Largely because of his reputation as a scrupulously honest attorney general, Democrat George Earle Chamberlain was elected Oregon governor in 1902 with a slim majority …

Oregon Encyclopedia

Few ghost towns in Oregon have such colorful histories as the small towns, mining camps, and settlements in the Illinois River Valley in Southwestern Oregon. This was one of the …

Oregon Encyclopedia

The Willamette Valley, with its temperate climate, wet winters, and arid summers, is an ideal place to grow grass seed. As a result, Oregon produces …

Oregon Encyclopedia

In early 1851, Henry W. Corbett, an ambitious, twenty-four-year-old adventurer, departed from New York City’s busy East River, sailing to the Isthmus of Panama, crossing …

Oregon Encyclopedia

With a career that spanned more than fifty years, architect Herman Brookman designed several landmark buildings in the Portland area from the 1920s to the …

Oregon Encyclopedia

The Keller Fountain at Southwest Fourth and Clay in Portland memorializes Ira Keller, the long-time, autocratic chair of the Portland Development Commission (PDC). Keller—controversial, committed, …

Oregon Encyclopedia

Jewish Pioneers: Becoming Oregonians  In 1869, Bernard Goldsmith, an immigrant Jew from Bavaria, was sworn in as the mayor of Portland. Two years later, he …

Oregon Encyclopedia

John Baptiste Horner was a faculty member at Oregon Agricultural College (now Oregon State University) from 1891 to 1933. While he taught several subjects, he …

Oregon Encyclopedia

Melville Thomas Wire, an ordained minister of the Methodist Church, was a talented artist who successfully combined his work for the church with his avocation …

Oregon Encyclopedia

Northwest Christian University (NCU) was founded in Eugene in 1895 by Eugene C. Sanderson, a preacher and educator in the Christian Church. He served as …

Oregon Encyclopedia