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Ben A. Newell Papers, 1943-2006

By Karl McCreary

Collection Overview

Title: Ben A. Newell Papers, 1943-2006

Predominant Dates: 1943-1974

ID: MSS Newell

Primary Creator: Newell, Ben A.

Extent: 0.1 cubic feet. More info below.

Languages of Materials: English [eng]

Abstract

The Ben A. Newell Papers document the career of Oregon State College alumnus and Marion County Extension Agent Ben A. Newell. Newell graduated in 1941 with a degree in agriculture and worked for the Extension Service from 1944 until 1973.

Scope and Content Notes

The Ben A. Newell Papers document the career of Oregon State College alumnus and Marion County Extension Agent Ben A. Newell and is made up of correspondence, employment records, newspaper clippings, event programs, and photographs. In addition to relating to Newell's Extension work, this collection also documents Newell's military service in World War II, honors received by him, his retirement, and involvement in the National Association of County Agricultural Agents (NACAA). The images primarily depict Newell in portrait shots and in group shots with other Oregon Extension agents at NACAA meetings.

Biographical / Historical Notes

Ben Allen Newell was born in 1917 in Wray, Colorado. During Ben's childhood, the Newell family went on to settle in the Newberg area of Oregon where they operated a family farm. Ben himself managed a dairy in Polk County for 2 years before entering Oregon State College in 1937 to study animal husbandy and horticulture. In August of 1941, a few months after graduating with a BS from the School of Agriculture, Newell enlisted in the U.S. Army where he served until March of 1943. Newell's association with the Extension Service began in 1944 with his appointment as Assistant County Agent for Marion County. In 1951, with the retirement of longtime agent Harry Riches, Newell assumed the position of chairman of the Marion County office. Newell held this position until retiring in 1973. His accomplishments as county agent and chair included the establishment of weed control districts and organization of associations designed to improve livestock, dairy, and poultry practices. In collaboration with fellow County Agent N. John Hansen, Newell also organized a series of agricultural study tours to New Zealand and Australia. For his longtime contribution to the Oregon agricultural community, Newell was recognized with a Distinguished Service Award in 1967 from the Oregon Agricultural Extension Association. He also received a Diamond Pioneer Agricultural Career Achievement Award.

In 1942, Newell married Phyllis Miller and together they raised three children: Rex, Sandra, and Carolyne. After retirement, Newell focused upon his own farm operation, located east of Salem, where he raised sheep, cattle, and alfalfa.

Newell died in 1998. That same year, the Ben and Phyllis Newell Scholarship was established by the College of Agricultural Sciences.



Author: Karl McCreary

Administrative Information

More Extent Information: 41 photographic prints; 1 box

Statement on Access: Collection is open for research.

Acquisition Note: These materials were donated to the Special Collections and Archives Research Center by Carolyne Filsinger, Ben Newell's daughter, in 2015

Related Materials:

Other collections in the OSU Special Collections and Archives Research Center that document Newell's work in Extension include the News and Communications Services Records (RG 203) and the Oregon State University Extension Service Faculty and Staff Oral History Collection (OH 014).

Images of Newell in other collections can be found in the N. John Hansen Scrapbook (MSS HansenNJohn), Extension Services Photographs (P 062), the President's Office Photographs (P 092), Robert W. Henderson Photograph Collection (P 098), and the Wanda Gifford Photograph Collection. The photographs in the Gifford Collection include shots of Newell's children and the Newell family home.

Other Extension Agents and staff reflected in the holdings of the OSU Special Collections and Archives Research Center include: Helen Cowgill, Edwin Russell Jackman, Arthur King, Wallace Kadderly, Kenneth Minnick, Bill Rogers, Janet Taylor, Marvin Shearer, and Esther Taskerud.

Preferred Citation: Ben A. Newell Papers (MSS Newell) Oregon State University Special Collections and Archives, Corvallis, Oregon.

Creators

Newell, Ben A.

People, Places, and Topics

Agricultural extension work
County agricultural agents--Oregon.
Marion County (Or.)
National Association of County Agricultural Agents
Natural Resources
Newell, Ben A.
United States--Armed Forces--History--World War, 1939-1945.
University History

Forms of Material

Photographic prints.


Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.