Papers include notes and correspondence regarding rivers and streams of Oregon and the Oregon State Fair. Addison Bennett (1845-1924) was editor of the Oregon Irrigator, the first newspaper in Irrigon, Oregon, and was for many years a staff writer for the Oregonian.

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.