This oral history interview with Claire Argow was conducted by Roberta Watts at Argow's home in Portland, Oregon, from November 28 to December 2, 1977. The interview was conducted in two sessions.

In the first interview session, conducted on November 28, 1977, Argow discusses her education and career in social work and criminology in New England, including her college experiences at Vassar and at Yale Law School, her work as assistant director for the Survey of Connecticut Prisons, and her work with the National Society for the Prevention of Crime in New York City. She talks about her views on capital punishment and about working with prisoners who were executed. She discusses her work with the Oregon Prison Association, and talks about prison conditions when she started in 1945, her successes in prison reforms, and opposition she faced.

In the second interview session, conducted on December 2, 1977, Argow talks about moving to Oregon in 1945 and shares her early impressions of the state, particularly regarding racism in Oregon. She discusses her work with Oregon Literacy, which helps adults learn to read and write, as well as learn English as a second language. She talks about her involvement in the creation of the Claire Argow Center, also known as the Multnomah County Women's Jail. She discusses the rising crime rate at the time of the interview in 1977, particularly among women. She closes the interview by speaking about her belief in restorative justice rather than only punitive approaches.

This oral history interview with Charles S. Crookham was conducted by Charles Digregorio in Portland, Oregon, on November 25, 1978. In this interview, Crookham discusses his family background and early life in Portland. He briefly talks about his service in the U.S. Army during World War II, including his training and fighting in France under General George Patton. He mentions studying law at Stanford University and Northwestern College of Law, then speaks about practicing law in Portland. He then discusses serving as a trial judge on the Multnomah County Circuit Court; his stance on capital punishment; equity of the administration of justice; and some of the sentences he has handed down. He closes the interview by talking about his wife, Elizabeth Kelley, and their children.

This oral history interview with Don E. Clark was conducted by George M. Joseph at the Oregon Historical Society in Portland, Oregon, from August 30, 1994 to March 27, 1998. The interview was conducted over twenty-nine sessions, and the collection includes a transcript. Tape 13 of this interview is missing, and some sections of the interview have been restricted by Clark.

In sessions 1 through 5, Clark discusses his early life and career, including working as a prison guard at San Quentin State Prison in California and then as a deputy for the Multnomah County Sheriff's Office. In sessions 5 and 6, he discusses his 1962 campaign for Multnomah County sheriff. In sessions 7 through 9, he continues to speak about his campaign, and then discusses serving as Multnomah County sheriff from 1962 to 1966. In sessions 10 and 11, he discusses his 1966 re-election campaign for Multnomah County sheriff and his simultaneous campaign for chair of the Multnomah County board of commissioners; serving as assistant director of the Law Enforcement Program at Portland State University from 1967 to 1968, and his 1968 campaign for position 4 on the Multnomah County Board of Commissioners. In sessions 12 through 15, Clark talks about serving on the Multnomah County Board of Commissioners, focusing on the years from 1969 to 1974. In sessions 16 through 20, he talks about campaigning for and serving as chair of the Multnomah County Board of Commissioners from 1975 to 1979. In sessions 21 through 24, Clark discusses serving as county executive from 1979 to 1982, and his 1982 campaign for Oregon governor. In sessions 25 through 29, Clark talks about his activities since leaving office, including serving as executive director of the Burnside Consortium, now known as Central City Concern, from 1984 to 1988, and as executive director of the Housing Authority of Portland, now known as Home Forward, from 1988 to 1992.

This oral history interview with Allan Hart was conducted by Allan F. Schulte, Hart's grandson, in 1992. The interview was recorded on the audiocassettes out of order.

In this interview, Hart discusses his family background and early life in Portland, Oregon, as well as his education at Moran School and Stanford University. He talks about investigating the Red Squad in Portland while he was an assistant U.S. attorney; about his time in the Department of Justice; and about his work prosecuting a case against the American Medical Association. He discusses getting drafted into the Army and his experiences in the Pacific theater during World War II. He speaks about being chairman of Maurine Neuberger's election campaign in 1960. He discusses his law career, including cases he worked on; working with Lindsay, Hart, Neil & Weigler in Portland; and nearly being appointed to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. He closes the interview by sharing his childhood memories of World War I.