History of Oregon Literature

by Alfred Powers

(Upload an image to replace this placeholder.)

(Upload an image to replace this placeholder.)

 

HISTORY OF OREGON LITERATURE

 

Oregon By Ella Higginson

History of Oregon Literature

By Alfred Powers

ILLUSTRATED WITH MANUSCRIPTS
TITLE PAGES • PHOTOGRAPHS OF SCULPTURE • AND CRAYON DRAWINGS BY BERNARD HINSHAW

Metropolitan Press, Publishers

portland, oregon

1935

 

Copyright 1935 by Alfred Powers

 

PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

 

TO THREE OREGON FRIENDS WHO IN DIFFERENT WAYS ARE DEEPENING AND EXTENDING THE REGIONAL CULTURE THIS BOOK HAS ATTEMPTED TO DESCRIBE—TO ANNE M. MULHERON AND PETER BINFORD OF PORTLAND AND GEORGE REBEC OF EUGENE

Acknowledgments

Assistance in the preparation of this work has been received from many individuals, who, through interviews, correspondence and privately-owned records, have furnished the part of it not to be found in libraries. Generous and prolonged cooperation in the use of material preserved by the public has been given by Miss Nellie B. Pipes and Miss Irene Upson of the Oregon Historical Society; Miss Harriet C. Long and Miss Mirpah G. Blair of the Oregon State Library; Mr. M. H. Douglass of the University of Oregon Library; and Mr. Ronald H. Beattie of the University of California who examined books and manuscripts and followed up literary clues in the Bancroft Library.

Information on particular localities or writers has been supplied by Mrs. Gertrude Ingalls, sister of Frederic Homer Balch, Hood River; Mrs. George H. Lee, daughter of Belle W. Cooke, Portland; Mrs. Grace McCormac French of Carlton; Mr. Merle R. Chessman of Astoria; Mr. Ralph R. Cronise of Albany; Mr. Harry Crain of Salem; Mr. Harris Ellsworth of Roseburg; Professor Edwin T. Reed of Corvallis; Professor Alfred L. Lomax and Professor George S. Turnbull of Eugene; Miss Margaret Ewing, Mrs. Margaret M. Sharp, Mr. Earl Marshall, Mr. Stewart H. Holbrook, Mr. Frederick W. Skiff, Mr. Wallace S. Wharton and Mr. Burt Brown Barker of Portland; and Dr. H. G. Merriam, editor of the Frontier and Midland. The search for early Oregon songs was carried on with the aid of Mrs. Esther S. Townsend, Mr. Joseph Macqueen and Mr. Frederick W. Goodrich of Portland.

Mrs. Hilda Cooper of Portland assisted in organizing the material; Professor Melville Jacobs of the University of Washington contributed his original study on the dreams of the Coos Indians; and Mr. Elbert Bede of Cottage Grove wrote the chapter on Opal Whiteley.

The one who more than all others has given help in the research is Miss Laura Phillips, now instructor in English in Athena High School.

ALFRED POWERS.

Portland, Oregon,
OCTOBER 1935.

Contents

PAGE

BEFORE THE WHITE MAN CAME ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

3

LITERATURE OF THE EXPLORERS ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

27

AS TOLD BY THE TRAPPERS ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

38

WRITINGS OF THE MISSIONARIES ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

59

CHINOOK JARGON AS A LITERARY LANGUAGE ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

74

THE PIONEERS HAVE MUCH TO SAY ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

89

THE FIRST SCIENTISTS IN OREGON ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

104

WEBSTERS OF THE COLUMBIA ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

113

SQUAW WIVES AND SQUAW MEN ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

128

THE FIRST PERIODICAL LITERATURE ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

153

VIVID EDITORS OF THE 50's ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

177

THE FIRST FIVE LITERARY BOOKS ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

192

EARLIEST OREGON SONGS ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

221

JOAQUIN MILLER ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

229

MINNIE MYRTLE MILLER ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

247

BELLE W.COOK ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

278

SAM. L. SIMPSON ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

289

FRANCES FULLER VICTOR ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

305

FREDERIC HOMER BALCH ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

317

EDWIN MARKHAM ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

333

SAMUEL A. CLARKE ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

339

HARVEY W. SCOTT ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

350

FIVE PERSONAL ESSAYISTS ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

367

EVA EMERY DYE ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

404

ELLA HIGGINSON ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

415

C.E.S. WOOD ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

441

MINOR POETS FROM 1850 TO 1900 ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

453

SONG WRITERS AND SONGS SINCE 1860 ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

470

COLLEGE SONGS OF THE WILLAMETTE VALLEY ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

481

OREGON HUMOR IN THE 70's ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

495

OLD AND NEW COLUMNISTS ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

506

HISTORIANS ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

535

DESCRIPTIVE PROSE WRITERS ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

600

THOMAS HOWELL AND JOHN REED ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

609

JOHN FLEMING WILSON ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

617

OPAL WHITELEY ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

622

CONTEMPORARY POETS ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

635

NOVELISTS, DRAMATISTS, SHORT STORY WRITERS ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

669

OREGON AUTHORS ABOUT EACH OTHER ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

695

LITERARY MAGAZINES AND BOOK PUBLISHERS ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

711

OREGON LITERATURE BY FAMOUS OUTSIDERS ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

744

A CENTURY OF LITERARY GOSSIP ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

763

Illustrations

PAGE

“OREGON” By ELLA HIGGINSON - - Frontispiece THEcomingofTHEwhiteMAN - - - - 5 WILLIAM CLARK|35 MERIWETHER LEWIS|35 THEcIRCUITRIDER--------67 TRIALsofTHETRAIL--------99 FROM JASON LEE’s MARRIAGE RECORDs - - SOLOMON SMITH AND HIS CLATSOP PRINCESS OREGON CITY IN 1845 MOUNT HOOD SIDNEY WALTER MOSS - ABIGAIL SCOTT DUNIWAY SACAJAWEA, BISMARCK, NORTH DAKOTA SACAJAWEA, was HINGTON PARK, PORTLAND JOAQUIN MILLER MINNIE MYRTLE MILLER SAM. L. SIMPSON FRANCES FULLER VICTOR FREDERIC HOMER BALCH Pioneer Mother, UNIvERSITY of or EGON Pioneer Mother, vancouver, was HINGTON ELLA HIGGINson’s old Home, or EGON CITY RESIDENCE of Eva EMERY DYE, or EGON CITY TUALATIN AcADEMY, FoREST GRove, 1851 - oregon INSTITUTE, saleM, 1842 - - - Til TAYLOR, PENDLETON - - - - - - 131 131 163 163 195 195 227 227 259 259 291 291 323 387 387 419 4.19 483 483

515

THE PIONEER, UNIVERSITY OF OREGON ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

547

J. HENRY BROWN ON OREGON HISTORIANS ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

579

OPAL WHITELEY ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

611

FIRST BOOKS WEST OF THE ROCKIES ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

739

MISSION PRESS CABIN, LAPWAI ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

739

TWO BALCH LETTERS ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

771