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

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

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

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

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!

Wasco County display at the Oregon State Fair

It’s fair time! And we have a new Flickr Commons set to celebrate the prizes, pies, smiles, and good times had by all at the Oregon State Fair. It has also been the place for county community members to show off their goods, so you’ll find 4-H projects, dog shows, fashion parades, and farm fresh produce.

Boys & Girls Club barn

Much has been written about the history of the fair, including a fabulous book by Steven Robert Heine, aptly named “The Oregon State Fair,” which uses some of our collections (including many images you’ll find here). He says that

Since the first Oregon State Fair was held on four acres along the Clackamas River in the Gladstone/Oregon City area in 1861, the fair has been the focal point of Oregon culture—a place to see and be seen and to compete against the best in the state. It has been a place of victory and a place of discovery for nearly 150 years. For many generations of Oregonians, the fair was a chance for families and friends to reunite and share the excitement of this grand, uniquely Oregon event. Today the fair’s popularity continues and, for 12 days each year, transforms the fairgrounds in Salem into the fifth largest city in the state.

If you want a quick read about the history, the Oregon State Fair site has a Fair History page. Wikipedia also has a short article, Oregon State Fair, which long on links to other pages related to fair history.

Gwen Guthrie of Prineville, 1959

So grab a ticket, a horse, or a wand o’ cotton candy and enjoy!

4-H club members doing a presentation on depth of seeding grass, 1961

Oregon’s geography isn’t limited to just green valleys and wet coasts. This week we explore the 50 year history of extension in the high desert, home to the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs.

4-H leader doing beadwork at the Warms Springs Indian Reservation, circa 1955

The confederation was formed in 1938 and consists of three tribes: the Wasco, Warm Springs and Paiute. The reservation upon which they currently reside was created, by treaty, in 1855 and as of 2003 is home to over 4000 tribal members. It encompasses 1,019 square miles (640,000 acres) bounded by Mt. Jefferson and the Deschutes River from west to east and the Mutton Mountains and the Metolius River, from north to south. The reservation lies primarily in parts of Wasco and Jefferson County but small parts fall into six other counties.

Breaking wild horses at the Warm Springs Indian Reservation, circa 1950

The Warm Springs Extension Service has always placed a large emphasis on education, with numerous outreach programs aimed at both adult and youth audiences. Many of the photos included in this set showcase these programs in action with training in: Family and Community Health Development, Agriculture Resources and 4-H. With current tribal unemployment rates at 40% the goal of these programs is to “increase job/income opportunities from natural resources and agriculture and supporting Reservation youth to be productive contributing members.” OSU Extension is working closely with Tribal Council committees and Education and Natural Resource branchs to achieve these goals.

Mary Anne Crocker measures the hem of a skirt for a young homemaker on the Warm Springs Indian Reservation, circa 1955

My thanks go to Daniel Pearson, one of our fabulous student workers in the OSU Archives for writing this post! And thanks to my daughter for picking the pictures! A budding historian, a budding archivist, both Flickr fans.

Golden King corn stalks, 1933

If you head just south of Corvallis, you’ll bump into Lane County, which was established in January 1851 and named for the territory’s first governor, Joseph Lane. And if you head to Flickr Commons this week, you’ll bump into a new set of images from Extension in Lane County!

Cleaning Wheat, 1932

Historically, the economy was based on timber and agriculture. “Timber became important because the county is on the edge of Oregon’s largest stand of timber… [and] [a]griculture grew because of the fertile soil and moderate climate that exists in the Willamette Valley, making it one of the most productive farming areas in the nation” (Lane County Historical Records Guide). The reductions in timber harvesting and the affect for a continued population growth on agricultural areas, has changed the economic focus of the county. It is “predicted to shift away from forestry to services, manufacturing of transportation equipment, printing and publishing, and trade. A major economic asset for the county is the University of Oregon in Eugene. Finally, with access to the mountains and the coast, tourism adds to the county’s economic vitality” (Lane County Historical Records Guide).

Lane County farm labor office staff, 1944

Extension in Lane County offers a variety of online educational resources that help Oregonians solve problems and lead better lives, including programs in nutrition education, food preservation, farming, and home gardening ( Lane County Extension). Unfortunately, the defeat of Measure 20-158 in 2010 left OSU Extension Service in Lane County “without adequate local funding to continue existing operations. Extension is now making plans to reassign its Lane County faculty to other locations, lay off its local support staff and shut down all local programs that are not financially self-sustaining” OSU, “Extension makes plans for Lane County office closure”. Extension now offers programs online or in partnership with neighboring counties.

4-H summer camp Rand, Josephine County, circa 1940

Head down to the southwest Oregon counties of Jackson and Josephine and you’ll find farming, timber, and a whole lot of history! It’s time for a new Flickr Commons set featuring images called “Extension in the Rogue Valley,” full of fun ones showing life at the bottom part of the state.

May Day with people around the May Pole, 1920

Even before the first European American settlers arrived, “the river valley was inhabited by the Shasta, Takelma, and Rogue River tribes of Native Americans” (Wikipedia Rogue Valley). Highlighting the regional pioneers, the Southern Oregon Visitors Association features the stories of the early settlements (Southern Oregon Visitors Association: History). However, frankly put, the “Oregon Donation Land Law benefited incoming whites and dispossessed Indian tribes,” with the pioneer settlers and native Oregon tribes waging bloody battles between 1836 and 1856 (Oregon History Project, Subtopic: The Great Divide: Resettlement and the New Economy: Oregon Donation Land Law). You can read more about the Oregon Donation Law Act on the Oregon Encyclopedia page.

Home-made crop duster on car, Jackson County, circa 1935

Now the largest communities in the Rogue Valley include Medford, Ashland, and Grants Pass. The region is a popular spot for retirees and home to the famous Shakespeare festival.

Portable Community Cannery, circa 1915

Josephine County, at the very bottom of the state bordering California, was created by the Territorial Legislature in 1856. And the Josephine County Extension has been part of the county since 1916, offering programs in 4-H, Family & Community, Forestry & Natural Resources, Horticulture, Livestock & Forage, and Small Farms. According to the Oregon County Historical Records Guide, it was “named for Josephine Rollins, the first white woman to settle in southern Oregon.” Somewhat ironically, the Josephine County Historical Records Guide reports that “[a]lthough several Indian tribes lived in the area from which Josephine County was created, most of their members had been moved to reservations by 1856.” The county was also the home to a large Chinese population. “Most had come to the area to work gold claims purchased from whites no longer interested in working them” and even though they could not own their own land they had to pay a tax to mine gold and were found themselves downgraded to inferior claims (Oregon County Historical Records Guide). Did the word “gold” spark your interest and make you curious about the economy? “Most of the commercial activity during the territorial period centered on gold mining and the supply of provisions to miners,” and miners had been active in the Rogue and Illinois Valleys since 1851; however, “by the late 1850s, however, gold mining was beginning to decline and population dwindled as well” and then in 1859, “gold was discovered along the Fraser River in British Columbia and an exodus from Josephine County occurred” (Oregon County Historical Records Guide). Ending with a blast from the past from a roadtrip I took ages ago, in researching Josephine County I was reminded of the “Grants Pass Caveman” – anyone seen this? RoadsideAmerica.com gives us this fun description: “North of the Redwood Highway and California, an imposing representation of primitive man has guarded the entrance to Grants Pass since 1971, when the town’s ‘Caveman Club’ erected him. The caveman is 17-ft. tall, on a rock pedestal. He was created by International Fiberglass (Muffler Men makers) to celebrate a strange brand of town boosterism that started in 1922. Local businessmen would don furs and animal skins, marching down Main Street brandishing their ceremonial spiky caveman clubs. The activity was to promote caverns at nearby Cave Junction” (roadsideamerica.com). While you are in the area looking for more history, check out the Josephine Historical Society!

Picking crew, Jackson County, ca. 1918

Just to the east of Josephine you’ll find Jackson County, created in 1852 and named for President Andrew Jackson. Similar to the history of Josephine County, the region was home to the Modoc, Shasta, Rogue River, and Umpqua Indian tribes, but “in the early 1850s, both the Klickitats from the north and the Deschutes from the south raided and settled the area (Oregon County Historical Records Guide). However, the discovery of gold in the 1850s and a completed wagon road that connected the county with California to the south and Douglas County to the north also led to an influx of non-native settlers; “conflict between the Americans and Indians led to war in 1856 resulting in hundreds of casualties and the removal of the Rogue River tribe to the Siletz Reservation” and the transfer of several small bands of Indians to the Grande Ronde Reservation west of Salem (Oregon County Historical Records Guide). To learn more about the history of this region, make a trip (virtually or in person, to theSouthern Oregon Historical Society. Moving from the county history of the 1800s to the county present of the 2011s, we find a place with an economy based on industries such as agriculture, manufacturing, and recreation. If you are travelling there, make sure you hit the major points of interest, including that great Shakespearean Festival, Historic Jacksonville, Southern Oregon University, the Peter Britt Music Festival, the Rogue River, Lithia Park, and the Crater Lake Highway. And moving from seeing sites to celebrating Extension, look to the Southern Oregon Research and Extension Center (SOREC) to find services in the county, as it is Jackson County’s partner with OSU for Extension Services. Through SOREC, you can find information on 4-H Youth, Small Farms, Master Gardeners, Family and Community Health, Family Food Educator Volunteers, Forestry, Land Stewardship and Commercial Horticulture.

Eggs, Roseburg, Douglas County, circa 1925

As any Oregonian will tell you, around here we don’t go to the “beach” — we go to the “coast.” But in the interest of avoiding jargon, I’ll say that this week, we’re heading to the surf for a Flickr Commons set with Extension photos from Coos, Curry, and Douglas counties! And no, not a wave in sight…

Nutrition demonstration for mothers and infants, circa 1945

This is a wonderful description of Coos County, from the Oregon Historical County Records Guide, “Coos County is situated in the southwestern part of Oregon. It is bounded by Douglas County on the north and east, by Curry County on the south, and the Pacific Ocean on the west.” Given its location on the edge of the ocean, there are several port districts in the county, including the Port of Coos Bay (1909), the Port of Coquille River (1912), and the Port of Bandon (1913). “Coos Bay is considered the best natural harbor between San Francisco Bay and the Puget Sound (Oregon Historical County Records Guide). Although the area between Coos Bay, Jacksonville, and Roseburg is quite mountainous county, “it has considerable areas suitable for agriculture and dairy farming,” but timber and fishing have been the foundation of the county’s economy – and not surprisingly “the area also has produced large quantities of shellfish” (Oregon Historical County Records Guide). The diverse programs and support offered through the Coos County Extension Officereflect the land and economies.

Arnold Ebert of KOAC interviewing a cow, 1950

Another coastal county, Curry is at the very bottom of our great big state! TheOregon Historical County Records Guide, informs us that “initially it was proposed that the new county be name after Captain William Tichenor, council member from Port Orford. However, he declined because his constituents wanted to honor the territorial governor, George Law Curry.” In addition to the expected “water-based” economy, Curry County is also known for “blueberries, horticultural nursery stock, and ninety percent of all Easter lilies raised in the United States” (Oregon Historical County Records Guide). And that’s not all! Gold Beach isn’t just in honor of the sparkling sands; “in 1852 explorers discovered gold and other precious metals in the rivers and along the beaches of this area” (Oregon Historical County Records Guide). Serving Curry County since 1930, the Extension Office is rich with 4-H resources, info about agriculture & livestock, programs for home economics and forestry, as well as robust Sea Grant Marine Science, Family Food Education, and Master Gardener programs (Curry County Extension Office).

Douglas County Fat Lamb Show, ca. 1934

“The entire watershed of the Umpqua River lies within the boundaries of Douglas County,” and the county is known for being “heavily timbered” with “nearly 1.8 million acres of commercial forest lands and one of the oldest stands of old growth timber in the world” (Oregon Historical County Records Guide) . But people in the county also maintain field crops, orchards, and livestock, an economy reflected in the (Douglas County Extension Office outreach and education efforts.

Arriving at a community meeting, 1923

According to the Oregon Historical County Records Guide, “the early history of Douglas County was closely tied to that of Umpqua County,” with Umpqua being created in 1851 quickly reached population requirements for a new, it split in two – with the new one being Douglas. The county was named for U. S. Senator Stephen A. Douglas of Illinois, known as an advocate for Oregon statehood. However, like many counties in Oregon, the history of the place is more complicated than establishing a county seat and naming the area. The Umpqua Indians of the Umpqua Valley were living on the land slated for “settlement,” and although most tribal members were moved by the government to the Siletz and Grande Ronde Indian Reservations following the Rogue River Indian War in 1856, some escaped and now form the Cow Creek Band of Umpqua Tribe of Indians (see Douglas County Historical Records Guide and Cow Creek Band of Umpqua Tribe of Indians “Cow Creek Story” site).