Archives West Finding Aid
Table of Contents
Charles P. Harman family papers, 1936-1980
Overview of the Collection
- Creator
- Harman, Charles Price, Jr., 1908-1986
- Title
- Charles P. Harman family papers
- Dates
- 1936-1980 (inclusive)19361980
1942-1951 (bulk)19421951 - Quantity
- 1.85 cubic feet, (1 legal document case; 1 slim legal document case; 2 flat boxes (13x16); 1 flat box (14x18))
- Collection Number
- Coll 714
- Summary
- Photographs, publications, and ephemera relating to Charles P. Harman, Jr. (1908-1986) and Harlay Harman (1948-2001). Charles P. Harman, Jr. was an engineer who worked for the Kaiser Company at the Swan Island shipyard and the Detroit Dam; Harlay Harman was his nephew.
- 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
Historical NoteReturn to Top
Charles P. Harman was born in 1908 in Glasgow, Montana, and worked as an engineer on the Fort Peck Dam in that state before working for Kaiser Engineers on the Grand Coulee Dam project. He worked for Kaiser for the next 38 years, working at the Swan Island shipyard during World War II and on the Detroit Dam in the early 1950s. His spouse was Ruth Emma Harman. He died in 1986, and was buried in Montana.
Harlay ("Skip" or "Skipper") Harman (1948-2001) was the son of Joseph Sherrard Harman and Lillian Elizabeth Gottenberg Harman, and the nephew of Charles Price Harman, Jr. He was raised in Enterprise, Oregon, but spent most of his adult life in the Salem, Oregon, area.
Content DescriptionReturn to Top
The bulk of the collection consists of photographs and newspapers or other publications relating to the career of Charles P. Harman, particularly his work at the Swan Island shipyard during World War II and at Detroit Dam in the early 1950s. Publications in the collection include issues of The Bo's'n's Whistle and Mill City Enterprise. The collection also includes materials relating to the family of Charles Harman's nephew Halray Harman, such as an Oregon State College student directory owned by Halray's mother, and family photographs depicting the Enterprise, Oregon, area. Additional materials include memoranda sent to Swan Island shipyard workers, photographs relating to the Grand Coulee Dam, images of Multnomah Falls and of the St. Johns Bridge in Portland, and photographs of Oregon and Washington locations.
Use of the CollectionReturn to Top
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.
Preferred Citation
Charles P. Harman family papers, Coll 714, Oregon Historical Society Research Library.
Administrative InformationReturn to Top
Arrangement
The collection is arranged in the following series: Series A. Swan Island shipyard materials; Series B. Detroit Dam materials; Series C. Halray Harman papers; Series D. Other materials.
Detailed Description of the CollectionReturn to Top
Series A: Swan Island shipyard materials, 1942-1946Return to Top
| Container(s) | Description | Dates | |
|---|---|---|---|
Subseries 1: Photographs |
circa 1942-1945 | ||
| Box | Folder | ||
| 3 | 1-2 | Aerial views of Swan Island |
circa 1942-1943 |
| 3 | 3 | Kaiser Company, Inc. aerial views of Swan Island |
1942 |
| 1 | 1 | Album page with photographs taken by Charles P. Harman |
circa 1943 |
| 1 | 2 | Construction of Swan Island shipyard |
1942 |
| 3 | 4-5 | Construction of Swan Island shipyard |
1942 |
| 1 | 3 | Kaiser Company, Inc. photographs of Swan Island shipyard construction |
1942 |
| 3 | 6-12 | Kaiser Company, Inc. photographs of Swan Island shipyard construction |
1942 |
| 1 | 4 | Swan Island shipyard |
circa 1943-1945 |
| 1 | 5 | Kaiser Company, Inc. photographs of shipyard sites |
1943 |
| 1 | 6 | Kaiser Company, Inc. photographs of Swan Island shipyard |
1944; undated |
| 4 | 3 | Liberty ships (includes Kaiser Company, Inc. photographs) |
circa 1943-1945 |
| 1 | 7 | Swan Island shipyard |
1945 August 28; undated |
| 1 | 8 | Ship launchings |
circa 1943-1945 |
| 4 | 4 | Ship launchings |
circa 1943-1945 |
| 4 | 5 | Personnel |
1944 |
| 1 | 9 | Three men at unidentified party |
circa 1943 |
| 1 | 10 | Cyanotypes and blue-tinted photographs |
circa 1943 |
| 4 | 6 | Cyanotypes and blue-tinted photographs |
circa 1943 |
| 1 | 11 | Reproduced photograph of USS Harman |
undated |
| 4 | 1 | Color print of USS Casablanca |
1943 |
| 4 | 2 | Color prints of SS Swan Island |
1943 |
| 1 | 12 | Artistic photograph of shipbuilding equipment |
undated |
| 4 | 7 | Collage of shipbuilding |
circa 1943 |
Subseries 2: Publications |
1943-1946 | ||
| Box | Folder | ||
| 2 | 1-3 | "The Bo's'n's Whistle" issues |
1943 January-1944 February |
| 5 | 1-2 | "Bo's'n's Whistle" issues |
1945-1946 |
| 5 | 3 | "Bo's'n's Whistle" issue |
1946 March 15 |
| 5 | 4 | Issue of "The Swan Islander" |
1946 July 9 |
| 2 | 4 | Oregon Shipbuilding Company publication, "Record Breakers" |
1945 |
| 2 | 5 | Kaiser Company, Inc. publication - "Swan Island Drydocks" |
1944 January 27 |
Subseries 3: Other papers and records |
1942-1946 | ||
| Box | Folder | ||
| 1 | 13 | Designs and plans of shipyard facilities |
1942-1943 |
| 1 | 14 | Diagram of welding machine distribution ways |
circa 1943 |
| 4 | 8 | Location plan of Oregon Shipyard Corporation and Kaiser Company, Inc. shipyards, and statistics of ships launched |
1946 |
| 1 | 15 | Memoranda to shipyard workers |
1943-1944 |
| 1 | 16 | Telephone directory |
1944 November |
Series B: Detroit Dam, 1950-1951Return to Top
| Container(s) | Description | Dates | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Box | Folder | ||
| 1 | 17 | Photographs |
1950 May 2; circa 1950 |
| 5 | 5 | Issue of "The Mill City Enterprise" with story about Detroit Dam construction |
1951 February 8 |
| 5 | 6-7 | Issues of "The Mill City Enterprise" with stories about Detroit Dam construction |
1951 September 6; 1951 September 27 |
Series C: Harlay Harman papers, 1936-1980Return to Top
| Container(s) | Description | Dates | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Box | Folder | ||
| 1 | 24 | Family photographs, primarily taken around Enterprise, Oregon |
1938-1980 |
| 1 | 25 | Oregon State College student directory that belonged to Harlay Harman's mother, Lillian Elizabeth Gottenberg |
1936 |
| 1 | 26 | Reproduction of 1874 image of Lake Wallowa with caption |
undated |
Series D: Other materials, circa 1940-1972Return to Top
| Container(s) | Description | Dates | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Box | Folder | ||
| 2 | 6 | Newspaper clipping of letters to the editor |
1949 October 5 |
| 2 | 7 | Maps of Columbia River from Astoria to Portland |
circa 1943 |
| 4 | 9 | Photograph of Grand Coulee Dam |
circa 1940 |
| 1 | 18 | Photographs of machinery, possibly at Grand Coulee Dam |
circa 1940 |
| 4 | 10 | Photograph of Kaiser coach bus in front of Multnomah Falls |
circa 1942 |
| 4 | 11 | Photograph of St. Johns Bridge, Portland |
circa 1942 |
| 1 | 19 | Photographs of Oregon and Washington locations |
circa 1944; undated |
| 1 | 20 | Miniature Wesley Andrews photographs of Otter Rock, Oregon |
undated |
| 1 | 21 | Photograph of silver tray given to Edgar F. Kaiser by employees |
1939 |
| 4 | 12 | Aerial view of Vanport, Oregon |
1943 |
| 5 | 8 | Sports section of the Oregonian |
1972 January 24 |
| 1 | 22 | Photograph of unidentified man inspecting oven |
undated |
| 1 | 23 | Photograph of unidentified item, possibly shipyard-related equipment |
circa 1942 |
Names and SubjectsReturn to Top
Subject Terms
- Dams--Oregon--Detroit
- Shipyards--Oregon--Portland
- World War, 1939-1945
Personal Names
- Harman, Charles Price, Jr., 1908-1986
- Harman, Harlay, 1948-2001
Corporate Names
- Kaiser Company, Inc. (Vancouver, Wash.)
- Oregon Shipbuilding Corporation
Family Names
- Harman family
Form or Genre Terms
- newspapers
- photographs
- publications (documents)
