Oral history interview with Thomas Vaughan

Collection

Identifier: SR 2090

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

This oral history interview with Thomas Vaughan was conducted by Sieglinde Smith at the Oregon Historical Society in Portland, Oregon, from October 1, 1995, to December 2, 1996, as part of the historical society’s oral history program. The interview was conducted in nine sessions. Tape 17 is missing, and Tape 25, the final cassette of the interview recording, was removed from the collection by Vaughan at the time of the interview.

In this interview, Vaughan discusses his family background and early life; briefly discusses his service as director of the Rock Creek Historical Society in Janesville, Wisconsin; and speaks at length about his service as executive director of the Oregon Historical Society. He talks about the buildings that OHS was housed in, particularly about the construction of the museum and library on the Southwest Park Blocks in downtown Portland; speaks at length about building the OHS archival collection; and discusses cultivating relationships with donors. He also talks about his retirement in Skamokawa, Washington.

Dates

1995 October 1-1996 December 2

Creator

Vaughan, Thomas, 1924-2013 (Interviewee, Person)

Conditions Governing Access

Collection is open for research.

Conditions Governing Use

Joint copyright for this oral history interview is held by the Oregon Historical Society and the estate of Thomas Vaughan. Use is allowed according to the following statement: In Copyright – Non-Commercial Use Permitted, http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC-NC/1.0/

Biographical note

Thomas James Gregory Vaughan was born in Seattle, Washington, in 1924. In the late 1920s, the family moved near Kelso, and in the 1930s, they moved to Longview. From 1943 to 1945, Vaughan served in the U.S. Marine Corps. In 1948, he earned a bachelor’s degree in British history from Yale University, and in 1951, he earned a master's degree in American history from the University of Wisconsin. That same year, he and Elizabeth Ann Perpetua Crownhart were married. He then served as the director of the Rock County Historical Society in Janesville, Wisconsin. In 1954, the family moved to Portland, Oregon, and Vaughan became executive director of the Oregon Historical Society. He retired in 1989. In 1996, he wrote and directed a film about the 1853 Crimean War, titled “The Crimean War: A Clash of Empires.” He died in 2013.

Extent

0.1 Cubic Feet (23 audiocassettes (23 hr., 26 min., 5 sec.) + transcript (383 pages))

Language of Materials

English

Additional Description

Abstract

Oral history interview with Thomas Vaughan conducted by Sieglinde Smith from October 1, 1995, to December 2, 1996. Vaughan was the executive director of the Oregon Histoical Society from 1954 to 1989.

Existence and Location of Copies

Audio and transcript available online in OHS Digital Collections.

Related Materials

Additional materials related to Thomas Vaughan at the Oregon Historical Society Research Library include: several further oral history interviews with Vaughan, SR 2988-1, SR 11022, and SR 2952; Vaughan's diary, Coll 800; his papers, Coll 600; and an ephemera collection, Coll 700.