This collection consists of scrapbooks and logs pertaining to Oregon trees, logging methods, and wood products. The scrapbooks, arranged by species or other subject, include correspondence, clippings, photographs, and postcards. The logs contain day-by-day and mile-by-mile information on trips taken by Matthews in his search for botanical specimens, wood samples, and rare or large trees. The logs include maps, photographs, correspondence, trip narratives, and receipts.
An addition to the Matthews Collection (Accession 2005:057) consists of four scrapbooks assembled by Matthews documenting various types of trees throughout Oregon. Consisting of correspondence, newspaper clippings, photographs, and travel receipts, the scrapbooks also contain colorful narratives in which Matthews describes the significance of the highlighted trees and details from his journeys to find them. Especially interested in documenting the largest example of a given type of tree in Oregon, Matthews also describes Oregon geological features, family members, and other dendrologists in the scrapbooks. Among the types of trees described in these scrapbooks include: douglas fir, western yellow pine, spruce, ponderosa pine, willows, and alders. Numbers assigned to photographic prints in the scrapbooks correspond to negatives that can be found in the photographic collection for Oliver Matthews (P 118).
A second addition to the Matthews Collection (Accession 2013:039) is made up of correspondence between Al Hobart and Matthews regarding the identification of trees around Miller Lake in the Siskiyou Mountains of Southern Oregon. The letters reference exploratory hiking trips into the region made by both men, Hobart's studies of the area flora, the exchange of foliage specimens, bibliographic resources, published acknowledgements of Matthews' work, and the various species of tree found in the Siskiyous. Also included in this transfer are 2 cds containing images and writings from Al Hobart that document his research on the flora of the Siskiyous and his regular newspaper column "Winding Trails." Most of the images depict Siskiyou area plants and landscapes, some of which were featured in a slide presentation prepared by Hobart. Lists of the particular shots Hobart used for the slide show are available in this accession. The slides include shots of Hobart and his friends on camping and hiking trips. An article about Hobart's and Matthews' interaction, published in the 2013 edition of the journal of the Native Plant Society of Oregon, is also part of this transfer.
Items from this collection have been digitized and are available in Oregon Digital.
