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Elaine W. Sadring collection of Mount St. Helens materials

 Collection
Identifier: Coll 953

Scope and Contents

The collection consists of materials regarding Mount St. Helens and its 1980 eruption, compiled by Portland, Oregon, resident Elaine W. Sadring. These consist of: a 1950s essay about the mountain's history and alleged beliefs of Native people about the mountain by Beatrice Buzzetti, who worked as a lookout for three summers on Coldwater Peak; 2 album pages with 9 photographs of the 1980 eruption, taken by Bob Showman of Precision Castparts Corporation; and the text of a four-sermon series, "Lessons Learned from Mt. St. Helens," that First Congregational Church of Portland minister Lincoln Y. Reed delivered from June to July 1980.

Dates

  • Creation: circa 1951; 1980

Creator

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 Note

Elaine ElRae Sadring (née Wakefield, 1924-2002) was a lifelong resident of Portland, Oregon. She worked as an executive secretary for Georgia-Pacific and for Pacific Power & Light. She was a member of the First Congregational Church of Portland.

Sources: Obituary in the Oregonian, December 9, 2002; letter from ElRae Louise Wells to the Oregon Historical Society, October 24, 2022.

Historical Note

In the spring of 1980, Mount St. Helens in Washington state began to show signs of an upcoming eruption, including a steam explosion on March 27, and a growing bulge on the north side of the mountain in April and May. On May 18, the mountain erupted. The eruption killed 57 people, destroyed almost all vegetation in the vicinity of the mountain, caused a debris landslide, and spewed ash that fell as far as 900 miles away.

Source: "Mount St. Helens erupts on May 18, 1980," by Greg Lane, HistoryLink.org, https://www.historylink.org/file/5457

Extent

0.1 Cubic Feet (1 folder in shared box)

Language of Materials

English

Abstract

Photographs of the 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens, four sermons by Lincoln Y. Reed about the eruption, and a 1950s report about Mount St. Helens by Beatrice Buzzetti, all of which were compiled by Elaine W. Sadring (1924-2002). Sadring was a resident of Portland, Oregon, and a member of the First Congregational Church of Portland, where Lincoln Y. Reed was pastor in 1980. Mount St. Helens erupted on May 18, 1980, killing 57 people and causing major destruction in Washington state.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Gift of ElRae Louise Wells, October 2022 (RL2022-151).

Related Materials

Additional materials at the Oregon Historical Society Research Library relating to Mount St. Helens include: Mount Saint Helens eruption photographs collection, Org. Lot 147; and Mount Saint Helens eruption moving image collection, MIC 1, some footage from which is available online in OHS Digital Collections at https://digitalcollections.ohs.org/katu-news-footage.

Title
Guide to the Elaine W. Sadring collection of Mount St. Helens materials
Status
Completed
Author
Jeffrey A. Hayes
Date
2023
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.

Repository Details

Part of the Oregon Historical Society Research Library Repository

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