History of Oregon State University Oral Histories and Sound Recordings, 1956-2024

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The History of Oregon State University Oral Histories and Sound Recordings consist of oral histories conducted in 1956 by Lillian Van Loan for her doctoral dissertation on the history of Oregon State College and subsequent interviews done by Ilona Fry in 1980 on the development of the liberal arts at Oregon State University. The collection also includes more contemporary interviews conducted by SCARC staff and relating to various aspects of OSU's history.

All of the audiocassettes and reel-to-reel tapes held in this collection have been digitized and are available online or by patron request. The contents of Box-folder 1.17 have been digitized and is available upon patron request. The born digital materials in this collection are available upon patron request. Some are also available online.

Creators

ID: OH 003

Extent: 0.9 cubic feet

More Extent Information

Scope and Content Notes

The legacy projects held in the History of Oregon State University Oral Histories and Sound Recordings are individually numbered OH03a:01 thru OH03a:20, OH03b:01 thru OH03b:05 and OH03c:01. The identifier "a" has been designated for projects originally recorded to reel-to-reel audiotape. The identifier "b" has been given to projects recorded to audiocassette. Sound recordings and transcripts are available for all components of the collection except two tape recordings of the Library dedication (OH03a:21). Interviews originally captured onto audiocassette have been digitized to *.wav format; these files are available by request of the Special Collections & Archives Research Center. The bulk of the oral histories held in this collection were conducted by Lillian Van Loan in 1956 (16 interviews), Ilona Fry in 1980 (4 interviews), and Chris Petersen after 2012.

Lillian Van Loan interviewed the following Oregon State faculty, administrators, and alumni: Major E.C. Allworth, E.B. Beaty, Ralph Besse, Arthur G.B. Bouquet, Ava B. Milam Clark, Bertha Davis, Melissa Martin Dawes, Henry Hartman, Helen Holgate, E.B. Lemon, Lora Lemon, C.V. Ruzek, J.W. Sherburne, Gertrude Strickland, E.W. Warrington, Jessamine Williams, and May Workinger. The interviews address a variety of topics including the development of academic programs at Oregon State; campus buildings and facilities; college presidents, especially William Jasper Kerr and Thomas M. Gatch; programs and activities during World War II; agricultural research and the Experiment Station; the establishment and growth of the Memorial Union; and student activities.

Ilona Fry interviewed four Oregon State alumni, faculty, and administrators in 1980: Gordon W. Gilkey, J. Granville Jensen, Miriam Orzech, and Linus Pauling. The interview of Gordon Gilkey documents Gilkey's work with the restitution of artworks in Europe after World War II, his years as a faculty member and administrator at Oregon State, and the development of humanities and social science academic programs. Jensen's interview provides information about the geography and natural resources academic programs at Oregon State; the relationship between the geography departments at OSU and the University of Oregon; international programs; and geography faculty. The Orzech interview (available online) is focused on the Educational Opportunities Program and academic support services for minority students at Oregon State; Orzech discusses the Chicano Student Union, Black Student Union, and Native American Students Association as well as racial prejudice in Corvallis. In his interview (available online) Pauling discusses a variety of topics in his interview, including his Nobel Prizes, the effects of Vitamin C, his student years at Oregon Agricultural College, his peace activities and protests against nuclear testing, and his chemistry research.

Five of the oral histories in the collection were conducted by other interviewers. The interview of Oliver V. Matthews was conducted in 1959 by Dean McCulloch and Charles Ross and addresses Matthews' explorations and study of Oregon trees. The interview of Beulah and Helen Gilkey (available online) was conducted in 1966 by Betty Lynd Thompson and focuses on the history of physical education at OSU. The interview of Nona Snell was conducted in 1974 by Veronica Sitton; Snell discusses her husband's aunt, Margaret Snell, the homes that Snell built on Monroe Avenue, and her involvement with the Village Improvement Society and the planting of trees in Corvallis.

The interview of William Robbins was conducted in 2012 by Chris Petersen and focuses on Robbins' recollections of noted revisionist historian William Appleman Williams. Petersen also led the 2018 interview with Monte Campbell focusing on the history of physical education for women at OSC in the early 1950s - Monte's son Glen assisted with this interview - and the 2019 interview with Charles Goodrich focusing on Goodrich's career as a writer and gardener, as well as his work as director of the Spring Creek Project at OSU. Petersen likewise conducted 2019 interviews with Tom Kirch, the former director of Recreational Sports at OSU; Dick Clinton, emeritus professor of Political Science; Sam Stern, emeritus professor and former dean of Education; Betty Miner, former instructor in Home Economics; Bill Wilkins, economist and Dean Emeritus of the College of Liberal Arts; and Caroline Wilkins, former History instructor and vice-chair of the Democratic National Committee from 1972-1977. In 2023 Petersen interviewed OSU emeritus professors Marlan Carlson (Music), Gary Ferngren (History), Katharine Hunter-Zaworski (Civil Engineering), Becky Johnson (Forestry; OSU Cascades; OSU President Emerita), Larry Lev (Agricultural Economics), John Wager (Electrical Engineering) and Conrad J. "Bud" Weiser (Horticulture). That same year, Tiah Edmunson-Morton conducted an interview with Jo Anne Trow, OSU's least Dean of Women and first female vice president.

The collection includes several other sound recordings, including a lecture by Ava Milam Clark in 1963 on her personal philosophy and the early history of home economics at Oregon State; farewell speeches by the wives of Oregon State Presidents, James H. Jensen and A.L. Strand, on the occasion of the Jensens' departure from Oregon State in 1969; and This is OSU recorded in 1962 for the Voice of America. A recording of students in the Air Force Cadet Moonflight Simulator is also included as are two audiotapes of the Library dedication. The Library dedication tapes are undated, but are likely of the 1963 dedication of the new Kerr Library building. A video recording of OSU President Emeritus John Byrne's memorial celebration is also a component of this collection.

All of the audiocassettes and reel-to-reel tapes held in this collection have been digitized and are available online or by patron request. The born digital materials in this collection are available upon patron request. Some are also available online.

Biographical / Historical Notes

Lillian Schroeder Van Loan conducted oral histories of Oregon State faculty and administrators for her doctoral dissertation, Historical Perspective of Oregon State College, submitted in 1959. Van Loan completed her Ed.D. degree at Oregon State College in 1959.

An oral history program was established within the Oregon State University Archives in 1970 with Ilona Fry as oral historian. The initial focus of the oral history program was the development of the liberal arts at Oregon State University and recorded the recollections of liberal arts faculty and OSU administrators. The oral histories conducted by Van Loan in 1956 were used to inform this latter work. Fry left Oregon State in September 1980.

Edward C. Allworth graduated from Oregon Agricultural College in 1916 and joined the college faculty in 1925 as manager of the Memorial Union, a position he held until his retirement in 1963.

E.B. (Edward Benjamin) Beaty earned a BS degree in electrical engineering from Oregon Agricultural College in 1903; he became a faculty member in mathematics in 1908 and continued until his retirement in 1947. Ralph S. Besse served as a farm management extension specialist and administrator in the Agricultural Experiment Station from 1922 until his retirement in 1953. Arthur G.B. Bouquet completed a BS degree in horticulture at Oregon Agricultural College in 1906 and was a faculty member in the Oregon State College Horticulture Department from 1909 until his retirement in 1950.

John Byrne (1928-2024) made an indelible impact on Oregon State University through an association that spanned more than five decades. A trained geologist, Byrne arrived in Corvallis in 1960 as one of Oregon State College's first faculty members in Oceanography. Over time, Byrne assumed the chairmanship of the Oceanography Department and later became Dean of OSU's newly formed School of Oceanography. In 1976 Byrne moved into upper administration, first as Dean of Research and later as Vice President for Research and Graduate Studies. Following a three-year stint in Washington, D.C., where he served as head of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Byrne returned to Corvallis as the twelfth President in OSU history. Byrne's presidency lasted from 1984-1995, a time period during which he did much to modernize university operations amidst a budget crisis caused by significant reductions in state funding for higher education.

Monte (Middlebusher) Campbell, born in 1931, graduated from Oregon State College in 1953, a member of the first class of women to earn Physical Education degrees from Oregon State.

Marlan Carlson (b.1937) was a professor of music at Oregon State University from 1969-2023, serving as department chair from 1993-2010. Carlson also led the Corvallis-OSU Symphony Orchestra beginning in 1985.

Ava Milam Clark served as Dean of Home Economics at Oregon State College from 1917 until 1950. Bertha Davis attended the primary and secondary departments of Corvallis College and earned her BS degree in domestic science and arts in 1889 and MS in home economics in 1909. As of 1925, she was manager of Wagner's Cafe in Corvallis. Melissa Martin Dawes joined the faculty in modern languages at Oregon Agricultural College in 1915; she served as chair of the Modern Languages Department from 1930 until her retirement in 1960.

Dick Clinton was a faculty member at OSU from 1976 to his retirement in 2004. Initially an administrator working in the College of Liberal Arts dean's office, Clinton later transitioned to a faculty position in Political Science, where he focused primarily on foreign relations. Much of his research focused on population dynamics and socio-economic development in Latin America generally, and Peru in particular.

Gary Ferngren was a professor of History at OSU from 1970-2020. A historian of the ancient world, Ferngren made a particular impact in his analysis of the intersections of medicine, healing and religion over time. In addition to teaching numerous courses within the History department and the Honors College, Ferngren was active with the International Society for the History of Medicine and served as faculty advisor to fifteen different student organizations at OSU.

Beulah Gilkey earned a BS degree from Oregon Agricultural College (OAC) in 1910. She worked as an assistant in the OAC Registrar's Office form 1910 until 1917, when she returned to school at OAC to prepare for teaching. She earned a second BS degree in 1918. She taught school in Corvallis and Portland and worked again at Oregon State College as a clerical assistant in the summers of 1943 and 1944. Beulah Gilkey was born in Washington in 1890 and her family moved to Corvallis in 1903. She died in 1977 in Corvallis. Her older sister was Helen Gilkey.

Gordon W. Gilkey earned a fine arts degree in printmaking from the University of Oregon in 1912. He worked for the War Department in Europe after World War II on the restitution of fine art. Gilkey joined the art faculty at Oregon State College in 1947 and retired from Oregon State in 1978 as Dean of the College of Liberal Arts.

Helen Gilkey was born on March 6, 1886, in Montesano, Washington. She moved with her family to Corvallis in 1903. She received her MA at Oregon Agricultural College in 1911 and her PhD at University of California at Berkeley in 1915. From 1915 until 1918, she worked as a scientific illustrator at Berkeley. Curator of the herbarium at OAC from 1918 until 1951, Gilkey was also a Professor of Botany. She had 44 publications to her credit, 10 on vascular plant taxonomy and 10 on Tuberales. She died in 1972.

Charles Goodrich is a Corvallis-based poet and essayist, and also the former director of the Spring Creek Project for Ideas, Nature and the Written Word at Oregon State University. For many years, Goodrich was also a professional gardener.

Henry Hartman joined the horticulture faculty at Oregon Agricultural College in 1919 as a pomologist and served as a Professor of Horticulture at Oregon State until his retirement in 1960. Helen Holgate graduated from Oregon Agricultural College (OAC) in 1895 with a BS in domestic science and arts; she later worked in the Clerical Exchange at OAC. J. Granville Jensen joined the Geography Department faculty in 1946 and served as department chair from 1946 to 1964.

Katharine Hunter-Zaworski earned a Ph.D. in Civil Engineering from OSU in 1988 and joined the department's faculty that same year. An early woman faculty member in the OSU College of Engineering, Hunter-Zaworski's research has focused on advancing accessibility inititiatives in public transportation and elsewhere.

Becky Johnson came to OSU in 1984 as a natural resources economist working in the College of Forestry. From 2008 to 2021, she served as Vice President for OSU Cascades, and from May 2021 to September 2022, served as Interim President of Oregon State University.

Tom Kirch (b. 1949) served as Director of Recreational Sports at OSU from 1986 to his retirement in 2016. During his career, he oversaw two major expansions of Dixon Recreation Center, as well as renovations of the Tennis Pavilion and McAlexander Fieldhouse, and the creation of Student Legacy Park.

E.B. Lemon graduated from Oregon Agricultural College in 1911 with a degree in business; he was a faculty member in the School of Commerce until 1943 and served as University Registrar from 1922 to 1943 and as Dean of Administration from 1943 until his retirement in 1950. Lora Maud Hansell Lemon earned a BS in Commerce from Oregon Agricultural College; she married E.B. Lemon. Dendrologist Oliver Matthews traveled extensively in Oregon for more than 40 years in pursuit of trees, particularly the biggest of each species.

Larry Lev began his tenure as an OSU faculty member in 1984 as administrator of the Tanzanian Farming Systems Project, based in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. In 1986 he moved to the Corvallis campus and became a member of the Agricultural Economics faculty, working closely with OSU Extension as well. Among many other research topics, Lev conducted influential work on community farmers' markets.

Betty Miner was an Instructor in Foods and Nutrition at Oregon State University from 1972-1983. Her husband, Ron Miner, was a faculty member in Agricultural Engineering who later served as Associate Dean of the College of Agriculture and Associate Director of the Office of International Research and Development.

Miriam Orzech was Assistant Director and Academic Coordinator for the Educational Opportunities Program (EOP) from 1969 to 1974, when she became Director of the program. Linus Pauling earned a BS degree in chemical engineering from Oregon Agricultural College (OAC) in 1922 and became renown for his work as a scientist and peace activist. He met Ava Helen Miller at OAC and they were married in 1923. Charles V. Ruzek was a Professor Soils at Oregon State College from 1914 until his retirement in 1954.

William Robbins served as a faculty member in the Oregon State University History Department from 1971 until his retirement in 1999 as Emeritus Distinguished Professor of History. Robbins earned his B.S. from Western Connecticut State College and his M.A. and Ph.D. degrees from the University of Oregon. He was named a Distinguished Professor at OSU in 1997. Specializing in the history of the western United States from an economic and environmental perspective, Robbins has written extensively on the history of Oregon and the Pacific Northwest. Robbins was also a close colleague of William Appleman Williams (1921-1990), about whom Robbins speaks in the interview held in this collection.

James Wilson Sherburne joined the Oregon State faculty in 1938 in the Psychology Department. He became Dean of the General Extension Division of the Oregon State System of Higher Education in 1956. Sherburne returned to Oregon State University later in his career and retired in 1972. Nona Snell's husband was the nephew of Margaret Comstock Snell. Gertrude Strickland joined the faculty of Oregon Agricultural College as an Instructor of Household Art in 1920; she became head of the Clothing, Textiles, and Related Arts Department in 1948 and retired in 1953.

Sam Stern was a faculty member in the College of Education at Oregon State University from 1981-2016, serving as dean of the Education unit from 2002-2011. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, Stern spent more than three years at the Tokyo Institute of Technology, where he conducted research on technical training and corporate creativity.

Dance professor Betty Lynd Thompson came to Oregon State College in 1927 to teach dance in the Department of Physical Education for Women. Until 1945, she taught all dance classes -- modern, folk, square, tap, and ballroom -- as well as basic rhythm and movement. She retired from OSU in 1972.

Jo Anne Trow worked as Dean of Women, Associate Dean of Students and Vice President of Student Affairs at OSU during a career that spanned the years 1965-1995. She was the last Dean of Women and the first woman Vice President in university history.

John Wager is professor emeritus in the School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at Oregon State University, where he worked from 1984-2018. Among many other contributions, his laboratory group is renowned for having created the first transparent transistor in 2001. Wager is also an OSU alum, having earned his bachelor's degree in Engineering Physics in 1977.

Ernest W. Warrington began his career at Oregon State College as the Campus YMCA General Secretary in 1921; in 1928, he was appointed as Professor and Head of the Religion Department. Warrington retired in 1952. Jessamine Chapman Williams joined the faculty of Oregon Agricultural College in 1923 as head of the Foods and Nutrition Department, a position she held until 1944. Williams retired in 1946. Clytie May Workinger headed the teacher placement office, as Placement Secretary, from 1923 until her retirement in 1955.

Bill Wilkins was a Professor of Economics at Oregon State University from 1961 to 1994, and served as Dean of the College of Liberal Arts from 1982 to 1994.

Caroline Wilkins served as vice-chair of the Democratic Party of Oregon from 1968-1974, and as vice-chair of the Democratic National Committee from 1972-1977. Married to Bill Wilkins, Caroline also served as administrator of the Oregon Consumer Services Division from 1977-1981 before launching a consulting firm, Wilkins Associates, that operated until her retirement in 2012.

Author: Elizabeth Nielsen and Chris Petersen

Statement on Access: Collection is open for research.

Statement on Description: Collection processed by Elizabeth Nielsen and Chris Petersen.

Arrangement

Preferred Citation: History of Oregon State University Oral Histories and Sound Recordings (OH 003), Oregon State University Special Collections and Archives Research Center, Corvallis, Oregon.

Acquisition Note: The sound recordings and copies of the transcripts were housed at the Horner Museum for a period of time and transferred back to the Archives from the Horner Museum collections in 1996.

Languages of Materials

English

Other

Container List

Series 1: Transcripts, 1956-2012 Add to Shelf

Transcribed audio is available online for select interviews in this series. Links are provided in the item description. The contents of Box-folder 1.17 have been digitized and is available upon patron request.

Extent: 27 folders

UnitID: 1

Box-Folder 1.1: Clark, Ava B. Milam. Lecture to Home Economics students, October 8, 1963 Add to Shelf

Transcript of a lecture in which Clark discusses her personal philosophies on life and the early history of Home Economics at Oregon State. Subjects discussed include Chinese home economics development; home economics at Oregon Agricultural College/Oregon State College, 1899-1950; William Jasper Kerr and Ellen H. Richards. [Item OH03a:01]

Extent: 46:00

Box-Folder 1.2: Clark, Ava B. Milam, July 12, 1956 Add to Shelf

Subjects discussed include Home Economics at Oregon Agricultural College/Oregon State College, 1899-1950; international home economics program; William Jasper Kerr; the American Home Economics convention in Corvallis, 1922; the World's Fair tearoom, 1915; Margaret Comstock Snell; J.C. Clark. [Item OH03a:02, interview conducted by Lillian Van Loan.]

Transcribed audio available online.

Extent: 1:04:00

Box-Folder 1.3: Bouquet, Arthur G., November 13, 1956 Add to Shelf

Subjects discussed include Oregon vegetable production, 1906-1956; Extension radio broadcast; Oregon 4-H club; William Jasper Kerr; World War II vegetable production; James Withycombe. [Item OH03a:03, interview conducted by Lillian Van Loan.]

Extent: 35:00

Box-Folder 1.4: Davis, Bertha, July 11, 1956 Add to Shelf

Subjects discussed include Corvallis College, 1883-1889; home economics at Oregon State College, 1913-1941; Fred Berchtold. [Item OH03a:04, interview conducted by Lillian Van Loan.]

Transcribed audio available online.

Extent: 14:00

Box-Folder 1.5: Lemon, E.B. (Erwin Bertran), July 10, 1956 Add to Shelf

Subjects discussed include Cauthorn Hall; Shepard Hall; William Jasper Kerr; landscape architects, 1908-1945; School of Commerce; resident instruction budget, 1957; Ralph D. Hetzel; expansion planning for 1957-1970. [Item OH03a:05, Part 1, interview conducted by Lillian Van Loan.]

Transcribed audio available online.

Extent: 27:00

Box-Folder 1.6: Sherburne, J.W. (James Wilson), August 7, 1956 Add to Shelf

Subjects discussed include the Psychology Department, 1938-1956; all college faculty meeting, 1938; O.R. Chambers; Curriculum Council, 1938-1956; institutional committees, 1938-1956. [Item OH03a:05, Part 2, interview conducted by Lillian Van Loan.]

Extent: 32:00

Box-Folder 1.7: Matthews, Oliver V., August 5, 1959 Add to Shelf

Subjects discussed include the Johnson fir; sport forms of trees; unusual Oregon trees. [Item OH03a:06, interview conducted by Dean McCulloch and Charlie Ross.]

Extent: 14:00

Box-Folder 1.8: Dawes, Melissa Martin, November 6, 1956 Add to Shelf

Subjects discussed include the Foreign Languages Department; William Jasper Kerr; Army Specialized Training Program (ASTP); School of Basic Arts and Sciences; state education system reorganization, 1932. [Item OH03a:07, interview conducted by Lillian Van Loan.]

Transcribed audio available online.

Extent: 21:00

Box-Folder 1.9: Ruzek, C.V. (Charles Vladis "Bo"), ca. 1956 Add to Shelf

Subjects discussed include the Agronomy Department, 1916; Dept of Soils, Irrigation, and Drainage, 1918-1952; Board of Control, 1933-1952; Rose Bowl, 1942; varsity football team, 1941; intercollegiate athletics, 1933-1952. [Item OH03a:08, Part 1, interview conducted by Lillian Van Loan.]

Transcribed audio available online.

Extent: 18:00

Box-Folder 1.10: Lemon, Lora, ca. 1956 Add to Shelf

Subjects discussed include Corvallis, 1894-1908; Thomas M. Gatch. [Item OH03a:08, Part 2, interview conducted by Lillian Van Loan.]

Transcribed audio available online.

Extent: 22:00

Box-Folder 1.11: Holgate, Helen and Gertrude Strickland, July 5, 1956 Add to Shelf

Subjects discussed include Margaret Comstock Snell; Department of Secretarial Science and Business, 1897; clerical exchange, 1915; Thomas M. Gatch; Grant A. Covell; Experiment Station, 1897-1915. [Item OH03a:09, Part 1, interview conducted by Lillian Van Loan.]

Extent: 11:00

Box-Folder 1.12: Williams, Jessamine, August 1, 1956 Add to Shelf

Subjects discussed include Ava Milam Clark; School of Home Economics; Household Science Department; Foods and Nutrition Department; origins of State Nutrition Council; Maud Wilson; Margaret Fincke; Kate Jameson; Radio KFDJ 1923; Willetta Moore Smith. [Item OH03a:09, Part 2, interview conducted by Lillian Van Loan.]

Extent: 38:00

Box-Folder 1.13: Hartmen, Henry, 1956 Add to Shelf

Subjects discussed include commercial growing of pears in Oregon; Horticulture Department, 1919-1955; nursery management; floriculture; J.F. Brumbaugh; William Jasper Kerr; A.B. Cordley; J.B. Horner; pomology; millage measure, 1920; Food Products Section, 1919-1940; Food Technology Department, 1940-1955. [Item OH03a:10, interview conducted by Lillian Van Loan.]

Extent: 35:00

Box-Folder 1.14: Besse, Ralph, October 16, 1956 Add to Shelf

Subjects discussed include Oregon intensive crop development; agricultural research; poultry improvement research; forage seed crop development; Experiment Station, 1922-1953. [Item OH03a:11, interview conducted by Lillian Van Loan.]

Extent: 10:00

Box-Folder 1.15: Allworth, Edward C., August 9, 1956 Add to Shelf

Subjects discussed include the Memorial Union, 1924-1956, and its origins; Manager's Cooperative Association; cooperative bookstore; Association of College Unions; Memorial Union Social Education Committees, 1956; Memorial Union Activities Committees, 1956. [Item OH03a:13, Part 1, interview conducted by Lillian Van Loan.]

Extent: 29:00

Box-Folder 1.16: Workinger, May, October 30, 1956 Add to Shelf

Subjects discussed include the School of Education Placement Bureau, 1918-1956; teacher certification, 1918-1956; vocational education teacher training, 1915-1956; teacher placement in World War II; May Chini; Elizabeth Snell; Bertram Evans; California Secondary Administrator’s conferences; Oregon Educational Association convention; Oregon branch of the Association of Institutional Teacher Placement. [Item OH03a:13, Part 2, interview conducted by Lillian Van Loan.]

Extent: 18:00

Box-Folder 1.17: Warrington, Ernest W., October 30, 1956 Add to Shelf

Subjects discussed include the Religion Department, 1928-1956; Philosophy Department, 1928-1956; YMCA, 1921-1956; YWCA, 1921-1956; Y-Round Table, 1938-1956; bandstand; Trysting Tree; A.L. Peck; William Jasper Kerr; U.G. Dubach; Lula Howard; Warren Hovland. [Item OH03a:16, Part 1, interview conducted by Lillian Van Loan.]

This transcript has been digitized and is available upon patron request.

Extent: 23:00

Box-Folder 1.18: Beaty, E.B. (Edward Benjamin), October 23, 1956 Add to Shelf

Subjects discussed include the Electrical Engineering Department, 1899-1956; bridge building; bridge design; schedule building; Order of Demoley; Thomas M. Gatch; Margaret Comstock Snell; Stephen Rice; William Jasper Kerr; E.C. Hayward; steam engineering. [Item OH03a:16, Part 1, interview conducted by Lillian Van Loan.]

Extent: 20:00

Box-Folder 1.19: Jensen, Chris (Mrs. James H.) and Molly Strand. Farewell speeches delivered at the Matrix Table on the occasion of the Jensens' departure from Oregon State University, 1969 Add to Shelf

Subjects discussed include Mortar Board initiation, 1943-1961; Matrix Table farewell, 1969. [Item OH03a:18.]

Extent: 10:00

Box-Folder 1.20: This is OSU, Voice of America broadcast, 1962 Add to Shelf

Subjects discussed include James H. Jensen; forestry research, 1962; white muscle disease; Choralaires; Morrill Act; alkaline bees; W.J. Kerr; football, 1962; Information Department; "the knight of the burning pestle"; Oceanography Department. [Item OH03a:19.]

Extent: 29:00

Box-Folder 1.21: "Air Force cadet moon flight simulator" broadcast, undated Add to Shelf

Subjects discussed include Apollo 11; Mike Mulligan. [Item OH03a:20.]

Extent: 4:35

Box-Folder 1.22: Orzech, Miriam, February 13, 1980 Add to Shelf

Subjects discussed include the Educational Opportunities Program (EOP), 1969-1980; EOP learning center, retreat, student recruiting, and honor roll; Faculty Senate; civil rights movement; Special Services Committee; academic advising; racial prejudice in Corvallis; Chicano Student Union; Black Student Union; Native American Students Association. [Item OH03b:01, interview conducted by Ilona Fry.]

Transcribed audio available online.

Extent: 28:00

Box-Folder 1.23: Jensen, J. Granville, April 10, 1980 Add to Shelf

Subjects discussed include the Geography Department, 1947-1980; Natural Resources Department; School of Science; Clifford Maser; Milton Nelson; Thomas Hunt; Wallace Atwood; Richard Highsmith; Wilbert Myatt; Oliver Heintzelman; Mary Lee Nolan; Tim Keys; August Leroy Strand; Keith Muckleston; James Lahey; Arthur Kimerling; Ray Northam; Robert Frenkel; William Wilkinson; Russelville, Oregon; mountain climbing in the Pacific Northwest; Western Washington College of Education; Worcester, Massachusetts; Latin American geography; Rhode Island College of Education; physical geography; agrarian reform in Mexico; Mexican land tenure; Ejido of Mexico; Economics Department; State Department of Higher Education; resource geography; cultural geography; geography at the University of Oregon; joint Department of Geography; School of Humanities and Social Sciences; College of Liberal Arts; cartographic service; geography instruction in Oregon State System of Higher Education; pilgrimage research; physical geography and climatology research; Pan American Institute of Geography and History, 1965; world geography instruction; international rural travel; earth sciences group; Wilkinson Hall; Pacific Coast Conference on Latin American Studies, 1965; Quonset huts; Social Science Hall; Atlas of the Pacific Northwest; Natural Resources Department name change, 1952-1966; evolution of the Geography Department; geography service courses; economic geography; political geography. [Item OH03b:02, interview conducted by Ilona Fry.]

Extent: 1:40:00

Box-Folder 1.24: Pauling, Linus, May 20, 1980 Add to Shelf

Subjects discussed include Floyd Rowland, Sam Graf; California Institute of Technology, Chemistry Division; Nobel Peace Prize, 1962; Nobel Chemistry Prize, 1954; Vitamin C and the cold, flu, and cancer; nuclear disarmament; nature of the chemical bond; Eugene McCarthy; McCarthyism; August L. Strand; Spitzer-Lavalee; Condon, Oregon; Linus Wilson Darling; Warren Paving Company; above-ground nuclear testing; chemical engineering curriculum, 1917-1922; X-ray diffraction; William Jasper Kerr; Renton Kirkwood Brodie; John Fulton; G.N. Lewis; Republic’s Center for the Study of Democratic Institutions; Stanford University; University of San Diego; Linus Pauling Institute of Science and Medicine; overkill capacity; Ewan Cameron; Vale of Leven Hospital, Loch Lomonside, Scotland; orthomolecular medicine. [Item OH03b:03, interview conducted by Ilona Fry.]

Transcribed audio available online.

Extent: 1:25:00

Box-Folder 1.25: Gilkey, Gordon W., June 27, 1980 Add to Shelf

Subjects discussed include Vivian Gilkey; Albany College; Albany, Oregon; University of Oregon; Eyler Brown; World’s Fair of Fine Art Record, 1939; Charles Scribner; New York Art Students League; Juilliard School of Music; Stephens College; printmaking; print collection; graphic arts; fine art restitution in post-World War II Europe; counterfeit trial, post-war Europe, 1947); Armed Forces Special Section of Fine Arts and Monuments; Combat Intelligence School; Art and Architecture Department, 1947; Leo Fairbanks; Ralph Colby; M. Ellwood Smith; art education; Anderson Report; fine art slide collection at OSU; overseas study centers; foreign student exchange; international education; University of Stuttgart, Baden-Wurttemberg, West Germany; University of Konstanz, West Germany; State University of Guadalajara, Mexico; Waseda University, Japan; University of Poiters, France; National Endowments for the Arts and Humanities; International Exhibit Exchange, 1956-1977; department major authorization in the humanities and social sciences; graduate liberal arts programs for the College of Liberal Arts; Portland Art Association; Portland Art School; "The Great Hall"; Governor’s Commission for the Arts and Humanities; Tom McCall; Mark Hatfield; Chancellor Richards; Chancellor Lieuellen; College of Liberal Arts. [Item OH03b:04, interview conducted by Ilona Fry.]

Transcribed audio available online.

Extent: 2:48:00

Box-Folder 1.26: Snell, Nona, August 23, 1974 Add to Shelf

Interview focuses principally on Margaret Snell, Nona's husband's aunt. [Item OH03b:05, interview conducted by Veronica Sitton.]

Extent: 55:00

Box-Folder 1.27: Robbins, William, March 27, 2012 Add to Shelf

Interview focuses principally on Robbins' memories of the life, work and personality of William Appleman Williams. [Interview conducted by Chris Petersen; transcribed audio available online.]

Extent: 1:24:19

Series 2: Reel-to-Reel Audiotapes, 1956-1969 Add to Shelf

The audiocassettes in this series have been digitized. Some are available online at the links provided, and the rest are available upon patron request.

Extent: 23 items

UnitID: 2

Box-Item 2.1: Clark, Ava B. Milam. Lecture to Home Economics students, October 8, 1963 Add to Shelf

[Item OH03a:01]

Box-Item 2.2: Clark, Ava B. Milam, July 12, 1956 Add to Shelf

[Item OH03a:02]

Transcribed audio available online.

Box-Item 2.3: Bouquet, Arthur G. B., November 13, 1956 Add to Shelf

[Item OH03a:03]

Box-Item 2.4: Davis, Bertha, July 11, 1956 Add to Shelf

[Item OH03a:04]

Transcribed audio available online.

Box-Item 2.5: Lemon, E.B. (Erwin Bertran) and J.W. (James Wilson) Sherburne, July 10, 1956, August 7, 1956 Add to Shelf

[Item OH03a:05]

Transcribed audio of the E.B. Lemon interview is available online.

Box-Item 2.6: Matthews, Oliver V., August 5, 1959 Add to Shelf

[Item OH03a:06]

Box-Item 2.7: Dawes, Melissa Martin, November 6, 1956 Add to Shelf

[Item OH03a:07]

Transcribed audio available online.

Box-Item 2.8: Ruzek, C.V. (Charles Vladis "Bo") and Lora Lemon, ca. 1956 Add to Shelf

[Item OH03a:08]

Transcribed audio available online: Lora Lemon; C.V. Ruzek

Box-Item 2.9: Holgate, Helen, Gertrude Strickland and Jessamine Williams, July 5, 1956, August 1, 1956 Add to Shelf

[Item OH03a:09]

Box-Item 2.10: Hartman, Henry, 1956 Add to Shelf

[Item OH03a:10]

Box-Item 2.11: Hartman, Henry and Ralph Besse, October 16, 1956 Add to Shelf

[Item OH03a:11. Hartman interview is a duplicate of OH03a:10.]

Box-Item 2.12: Ralph Besse and Edward C. Allworth, October 16, 1956, August 9, 1956 Add to Shelf

[Item OH03a:12. Besse interview is a duplicate of that held in OH03a:11. Allworth interview is a duplicate of that held in OH03a:13.]

Box-Item 2.13: Allworth, Edward C. and May Workinger, August 9, 1956, October 30, 1956 Add to Shelf

[Item OH03a:13]

Box-Item 2.14: Allworth, Edward C. and May Workinger, August 9, 1956, October 30, 1956 Add to Shelf

[Item OH03a:14; duplicate of OH03a.13]

Box-Item 2.15: Beaty, E.B. (Edward Benjamin) and Ernest W. Warrington, October 23, 1956, October 30, 1956 Add to Shelf

[Item OH03a:15; duplicate of OH03a.16]

Box-Item 2.16: Beaty, E.B. (Edward Benjamin) and Ernest W. Warrington, October 23, 1956, October 30, 1956 Add to Shelf

[Item OH03a.16]

Box-Item 2.17: Warrington, Ernest W., October 30, 1956 Add to Shelf

[Item OH03a.17; conclusion of remarks recorded on OH03a.16]

Box-Item 2.18: Jensen, Chris (Mrs. James H.) and Molly Strand. Farewell speeches, 1969 Add to Shelf

[Item OH03a.18]

Box-Item 2.19: This is OSU. Voice of America broadcast, undated Add to Shelf

[Item OH03a.19]

Box-Item 2.20: Air Force cadet moon flight simulator, undated Add to Shelf

[Item OH03a.20]

Box-Item 2.21-2.22: [Kerr?] Library dedication, ca. 1963 Add to Shelf

[Item OH03a.21; two tapes.]

Box-Item 2.23: Gilkey, Beulah and Helen Gilkey, interviewed by Betty Lynd Thompson, 1966 Add to Shelf

A conversation on the history of physical education at OSU. Recording also includes concluding remarks by Harriet Moore, who had recently retired as the university's archivist. Compact disc derivative also retained with original. Transcribed audio available online.

Series 3: Audiocassettes, 1966-1980 Add to Shelf

All of the audiocassettes described in series 3 have been digitized. Some are available online at the links provided, while others are available upon patron request.

Extent: 12 items

UnitID: 3

Box-Item 3.1: Orzech, Miriam, February 13, 1980 Add to Shelf

[Item OH03b:01]

Transcribed audio available online.

Extent: 1 cassette

Box-Item 3.2-3.3: Jensen, J. Granville, April 10, 1980 Add to Shelf

[Item OH03b:02]

Extent: 2 cassettes

Box-Item 3.4-3.6: Pauling, Linus, May 20, 1980 Add to Shelf

[Item OH03b:03]

Transcribed audio available online.

Extent: 3 cassettes

Box-Item 3.7-3.9: Gilkey, Gordon W., June 27, 1980 Add to Shelf

[Item OH03b:04]

Transcribed audio available online.

Extent: 3 cassettes

Box-Item 3.10-3.11: Snell, Nona, August 23, 1974 Add to Shelf

[Item OH03b:05]

Extent: 2 cassettes

Box-Item 3.12: Gilkey, Beulah and Helen Gilkey, interviewed by Betty Lynd Thompson, 1966 Add to Shelf

Audiocassette derivative of reel-to-reel tape described in Series 2. Transcribed audio available online.

Series 4: Born Digital Audio and Video Files, 2012-2024 Add to Shelf

Some of the digital folders are available online at the links provided, while others are available upon patron request.

Extent: 22 items

UnitID: 4

Digital Folder 1: Robbins, William, March 27, 2012 Add to Shelf

[Interview conducted by Chris Petersen; transcribed audio available online.]

Extent: 1:24:19

Digital Folder 2: Campbell, Monte, May 21, 2018 Add to Shelf

[Interview conducted by Chris Petersen, transcribed video available online.]

Extent: 1:37:25

Digital Folder 3: Food Science and Technology Event and Interviews, October 19-20, 2018 Add to Shelf

This folder contains audio recorded interviews with Daniel Farkas (0:53:33), Zachary Wiegand (0:09:13) and Daniel Sharp (0:02:45) conducted by Tiah Edmunson-Morton on October 20, 2018. Farkas was a professor of Food Science and Technology at OSU from 1990 to 2018. At the time of the interview, Wiegand - the great grandson of former Oregon State Horticulture/Food Technology professor Ernest Wiegand - was a Food Science and Technology alumnus, and Sharp was a graduate student in fermentation sciences. Raw audio of the Farkas interview is available online; raw audio of the Wiegand and Sharp interviews is also available online as a single file.

The folder also contains a video recording of an event titled "100 Years of Food Science and Technology" (1:30:47) that was held on the OSU campus the night before, October 19, 2018. The event featured talks by Mark Daeschel and Robert McGorrin. Daeschel was a professor of Food Science and Technology from 1988-2020, and McGorrin, the department head, joined the unit's faculty in 2000.

Digital Folder 4: Goodrich, Charles, April 26, 2019 Add to Shelf

[Interview conducted by Chris Petersen; transcribed video available online.]

Extent: 1:56:02

Digital Folder 5: Kirch, Tom, May 31, 2019 Add to Shelf

[Interview conducted by Chris Petersen; transcribed video available online.]

Extent: 1:36:44

Digital Folder 6: Clinton, Dick, June 6, 2019 Add to Shelf

[Interview conducted by Chris Petersen; transcribed video available online.]

Extent: 2:03:57

Digital Folder 7: Stern, Sam, June 10, 2019 Add to Shelf

[Interview conducted by Chris Petersen; transcribed video available online.]

Extent: 2:01:08

Digital Folder 8: Miner, Betty, October 4, 2019 Add to Shelf

[Interview conducted by Chris Petersen.] Transcribed video available online.

Extent: 1:30:54

Digital Folder 9: Wilkins, Caroline, October 8, 2019 Add to Shelf

[Interview conducted by Chris Petersen.] Transcribed video available online.

Extent: 1:59:35

Digital Folder 10: Wilkins, Bill, October 8, 2019 Add to Shelf

[Interview conducted by Chris Petersen.] Transcribed video available online.

Extent: 1:56:32

Digital Folder 11: Wilkins, Bill, October 9, 2019 Add to Shelf

[Interview conducted by Chris Petersen.] Transcribed video available online.

Extent: 2:23:39

Digital Folder 12: Lev, Larry, July 7, 2023 Add to Shelf

[Interview conducted by Chris Petersen]

Extent: 2:25:30

Digital Folder 13: Ferngren, Gary, July 10, 2023 Add to Shelf

[Interview conducted by Chris Petersen]

Extent: 2:52:02

Digital Folder 14: Wager, John, July 12, 2023 Add to Shelf

[Interview conducted by Chris Petersen]

Extent: 2:44:59

Digital Folder 15: Hunter-Zaworski, Katharine, July 26, 2023 Add to Shelf

[Interview conducted by Chris Petersen]

Extent: 1:39:53

Digital Folder 16: Johnson, Becky [Interview 1 of 2], August 17, 2023 Add to Shelf

In this, the first of two interviews, Johnson provides additional information about her background and discusses many aspects of her tenure as leader of OSU Cascades. [Interview conducted by Chris Petersen]

Extent: 1:41:44

Digital Folder 17: Johnson, Becky [Interview 2 of 2], August 17, 2023 Add to Shelf

In this, the second of two interviews, Johnson reflects upon her experiences at OSU's Interim President. [Interview conducted by Chris Petersen]

Extent: 1:30:21

Digital Folder 18: Carlson, Marlan, September 12, 2023 Add to Shelf

In this interview, Carlson discusses his family background and upbringing, education, and early travels and performances in Europe, Japan and elsewhere. [Interview conducted by Chris Petersen]

Extent: 1:59:38

Digital Folder 19: Carlson, Marlan, November 17, 2023 Add to Shelf

In this interview, Carlson reflects on meeting his wife Angela, their years living in Europe, their initial connections with Oregon State University and their subsequent decision to settle in Corvallis, their work to build the culture of music at OSU in the 1970s, and Carlson's passion for foreign languages. [Interview conducted by Chris Petersen]

Extent: 2:06:52

Digital Folder 20: Trow, Jo Anne, November 20, 2023 Add to Shelf

An interview focusing on topics in women's history at OSU. [Interview conducted by Tiah Edmunson-Morton]

Extent: 1:44:19

Digital Folder 21: Carlson, Marlan, December 8, 2023 Add to Shelf

In this interview, Carlson discusses his brother, Irving; and reflects on his connection with the Northwest Interinstitutional Council on Study Abroad, the impact of the LaSells Stewart Center at OSU, his many years as conductor of the Corvallis-OSU Symphony, and his involvement with Opera Theater Corvallis. He also shares his memories of his years as chair of the OSU Music Department; conducting in China, Russia and Sweden; and his decision to retire in Spring 2023.

Extent: 2:17:31

Digital Folder 22: Carlson, Marlan, December 15, 2023 Add to Shelf

In this interview, Carlson further details his performing career in Europe and Corvallis, discusses several courses that he designed and taught, offers reflections on family life, important colleagues and his evolution and characteristics as a conductor, and shares his thoughts on change at OSU and the future of the university.

Extent: 2:03:16

Digital Folder 23: John Byrne Memorial Celebration, April 14, 2024 Add to Shelf

Recordings of a memorial celebration of John Byrne held in the CH2M Hill Alumni Center at OSU. Speakers at the event included Bill Robbins, Tuba Ozkan-Haller, Jo Anne Trow, Rachelle McCabe, Lloyd Wagenschutz, David Robinson (in absentia), and Trey Phillips; daughters Donna Byrne and Karen Byrne; and also Shirley Byrne, John's wife of more than 69 years. Music was provided by the Steve Matthes Ensemble.

This folder includes two recordings of the event -- one by Eric J. Gleske (UIT Academic Technologies - Media Services) and a second by Chris Petersen (SCARC).

People, Places, and Topics

Forms of Material

Related Materials

Agricultural Engineering students and their two professors assembled in front of Weatherford Hall prior to departing for the Chicago World's Fair, 1933.

Information and Credits