Photograph, taken from a high angle, showing a lumber mill next to a river. Image includes buildings and the stacks of boards and wood outside.

Photograph, taken from a high angle, showing a lumber mill, including buildings and stacks of wood outside. Image note: Scratch on negative at upper right.

A sawmill beside a river near Molalla. A man stands on a log and looks towards the shore, where a wooden ramp leads down towards the water. A chimney is visible above the sawmills, and piles of cut lumber are on a raised wooden deck. Logs can be seen floating in the water (negative 10 of 14).

An industrial area on the Willamette River in Salem, Oregon. Logs can be seen floating in the water, next to what is likely a sawmill. A multi-story building is in the distance, with a sign that reads “Moving, Storage, Fuel Oil” (negative 11 of 12).

A lumber Mill in Sweet Home. Workers stand among floating logs, uses push poles to move them. A logging truck is parked next to the water, in front of a wooden chute structure (negative 5 of 7).

Stereograph of the Oregon Steam Navigation Co. sawmill at Eagle Creek in the Columbia River Gorge, 1867.

Stereograph of the Oregon Steam Navigation Co. sawmill at Eagle Creek in the Columbia River Gorge, 1867.

Duplicate of Stereograph 1296, on a different mount. Stereograph of the Oregon Steam Navigation Co. sawmill at Eagle Creek in the Columbia River Gorge, 1867.

Duplicate of Stereograph 1296, on a different mount. Stereograph of the Oregon Steam Navigation Co. sawmill at Eagle Creek in the Columbia River Gorge, 1867.

Photograph from a high angle showing a building on pillars in the snow (saw mill?). A men can be seen standing at the edge of a wooden deck looking away from the camera. Written on the negative is “E301.09-O-294.”

Photograph showing a men at a sawmill in a forested area at construction camp. A tractor can be seen in the background, likely being used to run a motorized saw. Other saw blades and belt drives can be seen in the image.

Photograph showing a wooden sawmill building at Davis Ranch taken in the snow. Logs can be seen on the ground in front of the building. Smoke or steam is coming out of several pipes on the building, and men can be seen standing in and in front of the structure. Written on the negative is “E301.09-O-336.”

Photograph showing three sawmill tractors at a temporary construction camp area, with a wooden water tower. A man is standing on top of the tower, and several other men can be seen in front of the tractors. Barrels and piles of wood are visible throughout the frame.

Tape 3, Side 1. This oral history interview with Donald Dickey was conducted by Neil Vanderburg and Bob Zybach at the Green Valley Care Center in Eugene, Oregon, from August 18-19, 1990. The interview was conducted as part of the Soap Creek Valley History Project, which was conducted by the Oregon State University Research Forests to better understand the history, ecology, and culture of the Soap Creek Valley in Benton County, Oregon. Maxine Ann Dickey was also present and occasionally contributed to the interview. The interview was conducted in two sessions. In the second interview session, conducted on August 19, 1990, Dickey describes the wildlife in the Berry Creek area, his recreational activities and social life, and people and places in neighboring towns. He speaks at length about the sawmills in the area. He then revisits the topic of his 35-year career in rodent control for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. He closes the interview by discussing his marriage.

Tape 2, Side 1. This oral history interview with Donald Dickey was conducted by Neil Vanderburg and Bob Zybach at the Green Valley Care Center in Eugene, Oregon, from August 18-19, 1990. The interview was conducted as part of the Soap Creek Valley History Project, which was conducted by the Oregon State University Research Forests to better understand the history, ecology, and culture of the Soap Creek Valley in Benton County, Oregon. Maxine Ann Dickey was also present and occasionally contributed to the interview. The interview was conducted in two sessions. In the second interview session, conducted on August 19, 1990, Dickey describes the wildlife in the Berry Creek area, his recreational activities and social life, and people and places in neighboring towns. He speaks at length about the sawmills in the area. He then revisits the topic of his 35-year career in rodent control for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. He closes the interview by discussing his marriage.

Tape 1, Side 1. This oral history interview with Donald Dickey was conducted by Neil Vanderburg and Bob Zybach at the Green Valley Care Center in Eugene, Oregon, from August 18-19, 1990. The interview was conducted as part of the Soap Creek Valley History Project, which was conducted by the Oregon State University Research Forests to better understand the history, ecology, and culture of the Soap Creek Valley in Benton County, Oregon. Maxine Ann Dickey was also present and occasionally contributed to the interview. The interview was conducted in two sessions. In the first interview session, conducted on August 18, 1990, Dickey discusses his family background and early life in Berry Creek, in the Soap River Valley area of Oregon, including his memories of snowstorms, life on the family farm, and other families that lived in the area. He also briefly discusses his 35-year career in rodent control for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Tape 1, Side 2. This oral history interview with Donald Dickey was conducted by Neil Vanderburg and Bob Zybach at the Green Valley Care Center in Eugene, Oregon, from August 18-19, 1990. The interview was conducted as part of the Soap Creek Valley History Project, which was conducted by the Oregon State University Research Forests to better understand the history, ecology, and culture of the Soap Creek Valley in Benton County, Oregon. Maxine Ann Dickey was also present and occasionally contributed to the interview. The interview was conducted in two sessions. In the first interview session, conducted on August 18, 1990, Dickey discusses his family background and early life in Berry Creek, in the Soap River Valley area of Oregon, including his memories of snowstorms, life on the family farm, and other families that lived in the area. He also briefly discusses his 35-year career in rodent control for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Tape 2, Side 2. This oral history interview with Donald Dickey was conducted by Neil Vanderburg and Bob Zybach at the Green Valley Care Center in Eugene, Oregon, from August 18-19, 1990. The interview was conducted as part of the Soap Creek Valley History Project, which was conducted by the Oregon State University Research Forests to better understand the history, ecology, and culture of the Soap Creek Valley in Benton County, Oregon. Maxine Ann Dickey was also present and occasionally contributed to the interview. The interview was conducted in two sessions. In the second interview session, conducted on August 19, 1990, Dickey describes the wildlife in the Berry Creek area, his recreational activities and social life, and people and places in neighboring towns. He speaks at length about the sawmills in the area. He then revisits the topic of his 35-year career in rodent control for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. He closes the interview by discussing his marriage.

Photograph showing a view of a saw mill on the Deschutes River in Bend, Oregon. Logs float in the river in the foreground. Smoke rises from the ground on the right. Handwritten note on the back of the print reads, "Saw Mill, Bend." Stamp on the front of the print for Kiser Photo Co. Stamp on the back reads, "From Passenger Department, The North Bank Road, Portland, Ore."

Transcription from slide: “Cut-up plant at Vancouver.”

Transcription from slide: “Sawmill at Port Angeles, Washington.”

Transcription from slide: “Sawmill at Toledo, Oregon.”

Man standing in saw mill next to large logs. Transcription from slide: “New method of sawing twisted log. Warren Spruce Co., Portland, Ore.”

Transcript. This oral history with Bertha Holt was conducted by Jim Strassmaier from November 4-17, 1992. The interview was conducted for the purpose of inclusion in the Trails to Oregon exhibit at the Oregon Historical Society. The interview was conducted in three sessions. In the first session, conducted on November 4, 2017, Holt discusses her family background and early life on a farm in Iowa, particularly describing growing up in a large family, being brought up in the Plymouth Brethren branch of Christianity, and her education. She talks about studying nursing at the University of Iowa, including working in a hospital at the same time. She also discusses her social life and the diversity of the international student body. She then speaks more about her childhood, including games, household chores, and family trips. She talks about meeting Harry Holt and about their courtship and marriage, as well as his family background. She describes living on a farm in Firesteel, South Dakota, after their marriage, acting as the town’s nurse, and her experience during the Dust Bowl drought. In the second session, conducted on November 5, 1992, Holt continues discussing her experience during the Dust Bowl drought. She talks about relocating to Lane County, Oregon, where Harry Holt got involved in the timber business and started his own sawmill. She also revisits the topic of Harry Holt’s family background and early life. She describes the community in Lane County, adapting to the Oregon climate, and getting involved with the Baptist Church. She talks about raising children and about Harry Holt’s health, and how World War II affected his sawmill. She also discusses family trips to Alaska by boat. She speaks about a heart attack the Harry Holt suffered in 1950. In the third and final session, conducted on November 17, 1992, Holt briefly revisits the topic of Harry Holt’s early life, as well as her own. She then continues discussing a heart attack that Harry Holt suffered in 1950, his recovery, and his determination to dedicate his life to a higher purpose. She talks about Harry Holt’s trip to South Korea in 1954, adopting eight South Korean children, and founding Holt International Children's Services. She speaks about the biblical passages that inspired their work, the orphanage that Harry Holt built in Daegu, South Korea, and her role in facilitating adoptions while in Oregon. She talks about raising eight children, and how it different from raising her first four. She discusses the opposition the Holts faced, how racism affected their work, and how they matched children to families. She talks about lobbying Senators Dick Neuberger and Edith Green to change laws regarding international adoption; talks about teaching child evangelism classes; and shares stories about some the children the Holts facilitated adoptions for. She talks about her biological children, their families, and their careers, particularly focusing on how they contributed to Holt International. She speaks at length about her oldest daughter, Wanda Holt, who died in 1961; talks about the final years of Harry Holt’s life and his funeral in South Korea in 1964; and describes publishing her book “The Seed from the East.” She talks about operating Holt International after Harry Holt’s death, including the staff, fundraising, and their annual picnics. She closes the interview by looking at and discussing family photographs with Jim Strassmaier. The interview transcript includes a portion of the interview not present in the audio recording. In this portion, Holt talks about the Holt family home in Lane County, Oregon, and the wealth that Harry Holt’s sawmill brought them.

Bertha "Grandma" Holt stands outside her home in Creswell, Oregon.