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Oral history interview with Earl T. Newbry

 Collection
Identifier: SR1124

Scope and Contents

This oral history interview with Earl T. Newbry was conducted by Clark Hansen at Newbry’s home in Ashland, Oregon, from July 23-24, 1990. In this interview, Newbry discusses his family background and early life, mostly in Eastern Oregon and northeastern Washington. He talks about working on and running the family orchard, Newbry Orchards. He then discusses his involvement in local politics in Jackson County, Oregon. He talks about his legislative career in the Oregon House of Representatives from 1939 to 1942 and in the Oregon Senate from 1943 to 1948, including his campaigns; balancing work and family; lobbyists; and his constituency. He also discusses many of his fellow legislators, including William McAllister, Truman Chase, and Eugene Marsh. He talks about legislation he worked on, including on labor, transportation, and taxes. He then discusses being secretary of state from 1949 to 1955, as well as his 1954 run for the governor’s office. He discusses the duties of the secretary of state, including overseeing the Department of Motor Vehicles. He also talks about being a delegate to the Republican National Convention in 1954 and his involvement with the Republican Party. He then discusses Oregon governors and legislators who served after he left politics, and reflects on his own accomplishments. He closes the interview by talking about his family, particularly his son, Lynn Newbry, and his political career.

Dates

  • 1990 July 23-25

Creator

Conditions Governing Access

Collection is open for research.

Conditions Governing Use

Copyright to interview is held by the Oregon Historical Society. Licensed under Creative Commons, BY-NC-SA: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/. Copyright to photograph has not been determined, and permission for use may require additional authorization from copyright holders.

Biographical note

Earl T. Newbry was born in Colorado in 1900. His family moved several times during his childhood; they lived in Kimberly, Oregon; Chewelah, Washington; Eugene, Oregon; then finally Ashland, Oregon, in 1920. He briefly attended Washington State College (now Washington State University) in Pullman, Washington. His family started an orchard, Newbry Orchards, which Newbry later bought and ran himself. In 1922, he and Ruth Johnston were married; they later had two children. Newbry was active in local Jackson County politics in the 1930s. He was a Republican and represented Jackson County in the Oregon House of Representatives from 1939 to 1942, and in the Oregon Senate from 1943 to 1948. He was also appointed as Oregon's secretary of state by Governor John Hubert Hall, serving from 1949 to 1957. After leaving the Legislature, he continued to run Newbry Orchards. He died in 1995.

Extent

.1 Cubic Feet (7 audiocassettes (6 hr., 25 min., 33 sec.) + transcript (188 pages) + 1 photograph (color ; 4 x 6 in.) )

Language of Materials

English

Abstract

Oral history interview with Earl T. Newbry conducted by Clark Hansen from July 23-25, 1990, as part of the Oregon Legislature Oral History Series. Newbry was an Oregon state representative, state senator, and secretary of state.

Related Materials

An oral history interview with Earl T. Newbry's son, Lynn W. Newbry, is held by the Oregon Historical Society Research Library as SR 1123.

General

Forms part of the Oregon Legislature Oral History Series.

Creator

Title
Guide to oral history interview with Earl T. Newbry
Status
Completed
Author
Sarah Stroman
Date
2020
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
Undetermined
Script of description
Code for undetermined script
Language of description note
Finding aid is written in English.
Sponsor
This project is supported in whole or part by the Institute of Museum and Library Services through the Library Services and Technology Act, administered by the State Library of Oregon.

Repository Details

Part of the Oregon Historical Society Research Library Repository

Contact:
1200 SW Park Ave.
Portland OR 97205 United States
5033065204
5033065240