David John was a pioneer of Williamsburg, Oregon, and was a partner in the John Brothers blacksmith firm of Williamsburg. The collection (1860-1869) contains a diary, and an account book for John Brothers.

Ax 180

Guide to the David John Diary and Account Book

Marcus Whitman Walker was a son of Elkanah Walker, a pioneer missionary in Oregon. The collection (1867-1893) contains letters written by Marcus Walker from Brownsville, Weston, and Warm Springs, Oregon to family members.

A 175

Guide to the Marcus Whitman Walker Letters

John Woolverton came overland from Iowa to Oregon in 1856 and settled in Polk County, Oregon. The collection (1864-1941) contains a copy of an overland journal to Oregon, a history of John Woolverton, and proceedings of the National and International Association of Woolvertons.

Guide to the Woolverton Family Papers

Lillian Caldwell Blackwood was an Oregon pioneer who lived in Jacksonville, Oregon. The collection (1877-1928) contains correspondence regarding family and Oregon society and family photographs.

A 010

Guide to the Lillian Caldwell Blackwood Letters and Photographs

John Lawrence Johnson (1830-1916) was a pioneer who came to Oregon with his parents in 1851.  The collection includes Johnson’s diary of that journey as well as a letter from Johnson’s uncle.

A 270

Guide to the John Laurence Johnson diary and letter

Isabella Porter Spencer (1849-1924), of Ashland, was the daughter of James M. Porter of Iowa.  The collection consists of both her own correspondence and that of her father.

A 115

Guide to the Porter Family Correspondence

Jefferson Myers (c.1860-1943) was a native Oregonian born of pioneer parents, who served as Oregon State Senator, on state commissions, and as a Board of Regent for Oregon Agricultural College. The collection contains material from the Lewis and Clark Centennial Exposition and the Jamestown Tri-Centennial Exposition, as well as personal correspondence, some Oregon state documents, and photographs.

Coll 191

Guide to the Jefferson Myers Papers

Established in 1812, the General Land Office (GLO) sought to meet the needs of settlers during the western expansion of the United States. The collection consists of a photostat copy of a notice to settlers put out by the General Land Office in 1853.

CA 1853 Apr 30

U.S. General Land Office notice to settlers

George Allingham ( d.1873) was a resident of Warren County, Illinois, whose son, William, emigrated to Oregon in 1850.  The collection consists of a photostat copy of a letter from the elder Allingham to his son.

CA 1851 Jan 19

Guide to the George Allingham Letter to William Allingham

During this fall term, students in Professor Marsha Weisiger’s HIST 466 course, The American West, were assigned to read original diaries documenting journeys to the Pacific Northwest in the nineteenth century, housed in Special Collections and University Archives.

Special Collections and University Archives is the repository for over 100 overland trail journals and several sea journeys to the Pacific Northwest, many of which are original documents. Professor Weisiger’s students are to read three journals and compare their differences and similarities among the three experiences, with particular focus on issues such as class, race, gender, and ethnicity.

The diaries documenting journeys to the Pacific Northwest (the Oregon Trail is the predominate route represented among the diaries) are described in the Special Collections and University Archives’ subject guides here.

To the left is the first page of Abigail Scott Duniway’s diary written in 1852 to document her family’s migration over the Oregon Trail (Abigail Scott Duniway Papers, Coll. 232B). The finding aid to the Duniway Papers can be found here and the fully digitized diary can be found here.

Linda Long
Manuscripts Librarian