Gisele Currier collection of Portland Timbers memorabilia, 1971-2011

Overview of the Collection

Collector
Currier, Gisele, 1955-2011
Title
Gisele Currier collection of Portland Timbers memorabilia
Dates
1971-2011 (inclusive)
Quantity
3.5 cubic feet, (5 legal document cases; 1 letter document case; 1 slim letter document case; 1 flat box (19x25))
Collection Number
Coll 579
Summary
Papers, photographs, publications, and ephemera relating to Gisele Currier, professional soccer and particularly the soccer team Portland Timbers, and the fan organization Timbers Army. Currier (1955-2011) was an avid fan of the Portland Timbers, and played a major role in the growth of the Timbers Army.
Repository
Oregon Historical Society Research Library
1200 SW Park Avenue
Portland, OR
97205
Telephone: 503-306-5240
Fax: 503-219-2040
libreference@ohs.org
Access Restrictions

Collection is open for research.

Languages
English

Biographical NoteReturn to Top

Gisele Currier (1951-2011) became a fan of the Portland Timbers soccer team in its original mid-1970s heyday, and her passion for the team endured for the rest of her life. In the 2000s, Currier was instrumental in the growth of Timbers fan club known as the "Timbers Army"; she also sold thousands of the Timbers Army's iconic "No Pity" scarves. Both Gisele Currier and her sister Paula were fixtures at Timbers games. After Paula's death in 2003, her seat at the Timbers' home stadium remained empty as a gesture of respect. Gisele Currier died suddenly in her Portland, Oregon home on April 23, 2011.

Content DescriptionReturn to Top

The collection consists of papers, photographs, and ephemera relating to professional soccer, particularly the Portland Timbers team. The materials were created or collected by Gisele Currier. Soccer magazines, newsletters regarding the Timbers, advertisements and flyers for Timbers games and events, and clippings about the Timbers or the fan group "Timbers Army" constitute the bulk of the collection's written materials. Additional written materials include records relating to scarf orders which Currier processed, and printouts of e-mails and message board posts. The collection's photographs depict Timbers players, soccer games, and events, including Timbers Army gatherings.

Use of the CollectionReturn to Top

Preferred Citation

Gisele Currier collection of Portland Timbers memorabilia, Coll 579, Oregon Historical Society Research Library.

Restrictions on Use

The Oregon Historical Society owns the materials in the Research Library and makes available reproductions for research, publication, and other uses. The Society does not necessarily hold copyright to all materials in the collections. In some cases, permission for use may require seeking additional authorization from copyright owners.

Administrative InformationReturn to Top

Arrangement

The collection is arranged in 5 series: Series 1. Gisele Currier and Timbers Army papers; Series 2. Portland Timbers materials; Series 3. Other soccer teams and events; Series 4. Soccer-related published materials; Series 5. Photographs.

Acquisition Information

Gift of Charles Currier, July 2011 (Lib. Acc. 28974).

Processing Note

Collection was titled "Portland Timbers collection" prior to 2020.

Separated Materials

Artifacts were separated to Museum Collections, Oregon Historical Society.

Detailed Description of the CollectionReturn to Top

Series 1:  Gisele Currier and Timbers Army papers, 1984-2009Return to Top

Container(s) Description Dates
Subseries 1: General materials
1984-2009
Box Folder
1 1
Message board posts and e-mails
2003-2005
1 2
Letters to Gisele Currier and Paula Currier
1984 December 28; 1985 April 15
1 3
Thank-you note to Paula Currier
undated
1 4
Receipt for bouquet sent to Brian Grant
undated
1 5
Timbers Army agenda and meeting minutes
2009 April
1 6
Flyer for Timbers Army bus trip to Seattle
2005 April
1 7
Timbers Army fight song by Scot Thompson
2005 April
1 8
Small bag with Timbers Army stickers
undated
8 2
Large bag adorned with Timbers Army stickers
undated
1 9
Timbers Army stickers and badges
undated
5 3
Non-soccer-related newspaper clippings compiled by Gisele Currier
undated
5 4-7
Gisele Currier personal ephemera
undated
8 3
Gisele Currier personal ephemera
undated
Subseries 2: Timbers scarves
2008-2009
Box Folder
1 10
Design
undated
1 11
Correspondence and thank-you notes about scarf orders
2009
1 12
Invoices from Sports Scarf
2009
1 13
Example of scarf order list
2008
1 14
Loose notes on scarf orders
undated
1 15
Notebook listing scarf order
undated
1 16
Scarf orders
2009

Series 2:  Portland Timbers materials, 1975-2009Return to Top

Container(s) Description Dates
Subseries: General materials
1977-2005
Box Folder
1 17
Advertisement for Timbers vs. Galaxy match
2005 April
1 18
Advertisement for Timbers vs. Minnesota match
2005 April 19
1 19
Advertisements
undated
1 20
Card for Timbers award banquet
1979 August 9
1 21
Match programs
1981; 1989-1990
1 22
Newsletter about the "Emerald Cup" match
1981 March
8 1
Posters
undated
1 23
Program for 1975 Timbers 20th reunion
1995 August 11
1 24
2005 Timbers season packet
2005
1 25
Season programs
1989-1990
1 26
Season schedules
1977; 1980; 2005
1 27
"Timbers Soccer on KXL" sticker
undated
1 28
Tickets
1982; 1983
2 1
Trading cards
1982; 2005
Subseries: Publications about the Portland Timbers
1975-2009
Box Folder
2 2
"Ax to the Head" issues
undated
2 3
Bitter End News
2003 July
2 4
Calendars
2005; 2007; 2009
2 5
Magnet calendar with season schedule
2008
2 6
"Hot Soccer" issues
1986-1987
2 7
Player profile for Rob Paterson
1990 April
2 8
Portland's Terrific Timbers: The Story of 1975's Great Soccer Team . . . and How It Captured the Hearts of Portland's Fans
1975
2 9
"Timber News" issues
1977-1978
2 10
"Timbers Review" issues
2004-2005
2 11
Timber Talk
1990
2 12
Timber Topics
1980
2 13
Pages from unidentified publications about the Timbers
undated

Series 3:  Other soccer teams and events, 1977-2007Return to Top

Container(s) Description Dates
Box Folder
2 14
Portland Pride bumper sticker
undated
2 15
University of Portland Pilots bumper sticker
undated
2 16
Portland Pride media guide
1995
2 17
Soccer guides
1977; 1979
2 18
Program for Scotland vs, Bulgaria match
1978 February 22
2 19
Roster for Simon Fraser University team
1984
2 20
Schedules for youth and amateur games
1993-1994; undated
2 21
Schedules for soccer camps and clinics
undated
2 22
Soccer teams' schedules and newsletters
1978; 1983
2 23
Advertisement for U.S. vs. Ukraine match
undated
2 24
FIFA Women's World Cup official program
2003
3 1
JVC Guide to Euro 2004
2004
3 2
U.S. Soccer Foundation annual report
2007
3 3
"World Cup Soccer Series"
1982

Series 4:  Soccer-related published materials, 1971-2007Return to Top

Container(s) Description Dates
Box Folder
3 4
"Kick" issues
1975-1976
3 5
"Kick" issue for 1976 league opener, with Gisele Currier's ticket and handwritten notes
1976
3 6
Issue of "Kick"
1977
3 7-8
"Soccer Corner" issues
1977 December; 1979 June
3 9-10
"Soccerwatcher" issues
1980; 1981
3 11-12
American soccer magazines, primarily "Soccer America"
1990-2006
4 1
British soccer magazine
1971-1976
4 2
Newspaper clippings
1975
4 3-4
Newspaper clippings and articles
1976-1988
4 5
Scottish newspaper issues sent to Gisele Currier by Lillian Cummings of Glasgow, Scotland
2002
4 6-9
Newspaper clippings and articles
2004-2007
5 1-2
"Willamette Week" issues
2005 April 22-July 6

Series 5:  Photographs, circa 1975-2011Return to Top

Container(s) Description Dates
Box Folder
6 1
Player portraits
circa 1975
6 2
Practice session
circa 1977
6 3
Unidentified match between team in blue uniforms and team in red uniforms
circa 1985
6 4
Timbers match against team in red uniforms
circa 1990
6 5
Informal match between Police Activities League and ex-Timbers players
1993 July 25
6 6
Portland Pride playoffs game
1993 September
6 7
Women's match
circa 2000
6 8
Match attended by Clive Charles
undated
6 9
Timbers Army
2003-2005
6 10
Timbers Army gathering
circa 2005
6 11
Timbers Army
2005 April-May
6 12
Timbers Army
2006 February-March
6 13
Timbers Army
2011 January-April
6 14
Unidentified Timbers player events
circa 1975-1980
6 15
1982 Timbers group photographs
1982
6 16
Second annual ex-Timber reunion game banquet
1984
6 17
1975 Timbers 20th reunion
1995 August 11
6 18
Portland Pride gathering
undated
6 19
Unidentified Hilton Hotel event
undated
6 20
Unidentified night gathering
undated
6 21
Small sets of photographs with little or no identification
circa 1976-2005
7 1
Unidentified photographs
undated
7 2
Printouts of photographs
undated
7 3
Photograph cutouts
undated

Names and SubjectsReturn to Top

Subject Terms

  • Soccer fans--Oregon--Portland
  • Soccer teams--Oregon--Portland
  • Soccer--Oregon--Portland

Personal Names

  • Currier, Gisele, 1955-2011

Corporate Names

  • Portland Timbers (Soccer team)
  • Timbers Army (Portland, Or.)

Form or Genre Terms

  • clippings (information artifacts)
  • ephemera (general object genre)
  • magazines (periodicals)
  • photographs