The Glenn family, who trace their lineage to Oswego pioneers Waters and Lucretia Gurney Carman through the Carman’s middle daughter Henrietta “Etta” Susanna Carman Magone, recently donated a family treasure to the Oswego Heritage Council. This image of Willamette Falls was painted by Scottish artist Alexander Maxwell David MacKechnie (1855-1893). MacKechnie worked as an art tutor to Etta Magone’s daughters and died tragically attempting to save Francette Magone from drowning in the Tualatin Canal.
This painting had a difficult existence, suffering multiple tears and abrasions and accumulating a layer of dirt and cigarette smoke — but we are working to restore it.
For only $1,750, a preservation specialist has agreed to restore the painting, where it will hang in the Heritage House as an important piece of local history. Please consider donating today, as it is only with your support that we can protect these historical treasures.
Charles Benjamin Hill Love Letters
In early 2020, the Oswego Heritage House received a call from a Lake Oswego, First Addition resident wanting to know if we would like a cache of "vintage letters" she found in her attic. She planned to dispose of them, preparing her house for sale. The answer was, of course, an emphatic yes.
The collection consists of 306 love letters to Charles Benjamin Hill, a lifelong Oswego resident, from five young women whom he met during his travels from November 1919 to July 1921. The letters were organized, scanned, and transcribed as written; our research team added notes to develop an understanding of the lives of these smitten women.
A copy is available at the Heritage House and the Lake Oswego Public Library, but we aim to publish additional copies for people to discover the stories of these fascinating women head over heels in love with a man from Oswego.
