Archives West Finding Aid

A rich, sprawling and significant collection of 35-mm color slides created over parts of seven decades, the Robert W. Henderson Photographic Slides Collection defies easy description. While far from a full accounting of the collection's contents, major themes might be identified as follows:

• Farming and ranching practices, particularly as they were developed and advanced at Oregon State University's agricultural experiment stations, many of which are depicted. Forestry, animal science, food science and marine science research activities are also a major point of emphasis, though many other corners of OSU's research enterprise are depicted in the collection as well.

• Streetscapes of rural communities from every region of Oregon, images of state and county fairs, and photographs of exhibits touting the strength and virtues of Oregon agriculture. Aerial photography of the OSU campus, Corvallis, and many other areas of Oregon. Building architecture and campus life at Oregon State University, including OSU sporting events, band performances and activities sponsored by a wide array of student organizations.

• OSU faculty and staff activities, with particular emphasis on employees of the College of Agriculture, the OSU Extension Service, and agriculturalists who had developed close ties to OSU's statewide mission. Individuals who appear frequently in the collection include OSU Presidents Robert MacVicar, James Jensen and August Strand, faculty members G. Burton Wood, Warren Kronstad, Emery Castle, E.B. Lemon, T.J. Starker, Jim Oldfield and Tom Allen, and rancher Reub Long.

• Noteworthy events that took place at OSU, including visits from major political figures such as Robert F. Kennedy, Wayne Morse, Mark Hatfield and, during the Vietnam War, activist and future Senator John Kerry. The collection likewise features photographs of commencement exercises, class reunions, banquets, retirements and a great many other academic gatherings, including meetings of OSU-specific groups like the Triad Club as well as broader organizations such as the Oregon School Employees Association, Women for Agriculture, and the American Association of University Professors. Several images documenting activities and personnel related to the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry (OMSI) are likewise included.

• Documentation of Henderson's travel overseas, particularly in connection with his work at Kasetsart University in Thailand, but also including trips to India, Chile, Europe and elsewhere. Images of rare coins and events hosted by the Mid-Valley Coin Club, among other like-minded groups. Images of insects and flowers, especially azaleas, rhododendrons and hydrangeas. Family photos and images that reflect Henderson's sense of humor, including numerous shots of potatoes, carrots and other fruits or vegetables bearing anthropomorphic traits.

• Text- and data-heavy slides used by Henderson in his public speaking, and scenic shots of Mt. Hood, Crater Lake, Fort Rock, the Pacific Coast, the Wallowa Mountains, and other iconic locations across Oregon and the Pacific Northwest.

The slides itemized in this collection actually comprise a subgroup of a much larger Robert Henderson Photographic Collection (P 098). The materials arranged into this subgroup were hand numbered and described by Henderson himself in a series of notebooks. Henderson's descriptions were, in turn, transcribed by Arnold Appleby, an OSU faculty member in Crop Science. Except for clarifications of certain abbreviations, Henderson's item-level description, as transcribed by Appleby, has been retained in this finding aid.

In organizing these materials, Henderson often assigned the same whole digit number to multiple slides. In some instances, these slides differed from one another while in other cases the slides are duplicates. Because of this, Henderson's numbering convention has been modified slightly to improve the usability of these materials. In instances where two or more slides were assigned the same whole number but differ from one another, an alphabetical identifier (e.g., P098-SG1:00011a, P098-SG1:00011b, etc.) has been assigned to indicate this difference. In instances where a whole number identifier has been assigned to two or more slides that are duplicates of one another, the total number of duplicates is noted as an extent statement appended to the description of the item (e.g., "10 slides").

The vast majority of this collection consists of film slides, which are organized into Series 1. A much smaller quantity of glass mounted slides are arranged into Series 2. Both series consist entirely of 2x2-inch 35 mm slides.