Can you guess what company issued these company dollars in 1883?
Stay tuned to the end of the newsletter to find out more!
Thank you for helping us meet our goal!! We will release our annual report for 2025 soon, but I wanted to thank you all for helping us with our fundraising goal for the year. We had several major projects with high pricetags, including our museum renovation, and we are so thrilled with the support to make it happen. We couldn't have done it without you all, and with our museum set to reopen on January 16th, we couldn't think of a better way to begin the new year!
We really hope you'll join us for the opening, and if you can't, please stop by soon to check out what's been done.
This year, there will be a huge emphasis on history as 2026 marks the 250th anniversary of the United States. We want to celebrate local history, highlighting the variety of stories that make-up our community. Keep your eye out for more news about our special projects commemorating this important anniversary!
Kathryn Sinor
Executive Director
OPENING-1.png "Save the date for January 16, 2026 for Museum Grand (Re)Opening")
DISCOVER THE MUSEUM LIKE NEVER BEFORE!
After months of renovation and hard work, the Heritage House museum is reopening on Friday, January 16th! Light food and refreshments from Nicoletta's Table will be served.
The Heritage Museum has gone through a makeover! After our last exhibit, we saw an opportunity to rethink the museum. Museum staff and volunteers took most of 2025 to compile a timeline of Lake Oswego history from 15,000 years ago to today. This extensive timeline will be our new permanent display. Featuring stories of local people, incredible photographs that tell the history of the community, and interactive elements to get your hands on history, our new display will have something for everyone -- whether you've just moved to the city or if you've lived here your whole life.
6:00 PM: For members and people who donated
7:00 PM - 8:00 PM: Open to the public
"I have seen a man from Oregon, who was acquainted with Watts, Durham and Armstrong. He says it is a mistake that Durham and Armstrong are dead."
-October 20, 1849
Archivist Mark Browne has been researching a series of letters Waters Carman sent to a newspaper in Illinois. These letters give new insight into one of the early settlers of Oswego, whose family left a lasting legacy in the community. A few interesting tidbits:
- Several letters capture Waters Carman's time in Illinois, including his first marriage and the bankruptcy of his business with his brother-in-law.
- He chronicles part of his journey with 26 wagons and 80 men along the Oregon Trail in 1849.
- Letters showing his time in the gold fields of California with Albert Durham and others who would settle in Oswego.
- A series of letters from 1851 track Waters Carman as he took a ship up the coast of Washington, stopping at what is now Ilwaco (Pacific City). If anyone is familiar with the "Graveyard of the Pacific," it shouldn't surprise them to learn that it took them eleven days to reach this area instead of the "three days, if the weather had been good." During their travels, they stopped at several Native villages.
MORE TO COME SOON!
|
INTERESTED IN THIS SEASON'S CHAUTAUQUA LINE-UP?
February 4th: Memory, History, and the Enduring Power of Place by author Dede Montgomery
March 4th: The Oswego Pioneer Cemetery by Courtney Clements and Angie Baker
April 1st: Living on Cascadia: Are We Ready for the Big One? by Professor Scott Burns
May 6th: Porch Time: Home Life and Leisure in the Early 20th Century by Kay Demlow
|
|
|
Did you guess what company issued these company dollars in 1883?
THE OREGON IRON & STEEL COMPANY
|
With the Oregon Iron & Steel Company owned thousands of acres of land and employing a huge portion of the population in Oswego, it is no doubt that Oswego was a company town. Nothing demonstrates that more than this, issued by the company for merchandise in the company-owned store. This item is located in the Davidson Collection, which you can explore below.
|
|
|
