Harvey Gordon letters
Scope and Contents
The collection consists of 14 letters that were written to Harvey Gordon between 1860 and 1862. Almost all of these letters concern political matters in Oregon and in the United States, such as elections and the state of party politics in Oregon; they also include a letter from Selucius Garfielde, describing Garfielde's activities in running to be the territorial delegate for Washington. Other correspondents in the collection include Jesse Applegate, Riley Evans Stratton, and R. H. Dearborn. The collection also includes an undated letter from John T. Outhouse, regarding the productivity of mines that were likely located in Idaho.
Dates
- Creation: 1860-1862
Creator
- Gordon, Harvey, 1828-1862 (Person)
Conditions Governing Access
Collection is open for research.
Conditions Governing Use
The Oregon Historical Society owns the materials in the Research Library and makes available reproductions for research, publication, and other uses. The Society does not necessarily hold copyright to all materials in the collections. In some cases, permission for use may require seeking additional authorization from copyright owners.
Biographical / Historical
Harvey Gordon was born in 1828 in Vernon, Indiana. In 1846, he emigrated to Oregon by way of the southern route (also called the Applegate Trail), where he took a donation land claim at the Molalla townsite in Clackamas County, and worked as a surveyor. He went to California during the Gold Rush, but came back to Oregon and took part in the Oregon land survey of 1853 to 1854. In 1857, the Oregon Constitutional Convention adopted a resolution that led to the appointment of Benjamin F. Burch, L. F. Grover, and James K. Kelly as a committee to report on a state seal for Oregon. Gordon submitted a design to this committee, and after the committee recommended some additions, his design was approved, and was still the state seal as of 2022. In 1862, Gordon successfully ran to be the Oregon state printer, but died two months before he was to take office.
Sources: "Dictionary of Oregon History," second edition, 1989, edited by Howard McKinley Corning; "Oregon Almanac: Nut, State to Shoes, Oldest," Oregon Secretary of State, https://sos.oregon.gov/blue-book/Pages/facts/almanac/n-s.aspx.
Extent
0.1 Cubic Feet (1 folder in shared box)
Language of Materials
English
Abstract
Letters sent to Harvey Gordon (1828-1862), primarily concerning Oregon and U.S. politics. Gordon designed the state seal of Oregon, and was elected Oregon state printer in 1862 but died before taking office.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Letters from Jesse Applegate likely acquired in February 1907 (RL2022-145-RETRO); all other materials most likely acquired in the late 19th or early 20th century.
Subject
Genre / Form
Geographic
Topical
- Title
- Guide to the Harvey Gordon letters
- Status
- Completed
- Author
- Revised by Jeffrey A. Hayes
- Date
- 2012; revised 2022
- 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.
Revision Statements
- 2022: Revised to conform to current best practices.
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