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United States District Court Oral History Project Oregon. Supreme Court Civil rights lawyers--Mississippi
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Oral history interview with Jacob B. Tanzer

This oral history interview with Jacob B. Tanzer was conducted by Peter C. Richter from October 5, 2005, to April 4, 2006 as part of the United States District Court Oral History Project. The interview was conducted in two sessions, and a transcript is available.

In the first interview session, conducted on October 5, 2005, Tanzer discusses his family background and early life in Portland, Oregon. He briefly talks about his college experiences at the University of Oregon, Stanford University, and Reed College. He then talks about studying law at the University of Oregon, including his part-time jobs. He discusses practicing law in Portland and deciding to pursue a career as a public prosecutor instead. He talks about working for the U.S. Department of Justice in the organized crime division during the John F. Kennedy administration, particularly his work on the case of civil rights workers murdered in Mississippi in 1964. Tanzer discusses his reasons for leaving the U.S. Department of Justice that same year to return to Portland as a Multnomah County deputy district attorney. He talks about his fellow prosecutors, defense lawyers he argued against, and some of the judges he argued before. He discusses his appointment as Oregon's first solicitor general in 1969 and describes some of the cases he prosecuted. He also talks about serving as director of the Oregon Department of Human Services from its inception in 1971 until 1973. He describes the types of social welfare programs he administered, discusses fighting budget cuts, and talks about working with Governor Tom McCall. He also speaks at length about volunteering with the Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law in Mississippi for one month in 1967 and describes many of the cases he worked on. Tanzer discusses serving on the Oregon Court of Appeals from 1973 to 1980, and on the Oregon Supreme Court from 1980 to 1982. He talks about some of the judges he served with, particularly Hans Linde.

In the second interview session, conducted on April 4, 2006, Tanzer continues to discuss serving on the Oregon Supreme Court. He speaks further about serving on the bench with Hans Linde, and talks about some of the opinions he wrote. He discusses how the procedures of the court changed during his tenure, the relationship between the legislative and judicial branches of state government, and his return to private legal practice in 1983. He closes the interview by sharing advice for aspiring lawyers.

Tanzer, Jacob B., 1935-2018

Oral history interview with Frank A. Bauman

This interview with Frank Anthony Bauman was conducted by Karen E. Saul at Bauman's office at the Carriage House and in the Standard Plaza Building in Portland, Oregon, from November 5, 2005, to May 15, 2007. In the interview, while looking at family photographs, Bauman discusses his early life and childhood in Northeast Portland, including attending Grant High School and delivering newspapers. He then discusses attending Stanford University, including studying economics and his recollections of the lead-up to World War II and the attack on Pearl Harbor. Bauman also talks about his experiences in the Navy during World War II, including learning Japanese; deployment to the South Pacific, particularly Peleliu; treatment and interrogation of Japanese prisoners of war; and visiting Hiroshima after the war. He goes on to describe studying at Yale Law School and establishing himself as a lawyer in Portland. He also discusses his wife, Mildred Bauman, and her involvement in the Great Books Program; studying international law at the University of London in England; and working at various law firms in Portland, including Veatch, Bauman & Lovett, and Keane, Haessler, Bauman & Harper. He goes on to talk about cases he argued before the Oregon Supreme Court and District Court, including Zucker v. Mitchell and Ritchie v. Lamb. Bauman also discusses volunteering as a civil rights lawyer in Mississippi; his involvement with the World Affairs Council; and his involvement with the United Nations, particularly focusing on UNICEF, General Paul Cullen, and his service as U.N. senior officer to Australasia.

Bauman, Frank A. (Frank Anthony), 1921-