872 results
From O.A. Stearns to George Himes
In this letter, Orson Avery Stearns predicts the future success of Klamath County’s large-scale reclamation projects and describes the “plenty of good range” available …
From Peter French
In this 1884 letter, cattle baron Peter French requested 7,000 head of cattle for the nearly 200,000-acre ranch he operated in Harney County. California cattle ranchers …
From Sergeant John Ordway to his Parents
This letter was written by Sergeant John Ordway to his parents on April 8, 1804. After briefly outlining the nature of the Expedition to his …
From W.R. Burner to Governor Olcott, 1923
This letter, written in 1923 by W.R. Burner of Holland, Oregon, to outgoing Governor Benjamin Olcott, hints at the social and political divisiveness caused by …
Front & Stark Streets, 1852
From the corner of Front and Stark, shown in this 1852 photograph, virgin timber is visible just a few blocks away. The mast of the …
G Arata & Company, Wholesale Liquors
Immigrants from both the northern and southern regions of Italy began migrating to Portland as early as 1890. It was between 1900 and 1910, however, …
Gasoline Plow Owned by George Hilderbrand
This ca. 1910 photograph shows George Hilderbrand operating a Hart Parr tractor and plow at his wheat farm near Wasco, in Sherman County. Hilderbrand, who …
Gem Hotel, ca. 1918
In 1918, wartime housing shortages forced nearly a hundred people to accept crowded living conditions in the working class Gem Hotel in Portland. The hotel …
General Joseph Lane
Joseph Lane was Oregon’s first territorial governor and one of the state’s leading citizens from the 1850s until his death in 1881. A politician, soldier, …
George Gay House near Hopewell
The photograph above, taken for the Historic American Buildings Survey in 1934, depicts the brick house built for George K. Gay near Hopewell in Yamhill …Interpretive Essays
Interpretive essays use primary documents from the Oregon Historical Society archives to help readers imagine the events, people, and issues that shaped Oregon history.
