Oregon Experience

Until 1912, Oregon women lived by men’s law. They had few legal rights with little power to improve their lives or communities. That changed when women won the right to vote. Together they won the vote for Oregon women, and went on to help implement social change that dramatically altered the lives of women and children, and improved working conditions for all Americans. This era of women’s mobilization changed Oregon, and ultimately, the country.

In 1981, Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh, a spiritual leader from India, and thousands of his disciples moved to Wasco and Jefferson Counties. On what had been the Big Muddy Ranch, the “sannyasins” set out to build a new city, a utopian community in the desert -- Rajneeshpuram. Thousands of people from around the world gathered here to celebrate life. They worked hard and transformed the landscape. And more than a few hoped to spend the rest of their days at this place. But by 1986, they were gone.

Nearly forty years after he left office and thirty years after his death, Oregon Governor Tom McCall remains one of the state’s most renowned political figures. He envisioned a quality of environment and life unique to Oregon, and he worked relentlessly to protect those values. McCall’s bold achievements set a new standard for the rest of the nation: The Beach Bill and the Bottle Bill, the SB100 land-use law, the Willamette River cleanup and the reinvention of Portland’s waterfront — all of these emerged from the McCall years.

Thousands of forgotten glass plate negatives from the turn of the twentieth century bring new insight to rural Oregon’s frontier history.