and his own friendship with Hatfield.

Nunn discusses serving as chief of staff for Hatfield from 1959 to 1967, including Hatfield's efforts to reorganize the state government, and Hatfield's working relationship with the Legislature, as well as with lobbyists. He also describes Hatfield's views on the Vietnam War; efforts toward Oregon's economic development; and the 1968 Republican Convention when Hatfield was being considered as Richard Nixon's running mate. He also discusses Hatfield's involvement with Barry Goldwater's 1964 presidential campaign. Nunn then discusses serving as chief of staff for Hatfield for three months in 1967 after Hatfield was elected as a U.S. senator. He talks about setting up an office in Washington, D.C., and some of the people who made up Hatfield's new staff, including Sam Mallicoat and Gerry Frank. He closes the interview by discussing his departure from Hatfield's staff and his return to Oregon.

This oral history interview with Richard H. Jones was conducted by Jim Strassmaier from December 11, 1987, to January 13, 1988. In this interview, Jones discusses his family background and early life in Colorado, including his early education. He then discusses his memories of the Depression and coming to the West Coast to accept a teaching job at Stanford University in 1938. He then talks about teaching history at Reed College in Portland, Oregon, and becoming acquainted with Mark Hatfield and Gerry Frank. He discusses his involvement in Hatfield's 1958 campaign for Oregon governor. He discusses appointments Hatfield made as governor, and the increasing conservatism of the Republican Party. He also talks about the differences and similarities between Mark Hatfield and Tom McCall. He describes Hatfield's accomplishments as governor, including on education; Hatfield's relationship with the state Legislature; and the attempt to revise the Oregon constitution in the early 1960s. He discusses Hatfield's involvement with national Republican politics in the 1960s, particularly his involvement in the Goldwater and Nixon presidential campaigns. He also talks about Hatfield's opposition to the Vietnam War, and how his own views aligned with Hatfield's; his involvement with Hatfield's senatorial campaigns; and Hatfield's relationship with U.S. Senator Bob Packwood. He closes the interview by discussing Hatfield's support for the National Rifle Association.

This oral history interview with Irvin "Irv" Herman Luiten was conducted by Jim Strassmaier from March 16, 1988, to January 19, 1990, at the Oregon Historical Society in Portland, Oregon. In the interview, Luiten discusses his family background and early life on wheat farms in Ritzville and Edwall, Washington, including his early education and the struggles his family faced during the Great Depression. He then describes studying journalism at Washington State University in the late 1930s, including the evolution of his political views and his interest in radio broadcasting. He discusses his early career as a journalist for the Colville Examiner from 1940 to 1941 and for the Northwest Farm News in 1941. Luiten also talks extensively about his service during World War II, including acting as defense counsel for his battalion and about soldier morale. He talks about his work with the Military Intelligence Service to teach escape and evasion tactics to airmen and setting up lines of escape in France.

Next, he describes his post-war life, including taking the editorship of the Northwest Farm News; marrying Ellen Boyde and raising a family; taking a job at Washington State University; and beginning his career with the Weyerhaeuser Company, doing public relations work as a writer for Weyerhaeuser News. He talks about aspects of Weyerhaeuser that made him loyal to the company, including the company's forest management practices and the management style of Phil Weyerhaeuser. Luiten also describes his experiences as a lobbyist for Weyerhaeuser from 1953 to 1978. He talks about the primary issues Weyerhauser was concerned with, including taxes, particularly timber taxes; pollution; land use; environmental law; and labor laws. Luiten also discusses his involvement with the Izaak Walton League of America and his conservation work; the Clemons Tree Farm; the workplace culture at Weyerhaeuser; and the company's relationship with the public. He goes on to talk about working with lobbyists for other Oregon timber interests, the different timber harvesting philosophies between Weyerhaeuser and Georgia-Pacific, and how those philosophies affected the economy of the state. He speaks at length on the importance of public relations work. He also discusses working with legislators such as Mark Hatfield, Dick Neuberger, Clarence Barton, Dick Eymann, and Vic Atiyeh. He closes the interview by talking about his life in retirement.

This oral history interview with Gerry Frank was conducted by Jim Strassmaier at Frank's office in Salem, Oregon, from May 25, 1988, to May 2, 1990. In this interview, Frank discusses his family background and early life in Portland, Oregon, including his early education and the Meier & Frank department store, his family's business. He talks briefly about attending Stanford University, then discusses his Army service in Europe during World War II and his studies at Cambridge University in England. He talks about returning to Portland to work at Meier & Frank.

Frank speaks at length about Mark Hatfield's family background and early life. He talks about Hatfield's early political career, spirituality, and marriage to Antoinette Kuzmanich. He talks about the 1965 sale of Meier & Frank, and his subsequent deeper involvement with Hatfield's political career. He discusses his economic planning work on the Governor's Advisory Committee, working with Glenn Jackson, and the Republican Party in Oregon. He talks about Hatfield's elections; Hatfield's brush with the vice presidential nomination in 1968; and Hatfield's working relationships with Oregon state legislators. He describes Hatfield's opposition to the Vietnam War, as well of some of Hatfield's other controversial positions. He then talks about going to Washington, D.C., his duties as a member of Hatfield's staff, and other members of Hatfield's staff. He also talks about the conflict between Hatfield's liberal views and the increasing conservatism of the Republican Party. He speaks at length about running Hatfield's office, including managing correspondence and staff, and contracting with the Herman Miller company for furniture. He discusses the ways in which Hatfield remains connected to his constituency; the areas in which he disagrees with Hatfield; and how they handled a real estate scandal during Hatfield's 1984 re-election campaign. He discusses his personal activities, including writing an Oregon guidebook and his involvement with various organizations. He closes the interview by talking about how he first became acquainted with Mark Hatfield; Hatfield's political agenda; and issues contemporary to the interview session in 1990, including environmental concerns about logging and the proposed division of the Ninth Circuit Court.

This oral history interview with Walter H. Evans, III, was conducted by Jim Strassmaier in Washington, D.C., from June 6-9, 1988. The audio is incomplete; Tape 3 was discovered to be blank in 2020. That portion of the interview is reflected in an incomplete transcript.

In this interview, Evans discusses his family background and early life in Portland, Oregon, including his early political beliefs. He speaks briefly about attending the University of Oregon and the Willamette University College of Law, then talks about working as a law clerk for Oregon Supreme Court Chief Justice William Perry, as well as his role in the creation of the Oregon Court of Appeals. He also talks about his friendship with Gerry Frank and becoming part of U.S. Senator Mark Hatfield's staff. He describes his duties as a legislative aide, then a press aide, and as legal counsel to Hatfield. He talks about other members of Hatfield's staff; Hatfield's relationship with other senators; and Hatfield's opposition to the Vietnam War. He discusses legislation that Hatfield worked on, Hatfield's 1972 re-election campaign, and Hatfield's relationship with Oregon Governor Tom McCall and U.S. Senator Bob Packwood. He discusses appointments to federal offices in Oregon made during Hatfield's tenure and talks about communicating with the press. He also speaks further about Hatfield's opposition to the Vietnam War, and talks about Hatfield's handling of the Watergate scandal. Evans closes the interview by discussing Hatfield's home and family life.

This oral history interview with Debbs Potts was conducted by James Strassmaier in a Super 8 Motel in Grants Pass, Oregon, and at an ExecuLodge in Salem, Oregon, from April 15, 1991, to May 28, 1991. In the interview, Potts discusses his family background and early life in Eastern Oregon, including his family's religious life, his education in one-room schools, and working various jobs as a young teenager. He also talks about the sawmill business, including owning and operating various sawmills. He then discusses his marriage to Bobbye Irene Michael, including their attempts to adopt children. Potts talks about his service in the U.S. Navy during World War II, including his training and life on a ship. He also discusses his time as mayor of Grants Pass from 1958 to 1960.

Potts then discusses serving in the state Senate from 1961 to 1984. He talks about his involvement with the Democratic Party; several prominent Democrats, including Harry Boivin and Jason Boe; and his early committee assignments, particularly the Ways and Means Committee. He discusses his campaigns, legislative procedure, and interpersonal politics. He also talks about legislation that came up during his tenure, including on taxes, reapportionment, and education. He discusses working with other legislators, including Monte Montgomery, Ben Musa, Lynn Newbry, and Ed Fadeley. Potts talks about serving as president of the Senate from 1967 to 1970, including the process of getting elected to that position, having Cecil Edwards as his secretary, and the duties of the president. He also discusses working with different governors' administrations, the Senate presidency of Jason Boe, and partisan politics. Potts talks briefly about his faith and his adopted children. He closes the interview with a discussion on his activities after serving in the Legislature, including running the Oregon Lottery.

This oral history interview with William L. Dickson was conducted by Jim Strassmaier at Dickson's apartment in San Diego, California, from September 25-26, 1991. In this interview, Dickson discusses his family background and early life in Portland, Oregon, including contracting polio while in high school and his early interest in politics, including his admiration of Franklin D. Roosevelt as a fellow polio survivor. He then discusses attending Northwestern Law School and many of his professors; clerking at the probate court in Portland; his family's religious faith; and getting started in a law practice in Portland. He talks about his experience as a debt collector during the Depression; his first run for the Oregon Legislature in 1930; and meeting his wife, Dorothy Adelaide Unk, in 1931.

Dickson goes on to discuss his time in the Oregon House of Representatives from 1933 to 1936, and in the Oregon Senate from 1937 to 1939, including his desire to help people burdened by debt; coordinating with his uncle, Ashby Dickson, to pass a constitutional amendment making judges nonpartisan positions; and legislation he worked on, particularly on the probate and guardianship code. He also talks about the role of lobbyists; the pay scale for legislators; and many of the legislators he served with, including Nan Wood Honeyman, Monroe Sweetland, and Frank Lonergan. He discusses his involvement with the Democratic Party; the impact of the Depression on his politics and career; and New Deal legislation.

Dickson then discusses his career after leaving the Legislature. He talks about working for the federal Department of Justice during World War II, particularly his work on cases involving land condemnation for military use, and arguing before Judge James Alger Fee. He then talks about serving as a judge on the Circuit Court of Multnomah County from 1954 to 1973. He discusses cases involving mental health and guardianship. He then talks about the lives and careers of his children. Dickson closes the interview with a discussion of national politics in the 1990s.

This oral history interview with Kathryn Boe-Duncan was conducted by Jim Strassmaier on June 29, 1993. In this interview, Boe-Duncan discusses her memories of legislative historian Cecil L. Edwards. She talks about the close relationship between Edwards and her late husband, Oregon State Senator Jason Boe; Edwards' political beliefs; Edwards' retirement in 1976; and Boe's creation of the position of legislative historian for him. She shares several anecdotes about Edwards that demonstrate his personality and discusses her own relationship with him. She closes the interview by discussing what was expected of her as a legislator's wife.

This oral history interview with Kathryn Boe-Duncan was conducted by Jim Strassmaier in Portland, Oregon, from October 15 to December 9, 1993, and on April 10, 2002. Robert Duncan was also present. In this interview, Boe-Duncan discusses her family background and early life in Portland, Oregon; her Lutheran upbringing; her early interest in music; her high school experience; and attending Pacific Lutheran University. She then discusses her marriage to Jason Boe and the difficulties involved in getting married at a young age. She talks about Jason Boe's early political career and involvement with the Democratic Party; daily life in Reedsport, Oregon, in the 1950s; and raising a family. She then discusses working as Jason Boe's secretary while he served in the Oregon House of Representatives from 1964 to 1970, including his campaigns. She also speaks about preparing the family to move to Salem, Oregon; social life in Salem, including her relationships with other politicians' wives; and the duties of a representative's secretary. She speaks at length about Jason Boe's legislative record in the Oregon Senate from 1970 to 1980, particularly his work advancing the legislative agenda of Governor Tom McCall. She also talks about his service as president of the Senate from 1973 to 1980, his work on improving the Capitol building, and his efforts in strengthening the power of the legislative branch. She also describes Jason Boe's political ambitions. Boe-Duncan then talks about Jason Boe's activities after leaving the Legislature, including his work as a lobbyist. She describes her career as a musician, which she began pursuing at age 40, as well as her work for the Oregon Historical Society from 1986 to 1989, and for Portland State University from 1989 to 1994. She closes the interview by talking about her marriage to Robert Duncan in 1995 and her family life.

This oral history interview with Charles B. Maxey was conducted by Jim Strassmaier at Maxey's home in Portland, Oregon, from February 25 to November 18, 1994. Johnnie Obina Maxey was also present and occasionally contributed to the interview. The interview was conducted in six sessions.

In the first interview session, conducted on February 25, 1994, Maxey discusses his family background and early life in St. Augustine and in Longview, Texas, including his education, growing up in a predominantly black neighborhood, and learning to navigate a racist world. He speaks at length about the importance of reading black authors in high school. He then discusses trying to find decent-paying work in Texas, Colorado, and Utah after graduating from college, and describes how he ultimately decided to settle in Portland, Oregon, in 1943. He talks about working in the shipyards in Portland during World War II and describes his frustration with being denied promotions and other job opportunities due to his youth and race. He then talks about beginning his career as a barber. He also reflects on his college experience at Texas College in Tyler, Texas, and talks about meeting Johnnie O. Maxey and his unrealized plans to go to law school. He discusses his political beliefs and involvement with the Republican Party in Oregon; talks about his first impressions of Portland; and describes how life in Oregon for black people differed from the South.

In the second interview session, conducted on March 4, 1994, Maxey revisits the topic of his early life in St. Augustine and in Longview, Texas, including racism he experienced, learning to navigate a racist world, and working at a drugstore. He also revisits the topics of his first impressions of Portland, working in the shipyards, and beginning his career as a barber. He describes racism he experienced in Portland.

In the third interview session, conducted on March 25, 1994, Maxey talks about a fight between his father and a white police officer in Texas, and how the fallout affected his family. He discusses conditions for black people in Texas, and how they changed during the lead-up to World War II; talks about his experiences working wartime jobs; and describes the development of his political philosophy at the time of the war. He talks about his involvement with the NAACP; discusses people being accused of communism for advocating for civil rights; and discusses conditions for black people in Portland after the war. He talks about the social life of the black community, racism they experienced, and the passage of Oregon's various civil rights acts. He also talks about the experiences of black members of the U.S. military during World War II, as well as his involvement in the Oregon Republican Party.

In the fourth interview session, conducted on April 1, 1994, Maxey continues discussing his involvement in the Oregon Republican Party and his involvement in the NAACP, as well as people being accused of communism for advocating for civil rights. He also continues discussing his involvement in the NAACP. He discusses the slow progress of civil rights in Oregon; talks about his own activism; and shares his thoughts on interracial marriage. He talks about experiencing discrimination at a Young Republicans convention in Utah and discusses his experiences with Oregon Republicans such as Tom McCall, Clay Myers, and Sig Unander. He describes how the black community was disproportionately affected by the state's land seizures during the construction of I-5, including his own loss of his home and first two barbershops. He then discusses owning and operating a grocery store as a family business in North Portland, as well as a barbershop and other businesses that he ran on the side. He talks about raising his children, including their education.

In the fifth interview session, conducted on May 3, 1994, Maxey discusses the reasons why many black people left the South for the West. He talks about the types of jobs that were available to black people in Oregon during World War II and the impact of Oliver Smith's campaign for the Oregon Legislature, and he revisits the topic of people being accused of communism for advocating for civil rights. He discusses his political views, his disagreements with the national Republican Party, and his reasons for remaining a registered Republican. He then revisits the topic of experiencing discrimination at a Young Republicans convention in Utah and talks about having dinner with the governor of Utah. He shares his opinion on school integration and busing; talks about racism his children faced in Portland schools; and discusses the importance of historically black universities. He also revisits the topic of working in the shipyards and describes discrimination he experienced there. He describes the subtler forms that racism took in Oregon as opposed to the South. He then talks about his children, their families, and their careers; discusses his upbringing in the African Methodist Episcopal Church; and reflects on his accomplishments.

In the sixth and final interview session, conducted on November 18, 1994, Maxey revisits the topic of experiencing discrimination at a Young Republicans convention in Utah and describes the process through which the convention passed his resolution that the Young Republicans never again hold a convention at any hotel with discriminatory practices.

This oral history interview with L. Jean Markham was conducted by Jim Strassmaier on May 8, 1997. In this interview, Markham discusses her family background and early life in Washington, including her memories of the Depression and her high school education. She then talks about her experiences at a small community college and the University of Washington; her early political beliefs; and her relationship with William Edwin Markham, whom she married in 1943. She discusses starting a family and moving to Riddle, Oregon, in 1947; having polio when she was very young; her children's education; and her involvement in the Riddle community.

Markham discusses entering Republican politics with her husband, his service in the Oregon House of Representatives, and particularly her own work as his secretary. She describes the secretary orientation session, other legislative secretaries, and the expectations for freshman legislators. She describes her duties as a legislative secretary, including editing legislation by hand and handling correspondence, as well as her duties as a legislative aide. She also talks about the social lives of legislative secretaries, partisanship in the Legislature, and misconceptions the public has about the workings of Oregon government. She discusses Bill Markham's constituency, his position on several issues, and his temperament. She also talks about campaigning. She closes the interview by talking about her plans for retirement.

This oral history interview with Mary Jane Sills was conducted by Jim Strassmaier from August 8-11, 2003. Administrative notes indicate additional interview sessions were planned but never occurred.

In this interview, Sills discusses her family background and early life in Portland, Oregon. She talks about moving often due to her father's construction business, discusses her early education, and speaks about her father's death in 1939. She discusses attending Reed College and dropping out in 1941 to join the civil service during World War II. She speaks at length about her experience working in Portland for the War Department from 1941 until the end of the war.

Sills discusses her experience working as an aide to U.S. Senator Richard Neuberger and U.S. Senator Maurine Neuberger from 1954 to 1967. She talks about their campaigns, their positions on environmental issues, and setting up Dick Neuberger's Senate office in Washington, D.C. She also talks about Dick Neuberger's role in the growth of the Democratic Party in Oregon, and about other prominent Oregon Democrats. Sills describes Maurine Neuberger's personality and talks about other members of the Neubergers' senatorial staff. She speaks at length about office management, including keeping the office supplied, handling correspondence, and managing staff. She closes the interview by describing her living situation in Washington, D.C., and caring for Muffet, the Neubergers' cat.