Ellen and Carolyn Dishman Papers, 1998-2014

Title: Ellen and Carolyn Dishman Papers, 1998-2014

Predominant Dates: 1998-2004

ID: MSS Dishman

Primary Creator: Dishman, Ellen, 1979-

Extent: 1.0 document case letter. More info below.

Arrangement: This collection is arranged into two series: Series 1: Queer Resource Center History and General LGBTQ+ History in Oregon, 2001-2014 and Series 2: Photographs, 1998-2004.

Date Acquired: 00/00/2021

Languages of Materials: English [eng]

The Ellen and Carolyn Dishman Papers are the collected materials and photography by the Dishmans documenting their involvement at Oregon State University in the late 1990s to early 2000s. As OSU students, they were involved in prominent LGBTQ+ groups on campus and served as primary advocates for the establishment of the Queer Resource Center (QRC) in 2001; the QRC is now called the Pride Center.

This collection includes a digital recording of a 2001 hearing regarding the Queer Resource Center's establishment. Reference access to this file is available upon request.

The Ellen and Carolyn Dishman Papers document the lives of Ellen and Carolyn Dishman while they attended OSU from the late 1990s to early 2000s. They were involved in prominent LGBTQ+ communities on campus including being instrumental in the 2001 establishment of the Queer Resource Center, now called the Pride Center.

The collection includes a set of newspaper accounts documenting LGBTQ+ progress in Oregon and on campus, as well as photographs taken by the Dishmans documenting their lives at the time. The materials in the collection include several issues of the Oregonian and Daily Barometer reporting on same-sex marriage and the creation of the Queer Resource Center as well as a video documenting a public hearing held at OSU before the QRC's creation. There is also an invitation and informational packet on the establishment of the Pride Center building in 2004. The Dishmans’ photography includes images taken for assignments through The Daily Barometer and university Craft Center in addition to their personal photography. Their personal photography documents their lives, especially their involvement on campus. During their time at OSU they were involved in communities and events such as LGBTQ+ organizations, the Oxford House Women’s Co-Op, the OSU Marching Band, the Special Olympics, and Outdoor School camps.

This collection includes a digital recording of a 2001 hearing regarding the Queer Resource Center's establishment. Reference access to this file is available upon request.

Ellen and Carolyn Dishman were students at Oregon State University from 1998-2001. In their time at OSU, they not only met each other, they also led prominent LGBTQ+ groups on campus such as the Rainbow Continuum (RC), of which Carolyn was co-president, and Ellen served as the Director of the ASOSU Queer Affairs Task Force. Both were primary advocates for and were instrumental in the establishment of the Queer Resource Center (QRC). In addition to being founders of the QRC, they were also involved in the Oxford House Women’s Co-Op for which Carolyn served as the historian during the 1999-2000 academic year, the OSU Marching Band, and worked at many Outdoor School camps.

Increased advocacy for the establishment of the QRC began in the late 1990s, and by the year 2000, students and the Student Involvement Office identified and proposed a budget to create a temporary space within the Women’s Center on campus to house the QRC. In 2001, The Student Fees Committee and the president of the university unanimously approved the proposal after a community hearing. By 2004 the QRC had outgrown the temporary space and moved to a larger location on campus with the current title of the Pride Center to be more inclusive and mindful of community member’s identities.

More Extent Information: 1001 negatives, 9 contact sheets, 364 prints; 1 file, 488 MB

Statement on Access: This collection is open for research.

Use Restrictions: Copyright for the materials in the Ellen and Carolyn Dishman Papers (MSS Dishman) reside with the OSU Libraries Special Collections and Archives Research Center. Please contact SCARC for more information regarding use and reproductions.

Acquisition Note: These materials were donated to the Special Collections and Archives Research Center's OSU Queer Archives by Ellen and Carolyn Dishman in 2021.

Related Materials: This collection is a part of the OSU Queer Archives (OSQA); see the Collection and Records tab of the website for all OSQA collections. For collections specifically related to the OSU Queer Resource Center / Pride Center's history see the Pride Center Records (RG236) and the Thomas Kraemer Papers, as well as the OSU Queer Archives Oral History Collection. Other collections with information related to the Pride Center include the Diversity Development Office Records (RG 228), the Associated Students of Oregon State University (ASOSU) Records (RG 011), the Office of Multicultural Affairs Records (RG 225), the Student Club and Organization Records (RG 276), and the Queer History Research Collection, as well as the Queer Studies Program Records (RG 278).

Preferred Citation: Ellen and Carolyn Dishman Papers (MSS Dishman), Oregon State University Special Collections and Archives Research Center, Corvallis, Oregon.

Dishman, Ellen, 1979-
Dishman, Carolyn

Gay college students--Oregon--Corvallis.
Gay liberation movement
Lesbian activists
Lesbian college students--Oregon--Corvallis.
Oregon State University. Pride Center

Born digital.
Contact sheets.
Photograph albums.