Oral history interview with Robert E. Jones

Collection

Identifier: SR 11128

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

This oral history interview with Robert E. Jones was conducted by Clark Hansen at the U.S. District Courthouse in Portland, Oregon, from September 12 to October 14, 2005, as part of the United States District Court Oral History Project. The interview was conducted in five sessions. The first four interview sessions were recorded on audiocassette; the final session was recorded on videocassette. The transcript includes a foreword by Owen Panner and an introduction by Donna Sinclair, as well as several autobiographical addendums by Robert E. Jones.

In this interview, Jones discusses his family background and early life in Portland, including his service in the U.S. Navy Reserve, and his college experiences at the University of Hawaii and at the Northwestern School of Law in Portland. He talks about practicing law from 1953 to 1963, about serving as a judge on the Multnomah County Circuit Court, and about representing Washington County in the Oregon House during the 1963 legislative session. He discusses serving as a justice on the Oregon Supreme Court, and as a judge on the U.S. District Court of Oregon.

Dates

2005 September 12-October 14

Creator

Jones, Robert E. (Robert Edward), 1927- (Interviewee, Person)

Conditions Governing Access

Collection is open for research.

Conditions Governing Use

Joint copyright for this interview is held by the Oregon Historical Society and the U.S. District Court of Oregon Historical Society. Use of the interview is allowed according to the following statement: In Copyright – Educational Use Permitted, http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC-EDU/1.0/

Biographical note

Robert E. Jones was born in Portland, Oregon, in 1927. During World War II, he worked in the Portland shipyards. In 1945, he joined the U.S. Navy Reserve. In 1948, he and Pearl Jensen were married; they later had two children. In 1949, he earned a bachelor of arts degree from the University of Hawaii. In 1953, he earned a law degree from the Northwestern School of Law, now known as the Lewis & Clark Law School. He was a lawyer in private practice until 1963, when he became a judge on the Multnomah County Circuit Court. In 1983, he became an Oregon Supreme Court justice, and in 1990, he began serving as a judge on the U.S. District Court of Oregon. He also represented Washington County as a Republican in the Oregon House of Representatives during the 1963 legislative session.

Extent

0.1 Cubic Feet (6 audiocassettes (5 hr., 41 min., 31 sec.) and 1 videocassette (Mini-DV, 1 hr., 2 min., 32 sec.) + transcript (121 pages))

Language of Materials

English

Additional Description

Abstract

Oral history interview with Robert E. Jones conducted by Clark Hansen from September 12 to October 14, 2005, as part of the United States District Court Oral History Project. Jones served as a judge on the Multnomah County Circuit Court, a justice on the Oregon Supreme Court, and a judge on the U.S. District Court of Oregon. He also represented Washington County in the Oregon House during the 1963 legislative session.