Oral history interview with Victor Atiyeh
Scope and Contents
This oral history interview with Victor Atiyeh was conducted by Clark Hansen at Atiyehâs office in Portland, Oregon, from November 24, 1992, to September 10, 1993, and on June 11, 1998. The interview was conducted as part of the Oregon Legislature Oral History Series, which was a series of interviews conducted with people involved in Oregon government. The interview was conducted in forty-two sessions.
In sessions 1 and 2, Atiyeh discusses his family background and early life, including his Syrian heritage and his education, as well as his marriage to Delores Hewitt. In sessions 3 through 5, Atiyeh discusses his service in the Oregon House of Representatives from 1959 to 1964. In sessions 6 through 15, he discusses his service in the Oregon Senate from 1965 to 1979, and his 1974 campaign for governor. In sessions 16 and 17, he discusses his 1978 campaign for Oregon governor. In sessions 18 through 23, he discusses his first term as governor from 1979 to 1982. In sessions 24 through 26, he talks about his 1982 re-election campaign. In sessions 27 through 38, he discusses his second term as governor, from 1983 to 1987. In sessions 39 through 42, he reflects on his achievements as governor, and discusses Republican politics since he left elected office. In some interview sessions, Atiyeh refers to people with intellectual disabilities using language that was once used in a medical context and is now pejorative.
Dates
- 1992 November 24-1998 June 11
Creator
- Atiyeh, Victor (Interviewee, Person)
Conditions Governing Access
Collection is open for research.
Conditions Governing Use
Copyright to interview is held by the Oregon Historical Society. Use is allowed according to the following license: 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 authorization from copyright holders.
Biographical note
Victor "Vic" George Atiyeh was born in Portland, Oregon, in 1923. He met Delores Hewitt while a student at Washington High School. They later married in 1944 and had two children. He attended the University of Oregon, but dropped out after the death of his father in order to take over the family carpet business, Atiyeh Brothers. He was a Republican politician and represented Washington County in the Oregon House of Representatives from 1959 to 1964, and in the Oregon Senate from 1965 to 1979. He was governor of Oregon from 1979 to 1987. He died in 2014.
Extent
.2 Cubic Feet (64 audiocassettes (62 hr., 21 min., 10 sec.) + transcript (1699 pages) + 1 photograph (color))
Language of Materials
English
Abstract
Oral history interview with Victor Atiyeh conducted by Clark Hansen from November 24, 1992, to September 10, 1993, and on June 11, 1998, as part of the Oregon Legislature Oral History Series. Atiyeh was an Oregon state representative from 1959 to 1964, an Oregon state senator from 1965 to 1979, and Oregon governor from 1979 to 1987.
Existence and Location of Copies
Audio and transcript available online in OHS Digital Collections and as part of the Victor Atiyeh digital exhibit at Pacific University, Forest Grove, Oregon.
General
Forms part of the Oregon Legislature Oral History Series.
General
Handwritten index (117 pages) is available for in-person use at the Oregon Historical Society Research Library.
- Atiyeh, Victor
- Governors -- Oregon
- Legislation -- Oregon
- Legislators -- Oregon
- Oral Histories
- Oregon
- Oregon -- Politics and government -- 20th century
- Oregon. Legislative Assembly
- Political Campaigns -- Oregon
- Politics and Politicians
- Republican Party (Or.)
- Syrian Americans -- Oregon
- Taxation -- Law and legislation -- Oregon
- interviews
- oral histories (literary genre)
Creator
- Atiyeh, Victor (Interviewee, Person)
- Hansen, Clark (Interviewer, Person)
- Title
- Guide to oral history interview with Victor Atiyeh
- Status
- Completed
- Author
- Sarah Stroman
- Date
- 2020
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
- 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
1200 SW Park Ave.
Portland OR 97205 United States
5033065204
5033065240
libreference@ohs.org