![Oral history interview with Katherine O'Neill [Sound Recording 01]](/images/generic-icons/audio.png){kind=icon}
Identity elements
Reference code
Name and location of repository
Level of description
Collection
Title
Oral history interview with Katherine O'Neill
Date(s)
- 1980-03-14 (Creation)
Extent
.1 cubic feet; 1 audiocassette ( 1 hr., 3 min., 13 sec.)
Name of creator
Biographical history
Katherine Elizabeth Schnabel O'Neill (1899-1995) was born in Portland, Oregon. She attended Failing School, Ainsworth School and Catlin School in Portland Oregon, and Miss Harker's Boarding School for Girls in Palo Alto, California. She continued to live in California for many years before returning to Portland, Oregon in 1950. She was the daughter of prominent Portland lawyer Charles J. Schnabel, who was shot and killed in the Multnomah County Courthouse in 1921.
Content and structure elements
Scope and content
This oral history with Katherine O'Neill was conducted by Linda S. Dodds at O'Neill's home in Portland, Oregon, on March 14, 1980. At the time of the interview, Dodds' name was Linda S. Brody. Admiral John H. Besson, who was a cousin of O'Neill's, and several unidentified women were also present and contributed to the interview.
In this interview, O'Neill discusses Smith and Watson Iron Works in Portland, a business operated by her grandfather, Charles Smith. She talks about the sorts of items the business produced, including steam donkeys and parts for the Kaiser shipyards in Portland. She also talks about the Schnabel family home that later became the Multnomah County Hospital; the family's ownership of the Congress Hotel and many of the hotel's famous guests; and the legal career of her father, Charles J. Schnabel, including his 1921 murder by a disgruntled client. She closes the interview by talking about her early life and education in the King's Hill neighborhood of Portland.
System of arrangement
Conditions of access and use elements
Conditions governing access
Collection is open for research.
Physical access
Technical access
Conditions governing reproduction
Copyright for this interview is held by the Oregon Historical Society. Use is allowed according to the following license: Creative Commons - BY-NC-SA: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/
Languages of the material
- English
Scripts of the material
Language and script notes
Finding aids
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Immediate source of acquisition
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Accruals
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Existence and location of originals
Existence and location of copies
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Notes element
General note
Preferred citation: Oral history interview with Katherine O'Neill, by Linda S. Dodds, SR 9481, Oregon Historical Society Research Library.
General note
Handwritten index (2 pages) is available for in-person use at the Oregon Historical Society Research Library.
Specialized notes
Alternative identifier(s)
Description control element
Rules or conventions
Finding aid based on DACS (Describing Archives: A Content Standard), 2nd Edition.
Sources used
Archivist's note
Sarah Stroman
Access points
Subject access points
Place access points
Name access points
- Dodds, Linda S. (Contributor)
- Besson, John H., Jr. (John Henry), 1912-2011 (Contributor)
- Congress Hotel (Portland, Or.) (Subject)
- Smith and Watson Iron Works (Subject)
- Smith, Charles E., 1839-1912 (Subject)
- Schnabel, Charles Joseph, 1867-1921 (Subject)