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Tecumtum (Chief John)

Tecumtum (Chief John)

Tecumtum (“Elk Killer”), also known as Chief John, was chief of the Etch-ka-taw-wah, a band of Indians who lived along the Applegate River in southwestern …

Oregon History Project
Temple Beth Israel

Temple Beth Israel

Beth Israel, organized in 1858, is Portland’s oldest Jewish congregation.  The members worshipped above commercial space on Front Street before moving to this synagogue on …

Oregon History Project
The Applegates

The Applegates

The Applegates were one of Oregon’s most influential early pioneer families, a fact reflected in the landscape. They have a river, a valley, a mountain, …

Oregon History Project
The Arrival of Looking Glass

The Arrival of Looking Glass

This excerpt from Army officer Lawrence Kip’s journal describes the dramatic arrival of Chief Looking Glass at the 1855 Walla Walla Council. Looking Glass had …

Oregon History Project
The Great Flood of 1861

The Great Flood of 1861

In this excerpt from an undated handwritten reminiscence, George Anson Pease, a steamboat captain based out of Oregon City, relates his experiences during the 1861 …

Oregon History Project
Title Page, Chinook Dictionary, 1871

Title Page, Chinook Dictionary, 1871

The 1871 edition of Father Modeste Demers’s Chinook Dictionary, Catechism, Prayers, and Hymns was edited and amended by Rev. F.N. Blanchet and Rev. L.N. St. …

Oregon History Project
Toby Winema Riddle

Toby Winema Riddle

Toby Winema Riddle, also known as Kaitchkana and Nanooktowa, was born near southern Oregon's Link River around 1850. She was related to Kintpuash, better known …

Oregon History Project
Train Passing through The Needles, c. 1885

Train Passing through The Needles, c. 1885

This photograph, taken about 1885, shows a freight train of the Oregon Railway & Navigation Company along the south shore of the Columbia River several …

Oregon History Project
Treaty with the Snake (Northern Paiute), 1865

Treaty with the Snake (Northern Paiute), 1865

This treaty, dated August 12, 1865, is reprinted from the second volume of Charles Kappler’s Indian Affairs: Laws & Treaties, published in 1904. J.W. …

Oregon History Project
U.S. District Judge Matthew Deady

U.S. District Judge Matthew Deady

Matthew Deady was a founder of the Multnomah County Library, President of the Board of Regents of the University of Oregon, and presided over Oregon’s …

Oregon History Project

Interpretive Essays

Interpretive essays use primary documents from the Oregon Historical Society archives to help readers imagine the events, people, and issues that shaped Oregon history.