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Board of Regents Records, 1886-1929

Collection Overview

Title: Board of Regents Records, 1886-1929

ID: RG 008

Primary Creator: Oregon Agricultural College. Board of Regents

Extent: 7.0 cubic feet. More info below.

Arrangement: The records consists of fourteen series: 1. Correspondence; 2. Minutes; 3. Committees; 4. Reports to Bureau of Education, U.S. Department of Interior; 5. Reports; 6. Resolutions; 7. Financial Records; 8. Salary Schedules; 9. Budgets; 10. Contracts; 11. List of Candidates for Presidency of State Agricultural College of Oregon; 12. By-laws; 13. Catalogue Data; 14. Miscellaneous Records.

Languages of Materials: English [eng]

Abstract

The Board of Regents Records document the administration, facilities, and curriculum of the Oregon Agricultural College and include correspondence, minutes, financial records, and contracts.

Scope and Content Notes

Series 1 consists of general correspondence sent and received by the Board between 1887 and 1918. Series 2 contains the minutes of the Board's meetings from 1886-1929. Series 3 consists of Board Committee records. Of note are correspondence and minutes of the Executive Committee from 1886-1910. Other records in this series date from 1899-1907 and pertain to committees such as the Buildings and Grounds, the Station, and the Finance Committees.

Series 4 consists of reports to the Bureau of Education of the U.S. Dept. of Interior from 1896-1907. Series 5 includes general reports made between 1892 and 1929, such as reports of the Board to the governor. Series 6 consists of resolutions proposed by the Board between 1899 and 1904. Series 7 contains financial reports of the College and Experiment Station made between 1891 and 1908, and other miscellaneous financial records from 1888-1917. Series 8 consists of staff salary schedules for 1896 and 1900. Series 9 includes budgetary information for 1916 and 1917.

Series 10 consists of contracts. Many of these are insurance policies, which are arranged by date of expiration. Other contracts were for specific services to the college, such as providing firewood, or for the construction of particular buildings. Series 11 is list of the candidates for the presidency of the college in 1892 and includes an analysis of recommendations. Series 12 consists of the Board's by-laws, and includes ones adopted in 1888 as well as published copies from 1889 and 1910. Series 13 includes drafts of narrative information used in compiling the college's catalogs between 1888 and 1891. Series 14 includes information on furniture and equipment purchased by the college in the 1890s and a 1926 description of a property lot close to campus.

Most of the records are in both paper and microfilm format. Series 11 through 14 are in paper form only.

Biographical / Historical Notes

The Board of Regents was created by the Oregon Legislative Assembly through legislation passed in February 1885. It replaced the College's Board of Trustees, which had reported to the Columbia Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South. The Board of Regents consisted of nine members appointed by, and which reported to, the Governor of Oregon. The Board's ex-officio members included the Governor, Secretary of State, the State Superintendent of Public Instruction, and the Master of the State Grange. Board officers included a president, secretary and treasurer, and were appointed to two-year terms of office. The Board's by-laws were later amended to include a vice-president. In 1929, the OAC Board of Regents was replaced by the Oregon State Board of Higher Education, which was created to oversee all of Oregon's public higher education institutions.

Several Board members figured prominently in OSU's history. Wallis Nash served from 1886-1898, much of that time as the Board Secretary. James K. Weatherford, an 1872 graduate of the college, was a Board member for 43 years, 1886-1929. He was Board President from 1901-1929. John T. Apperson served from 1886-1917, and was President from 1895-1901. B. F. Irvine served from 1898-1929, the last 28 years as Board Treasurer. He also served on the Oregon State Board of Higher Education from 1929-1937. E. E. Wilson graduated from the college in 1889 and served two terms on the Board -- 1906-1915 and 1924-1929. He also served on the Memorial Union Board of Governors from 1925-1961. Walter M. Pierce served as a Board member from 1903-1927, the last four years in an ex-officio capacity as Governor of Oregon. Clara H. Waldo, the first woman appointed to the Board, served from 1905-1919.

Administrative Information

More Extent Information: 2 cubic foot boxes, 5 12x17 oversize boxes, one legal document case, and an oversize cabinet.; 7 microfilm reels

Related Materials: The Board of Trustees Records (RG 033) document the administration of Oregon Agricultural College prior to the establishment of the Board of Regents. The President's Office Records (RG 013) and the E. E. Wilson Papers (MSS WilsonEE) include materials pertaining to the Board of Regents. College catalogs, published annually, listed the members and officers of the Board of Regents. The OSU Memorabilia Collection (MSS MC) includes biographical information on several Board members. By-laws of the Board of Regents are also available in the Publications Collection (PUB 1-10b).

Preferred Citation: Board of Regents Records (RG 008), Oregon State University Special Collections and Archives Research Center, Corvallis, Oregon.

Other URL: A preliminary container list was created for this collection on or before Decemeber 11, 2015.

Creators

Oregon Agricultural College. Board of Regents
Apperson, John T. (1834-1917)
Irvine, B. F.
Nash, W. Gifford (Wallis Gifford) (1867-1920)
Pierce, Walter Marcus (1861-1954)
Weatherford, James K. (1850-1935)
Wilson, E. E. (Eddy Elbridge) (1869-1961)

People, Places, and Topics

College buildings--Oregon--Corvallis.
College presidents--Oregon--Corvallis.
Oregon Agricultural College--Administration.
Oregon Agricultural College--Buildings.
Oregon Agricultural College--Faculty.
Universities and colleges--Administration.
Universities and colleges--Curricula--Oregon--Corvallis.
Universities and colleges--Oregon--Corvallis--Faculty.
Universities and colleges--Oregon--Corvallis--Finance.


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