Author's Entries

• Asahel Bush (1824-1913)

  Asahel Bush was a key figure during Oregon's formative years, using the power of the press to influence the political landscape. Born in Westfield, Massachusetts, at fifteen he became an apprentice printer and then studied law while supporting himself with newspaper work. He read law and was admitted to the …

  Oregon Encyclopedia

• Charles L. McNary (1874-1944)

  Charles Linza McNary represented Oregon in the U.S. Senate from 1917 until his death in 1944. In an era that saw the challenges of World War I, the Great Depression, and World War II, he established a national reputation as a thoughtful, effective, and independent legislative leader.  One of ten …

  Oregon Encyclopedia

• Charles S. (Sam) Jackson (1860-1924)

  Charles S. “Sam” Jackson, born in Virginia in 1860, came to Oregon in 1880 and settled in Pendleton. Barely twenty and without any formal training, Jackson sought an opportunity to pursue his interest in printing and publishing. After working as a printer for the East Oregonian, he bought the …

  Oregon Encyclopedia

• Dorchester Conference

  The Dorchester Conference, launched in 1965 at the Dorchester House in Lincoln City, is the oldest annual political conference in the United States. Its founder was Robert Packwood, then a thirty-three-year-old state legislator. Packwood was unhappy with the conservative direction of the Republican Party, which had nominated Arizona …

  Oregon Encyclopedia

• George Law Curry (1820-1878)

  A significant figure in the years before Oregon became a state, George Law Curry served in the legislature of the Provisional Government and as governor of Oregon Territory during the period of Indian Wars and the formation of treaties. As a member of the Provisional Legislature, he was one of …

  Oregon Encyclopedia

• Gerald Wendel “Gerry” Frank (1923–2022)

  In 2000, Governor John Kitzhaber named Gerry W. Frank Oregon’s Premier Citizen, reflecting his decades of civic commitment to the State of Oregon. A longtime chief of staff to Sen. Mark Hatfield, Frank was a business leader, a guidebook writer, a philanthropist, and a chocolate connoisseur. He wrote a …

  Oregon Encyclopedia

• Glenn Jackson (1902-1980)

  Recognized as one of Oregon's most influential figures of the twentieth century, Glenn Jackson left his mark through public service and corporate leadership. He was born in Albany, Oregon, on April 27, 1902, to W.L. Jackson, co-publisher of the Albany Democrat Herald, and Minnie Jackson, a school teacher. …

  Oregon Encyclopedia

• James Willis Nesmith (1820–1885)

  James Nesmith was a prominent figure in the Oregon Territory and in Oregon after statehood. He was a member of the volunteer militia during the Indian Wars and a judge for the Provisional Government. He also was a delegate to the Oregon Constitutional Convention and represented Oregon in the …

  Oregon Encyclopedia

• Julius L. Meier (1874-1937)

  Julius Meier served as Oregon’s governor from 1931 to 1935 during the darkest years of the Great Depression. While coping with the impact of huge budget deficits, he advanced many progressive innovations and reforms that have since been enacted and have had a tremendous impact on the state. Future Governor …

  Oregon Encyclopedia

• Mark O. Hatfield (1922-2011)

  As an Oregon legislator, secretary of state, governor, and United States senator, Mark O. Hatfield played a major role in Oregon and national politics and government during the second half of the twentieth century. He was widely recognized for his principled and often controversial stands on many issues, as well …

  Oregon Encyclopedia

• Provisional Government

  The Provisional Government, created in May-July 1843, was the first governmental structure created by non-Natives on the Pacific Coast of North America. Launched in an effort to secure an American rule of law in the Oregon Country, the Provisional Government was formed at a time when the region was open …

  Oregon Encyclopedia

• Ralph Barnes (1899-1940)

  A leading foreign correspondent in Europe during the 1930s, Ralph Barnes was born in Salem, Oregon, on June 14, 1899. He graduated from Willamette University and received a master's degree in economics from Harvard University. After working briefly for the Herald Tribune in New York, he secured a job with …

  Oregon Encyclopedia

• Robert W. Packwood (1932- )

  Robert William "Bob" Packwood, a prominent United States Senator for twenty-six years, was born in Portland in 1932. He attended the California Institute of Technology for a few months before transferring to Willamette University, where he graduated in 1954 with a degree in political science. During his undergraduate years, …

  Oregon Encyclopedia

• Roseburg Forest Products

  Founded by Kenneth Ford in 1936, Roseburg Lumber Company began as a sawmill with salvaged equipment and twenty-five employees. Today, Roseburg Forest Products Company is among the largest family-held wood products companies in the United States. In addition to its Oregon facilities in Dillard, Myrtle Creek, Reedsport, Riddle, North …

  Oregon Encyclopedia

• Salem Clique

  Thomas Dryer, the first editor of the Oregonian, named the Salem Clique, whom he described in the Oregonian on March 13, 1852, as “political hacks and BAR-ROOM BRAWLERS—who have disgraced themselves, the territory, and the people by their miserable policy.” Historians largely adopted Dryer’s judgment, and their accounts …

  Oregon Encyclopedia

• Willamette Industries

  At its peak in the 1990s, Willamette Industries owned or managed 1.7 million acres of timberland and operated more than a hundred wood products manufacturing facilities in twenty-three states and in Ireland, France, and Mexico. Its origins can be traced to Louis Gerlinger, who was born in Alsace, France, in …

  Oregon Encyclopedia