Ralph Penniwell Cowgill (born 1880) served as an engineer for the Oregon State Game Commission, president of the Oregon Game Protective Association, and in the Oregon Legislature. Collection includes correspondence and reports, 1922-1935, regarding his work with those organizations, as well as the Oregon Reserve Corps and National Guard, with emphasis on fish husbandry and river pollution.

Miscellaneous correspondence and other records regarding the movement against hydroelectric development on the rivers and other water resources of Linn and adjacent counties in Oregon, including protest action by the Santiam Fish and Game Protective Association, the Marion County Game Protective Association and the Oregon Game Protective Association.