Author Archives: edmunsot

Be Local

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Benton County Courthouse with pruned trees

Benton County Courthouse with pruned trees

To celebrate Oregon Archives Month 2011 we’re heading home (again) with a new collection called “Be Local: some things to note…” and an innaugural set called “Be Local: some places in Benton County.”

Oregonians are passionate about our state, and Corvallis-ites and residents of Benton County are no different. Starting as the first territorial capital, at the confluence of the Marys and Willamette Rivers, and arriving now at this place in the 21st century, with an ever-expanding community and university, it’s always fun to take a look back over our shoulder to see where we were. And yes, for me, that’s means to read more about our history.

Joseph C. Avery settled a land claim at the mouth of Marys River where it flows into the Willamette River in 1845. In 1849, Avery opened a store at the site, platted the land, and surveyed a town site on his land claim, naming the community Marysville … In 1853, the legislative assembly changed the city’s name to Corvallis, from the Latin phrase cor vallis, meaning “heart of the valley.” Corvallis was incorporated as a city on January 29, 1857 … [and] the town served briefly as the capital of the Oregon Territory in 1855 before Salem was eventually selected as the permanent seat of state government. Corvallis, Wikipedia

Territorial capital at Corvallis, Oregon

Territorial capital at Corvallis, Oregon

Though you can find great contemporary books on Corvallis and Benton County, I encourage you to consider David Fagan’s 1885 A history of Benton County, Oregon including its geology, topography, soil and productions (call no. F882.B4 F2), the 1890 Benton County, Oregon: the heart of the famous Willamette Valley (F882.B4 C6), and the 1912 Corvallis and Benton County, Oregon (F884.C6 S6 and available electronically on ScholarsArchive). Each is available at OSU Libraries’ main library in Corvallis. Fear not, there is plenty more research and reading to be done!

  • The Benton County Historical Society is the ideal place to start! “The Benton County Historical Museum artifact collection comprises approximately 66,000 items that illustrate the diverse themes of our Benton County, Oregon heritage.”
  • Search the Oregon Encyclopedia site for Corvallis and you’ll find a plethora of information about the people, places, and amazing things that have happened here. Want to know about the Women’s Land Army, Corvallis and Eastern Railroad, or Bernard Malamud (1914–1986)? All there – plus much more about both our great state.
  • The City of Corvallis website has a very informative Historical Narrative (1811 to 1945), which includes a historic walking tour of downtown and a historic property inventory.
Campus store

Campus store

  • Because I love Wikipedia, check out the article on Corvallis. The info there isn’t limited to our history, but gives all those delicious up-to-date details. Wikipedia also has a great article on Benton County.
  • Finally, in the spirit of historic renovation, we’re delighted to see the Whiteside Theater coming back to life! It opened to the public on November 9, 1922, but closed in winter of 2002. The Whiteside Theatre Foundation is currently raising funds to rehabilitate and reopen the Whiteside Theatre, and they have shared the history of this gem on their site.

Enjoy!

McDonald Rare Book Collection Tour!

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Wilson Room Collection

Wilson Room Collection

Get a peek at OSU’s oldest and rarest volumes in this tour of the Library’s fascinating McDonald Rare Book Collection. Trevor Sandgathe of Special Collections will show off this unique collection that includes cuneiform tablets, incunabula, and fine bindings.

When and where?

  • Wednesday, October 26  from 2:00-3:00 in Special Collections

Time for Taste of the ‘Chives!

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Ava Milam and Camilla Mills making wedding cakes for Mrs. Stanley Wilson at the Yenching Womens College in Peking, China, circa 1945

Ava Milam and Camilla Mills making wedding cakes for Mrs. Stanley Wilson at the Yenching Womens College in Peking, China, circa 1945

Sample the tastes of the past in this annual celebration of the recipes found in historic publications written by OSU students and staff. This year, we’ll showcase recipes celebrated as “international” in flavor and we highlight four different sources dating from 1928 to 2008. These publications are all available online at the OSU ScholarsArchive site and downloadable here as PDF files:

When and Where?

  • Thursday October 27 (12:00-1:00 Willamette Rooms)

Volunteers to help prepare the recipes are always appreciated! Please contact karl.mccreary@oregonstate.edu for more details.

Want to watch your history?

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You know how picky archives can be about eating and historical collections? Two film events offer you a great chance to watch some historical and eat some lunch. Best of both worlds, I tell you.

Thursday, October 13 (12:00-1:00, Willamette Room East-Library)
Rewind in time to campus ca. late 1960s and early 1970s through a showing of 3 films that document OSU’s efforts to attract minority students and observe the university’s centennial in 1968.

Wednesday, October 19 (12:00-1:00, Willamette Room East)
Learn more about the life and times of native Oregonian and alumnus Linus Pauling in a showing of a recent production by Oregon Public Broadcasting on the brilliant Nobel Prize-winning chemist and peace activist.

People going back to school: grab your pencil cases!

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People on the first day of school, circa 1940

People on the first day of school, circa 1940

It’s that time of year — the rain falls, the sun shines, the leaves turn, and our town swells as university students & faculty pour back in to teach, learn, and have fun.

Enjoy the latest addition to the People Doing Stuff collection in Flickr Commons, aptly called “People going back to school: grab your pencil cases!” It is chock full of Oregonians with chalk and lunch boxes, celebrates the littler people doing stuff at school.

It’s Oregon Archives Month, celebrate with a story!

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Linus Pauling, circa 1905

Linus Pauling, circa 1905

Learn about the amazing legacy of documentation from alumnus Linus Pauling and other gems in the OSU Library’s Special Collections. Chris Petersen of Special Collections will be your guide to the diverse and fascinating Pauling Collection, which illuminates the brilliance, creativity, and conviction of the Nobel- Prize winning Chemistry professor.

When & where? Wednesday, October 5 from 2:00-3:00 in Special Collections (5th floor, The Valley Library).

Oregon Archives Month: Celebrating archival anniversaries at OSU with tours, film, and food!

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Honoring 50 years of the University Archives and 25 years of the Special Collections at OSU, we’re celebrating our merger this year with a palette of events highlighting Beaver history!

Lace up your sneakers and join us Saturday, October 1 from 2:30-4:00 for a fabulous outdoor historical walking tour of campus buildings! Some lost, some forgotten, some just moved to another spot… OSU Archivists Larry Landis and Tiah Edmunson-Morton will walk you through history to discover the “forgotten landscapes” of campus.

Using historic maps and photographs, Tiah and Larry will reveal what’s here, what’s gone, and what is somewhere else. We’ll bring places like the campus gazebo, brooder house and octagonal barn back to life! Please let Tiah know if you want to join us! tiah.edmunson-morton@oregonstate.edu

Meet in the Valley Library on the 3rd floor in Archives reference room.

Faces of Extension

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Home Demonstration staff, 1935

Home Demonstration staff, 1935

All summer we’ve traveled through the state celebrating the activities, events, and education OSU Extension Services supports.

In this final set of the OSU Extension Service Centennial collection, called Faces of Extension, we want to celebrate another great things about Extension – or should I say the great thing about Extension – the people.

Enjoy.

Extension Agent Oris Rudd, 1972

Extension Agent Oris Rudd, 1972

Farewell Senator Hatfield

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Governor Hatfield with Beaver Boy

Governor Hatfield with Beaver Boy

Senator Mark O. Hatfield ’43 passed away peacefully on Aug. 7, 2011 at the age of 89.

A native Oregonian, Senator Hatfield was born in Dallas, the son of a railroad blacksmith and schoolteacher. He attended Willamette University until the U.S. entered World War II, at which point he enlisted in the Navy. After his tour of duty, he received a Masters degree from Stanford and taught at Willamette — and then he began his long career of public service.

Both Oregon’s youngest elected Governor and longest serving Senator, Hatfield quickly proved to be an adept politician. During the Vietnam War he was given the title “The Conscience of the Senate” for his staunch anti-war position. Hatfield’s political efforts centered on education and civil rights programs. When he left office in 1997 he had never lost an election.

Senator Hatfield has a long history with OSU having signed the legislation that changed its name from Oregon State College, to its present Oregon State University on March 6, 1961. He also secured much of the funding for the University’s Marine Science Center which now bears his name.

For more on Hatfield’s life and work, visit Willamette University’s “Farewell to Senator Mark O. Hatfield” page.

We’ve created a Flickr set of Hatfield’s time at OSU, visit for some wonderful images!

Extension in the State

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4-H flower identification contest, circa 1975

4-H flower identification contest, circa 1975

Eating watermelon, examining alfalfa fields, certifying oats? Building a flume, holding a flower, finding some fruit? Must be another set of images from Extension Services! It’s an amusingly mixed bag of shots that didn’t link directly to a specific county set, so we’ve culled them all together in a big set with a statewide focus.

Mobile Kitchen, 1938

Mobile Kitchen, 1938

Full of what can only be called “Extension magic,” you’ll find images of turkey and beef exhibits at the state fair, a corn show, and people talking about tuna.

Dan Panshin and Bob Jacobson talk to an albacore tuna fisherman, 1965

Dan Panshin and Bob Jacobson talk to an albacore tuna fisherman, 1965

Apart from being full of fabulous photos, this set is also a gem historically. I love the demonstration trains and traveling instruction sessions, which allowed agents to visit communities throughout the state, teaching people skills in canning, provide information about the cost of electricity, give stump burning and dairy demonstrations, demonstrate poultry culling, display the “mobile kitchen,” or provide lectures on wool production and marketing. There are also pictures of traditional “brick & mortar classes,” such as flower identification or “Furnishing the Modern House.”

Furnishing the Modern House course announcement, 1930

Furnishing the Modern House course announcement, 1930

You’ll also find a man with a beaver, woman with a cow, man with a fish, and a boy with a sunflower — I told you it was eclectic!