Oregon Pioneers Oral History Collection

In this interview Minerva Kiger Reynolds, a Corvallis native and 1912 OAC alumna, recounts her memories of the small, turn-of-the-century town she grew up in and the changes she experienced during this period.

A major topic of the interview is…

In this interview, Peggy Allworth reflects on her life in Oregon and connection to Oregon State University. She begins by describing her early childhood in California and how her family moved to Philomath, Oregon, when she was 12, around 1909. She…

This interview was conducted with Virgil Avery, the grandson of Joseph Conant Avery, who founded the city of Corvallis, Oregon. In it, Virgil Avery discusses his family’s history in Corvallis and how the town has changed in his lifetime. He begins…

This interview with Robert Rilatos, a member of the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians, begins with descriptions of the many tribes that were brought to the Siletz Reservation and the origins of the word ‘Siletz.’ Rilatos then explains what…

In this interview with a confidential source about bootlegging in Corvallis during the Prohibition Era, Anonymous begins with a description of how the bootleggers delivered their goods to their customers and the competition between different…