Steel family portraits

Collection

Identifier: Org. Lot 1459

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

Small collection of portraits and photographs, most depicting members of the Steel family. Black-and-white portraits in the collection, taken in approximately 1927, depict William Gladstone Steel; his wife, Lydia Hatch; and their daughter, Jean. The collection also contains one medium-format acetate negative of the portrait of Jean. Two daguerreotypes in the collection depict other Steel family members: one is of Steel’s brothers David, George, and John, and the other is of Steel and his mother, Elizabeth Lowrey. Both daguerreotypes are from approximately 1859.

The collection also contains one black-and-white print, one composite print, one strip of 35mm negatives, and one medium-format acetate negative of William Gladstone Steel’s headstone, taken at an unknown date in the mid-twentieth century.

Dates

Creation: 1859-1934

Creator

Steel family (Family)

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

William Gladstone Steel (1854-1934) advocated for the establishment of Crater Lake National Park and federal management of Oregon’s forests. In 1900, Steel married Lydia Hatch, and they had one daughter, Jean Elizabeth Steel. After William Gladstone Steel’s death in 1934, Jean Elizabeth Steel was named commissioner of Crater Lake National Park.

Sources: “William Gladstone Steel (1854-1934),” by Stephen R. Mark, Oregon Encyclopedia, https://www.oregonencyclopedia.org/articles/steel_william_1854_1934_/; vital records in Ancestry.com; “Jean Steel Appointed,” Oregonian, October 26, 1934, page 16.

Extent

0.56 Cubic Feet (1 oversize folder, 2 folders in shared boxes, 2 cased photographs in shared box)

Language of Materials

English

Additional Description

Abstract

Collection of portraits related to the family of William Gladstone Steel, dating from approximately 1859 to 1927. Steel advocated for the establishment of Crater Lake National Park and federal management of Oregon’s forests.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Transfer from Oregon Parks and Recreation Department, June 2023 (RL2023-083).

Related Materials

Other materials at the Oregon Historical Society Research Library relating to William Gladstone Steel and his family include an additional collection of Steel family photographs, designated Org. Lot 1395, and a vertical file, Biography - Steel, William Gladstone.