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Louis A. Jacobsen papers, 1866-1960
Overview of the Collection
- Creator
- Jacobsen, Louis A. (Louis Andrew), 1871-1965
- Title
- Louis A. Jacobsen papers
- Dates
- 1866-1960 (inclusive)18661960
- Quantity
- 7.4 cubic feet, (2 paige cartons; 3 legal document cases; 1 slim legal document case; 1 card file box; 3 flat boxes (11x14); 1 flat box (14x18); 4 oversize folders (20x24); 4 map folders.)
- Collection Number
- Mss 1670
- Summary
- Business, personal, and family papers of Louis A. Jacobsen. Jacobsen (1871-1965) was a Portland, Oregon, businessman who owned or was involved with numerous local firms in the early 20th century, including the Jacobsen Construction Company and the University Drug Company.
- 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
Louis Andrew Jacobsen was born in January 1871 and lived for most of his life in Portland, Oregon. After working as a foreman in his father's construction company, he founded the Jacobsen Construction Company, and later the Portland Tug and Barge Company. He managed both firms until 1941, when he sold them to Morrison and Knudsen Company, Inc. Jacobsen was also involved with a number of other businesses, including the University Drug Company.
Jacobsen was married to Eva Allen (1878-1955). The couple had a son, Louis Fred (1897-1944). Louis A. Jacobsen was a member of a number of fraternal organizations, including the Al Kader Temple of the Shriners and the Freemasons; he was also a charter member of the Portland Lions Club. Jacobsen died in March 1965.
Content DescriptionReturn to Top
The collection consists of the papers of Louis A. Jacobsen and his family. The bulk of the collection's contents are correspondence and records relating to Jacobsen's business activities, particularly the Jacobsen Construction Company and the University Drug Company. These include specifications and plans relating to specific construction projects involving marine and railroad facilities or installations. Documents and plans often concern piles, a term used to describe the foundational supports of structures. Additional materials in the collection include records for properties that Jacobsen owned, as well as photographs, memorabilia, and ephemera relating to Jacobsen and members of his family. Some of the family papers are in Danish.
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
Louis A. Jacobsen papers, Mss 1670, Oregon Historical Society Research Library.
Administrative InformationReturn to Top
Arrangement
The collection is arranged in three series: Series 1. Business papers; Series 2. Property records; Series 3. Personal and family papers.
Detailed Description of the CollectionReturn to Top
Series 1: Business papers, 1896-1960Return to Top
Container(s) | Description | Dates | |
---|---|---|---|
Subseries : Correspondence and records
Folders labeled as "correspondence and related records" contain a mixture of letters to or from the Jacobsen Construction Company, the University Drug Company, or Jacobsen as an individual.
|
1896-1960 | ||
Box | Folder | ||
1 | 1-17 | Correspondence and related records, surname or firm name A-P |
1910-1959 |
1 | 18-23 | Correspondence and related records, surname or firm name R-W |
1909-1958 |
10 | 4 | Jacobsen Construction Company - disbursements |
1934-1937 |
7 | Jacobsen Construction Company - expenses book |
1907-1909 | |
7 | Jacobsen Construction Company - A. B. Jones' pile book |
undated | |
7 | Jacobsen Construction Company - pile specifications book |
1910 | |
7 | Jacobsen Construction Company - time books |
1908-1912 | |
7 | Jacobsen Construction Company - wage books |
1911-1915 | |
Folder | |||
1 | 24 | University Drug Company corporation book |
1908-1945 |
1 | 25 | University Drug Company correspondence |
1936-1940 |
1 | 26-30 | University Drug Company records and correspondence |
1931-1939 |
2 | 1-4 | University Drug Company records and correspondence |
1943-1939 |
2 | 5-7 | University Drug Company and Portsmouth Pharmacy records and correspondence |
1911-1940 |
11 | 1 | University Drug Company account statements |
1935; undated |
8 | University Drug Company general accounts |
1931-1940 | |
9 | University Drug Company general accounts |
1931-1938 | |
Folder | |||
11 | 2 | University Drug Company receipt book |
1932-1940 |
2 | 8 | Inventory for unidentified drug company |
circa 1935 |
3 | 1-3 | Account books |
1911-1951 |
11 | 3 | Account book |
1938-1940 |
2 | 9 | Agreements |
1910-1931 |
2 | 10 | Agreement to sell Portland Tug and Barge Company to Morrison-Knudsen Company, Inc. |
1941 |
2 | 11 | Building permits |
1912 |
3 | 4 | Cash book |
1930-1944 |
11 | 4 | Disbursements |
1939-1940 |
10 | 5 | Disbursements |
1942-1950 |
2 | 12 | Employer's Social Security tax forms |
1943-1957 |
2 | 13 | Jacobsen-DeTemple Company - pile book; pile lists |
undated |
2 | 14-15 | Jacobsen-Reid Lumber Company records |
1917-1930 |
2 | 16 | Records and correspondence relating to liability and life insurance |
1896-1911 |
2 | 17 | Oregon Coast Timber Company brochures and stock certificate |
circa 1915 |
2 | 18-20 | Oregon State Industrial Accident Commission records |
1920-1960 |
2 | 21-22 | Oregon State Unemployment Commission records |
1937-1944 |
4 | 1 | Rent book |
1940-1946 |
4 | 2 | Wage book |
1914-1936 |
2 | 23 | Washington State Industrial Accident Commission records |
1918-1941 |
2 | 24 | Tax returns |
1937-1940 |
2 | 25 | Page from document on bidding process for Bonneville Dam project; Bureau of Yards and Docks, Navy Department bidding form |
circa 1933; 1934 |
2 | 26 | Commission of Public Docks Ordinance No. 15 |
undated |
2 | 27 | Stationery and business cards for Jacobsen's firms |
undated |
Subseries : Construction project records
Records are arranged in alphabetical order by firm name or location name.
|
1909-1939 | ||
Folder | |||
Oversize 1 | Blueprints of bills of pile for Broadway Bridge, and enclosed letter |
1912 | |
Box | Folder | ||
2 | 28 | Specifications for Hawthorne Avenue Bridge |
1909 |
Folder | |||
Oversize 2 | Plans for bulkhead, King's Heights |
undated | |
Box | Folder | ||
2 | 29 | Detail plans for Willamette Boulevard pile bulkhead |
1933 October |
2 | 30 | Notes and cost calculations for lighthouse at mouth of the Willamette River |
undated |
Folder | |||
Oversize 6 | Blueprint plans for Willamette River light station |
1911 | |
Box | Folder | ||
2 | 31 | Specifications for repair and extension of wharf at Willamette River light station |
circa 1915 |
Folder | |||
Oversize 8 | Plans for warehouse and platform built for Jacobsen |
1921 May | |
Oversize 8 | Plans for lower-level addition to Jacobsen warehouse |
1924 June | |
Oversize 6 | Blueprint plans for elevator well and foundations, Colby Steel and Engineering Company |
1935 | |
Oversize 7 | Blueprint plans for 15-ton derrick, Department of Public Works |
1924 November | |
Oversize 7 | Blueprint of details for pile driver designed by Jacobsen Construction Company |
undated | |
Oversize 7 | Blueprint plans of dock for Minsinger Bros. & Co., Vancouver, Washington |
undated | |
Oversize 5 | Blueprint plans for Mt. Hood Railway Company trestle, Sandy River piers, and truss spans |
1910-1911 | |
Box | Folder | ||
2 | 32 | Contract with Plylock Corporation |
undated |
Folder | |||
Oversize 7 | Foundation plan blueprints for veneer air drying sheds, Portland Manufacturing Company |
1919 May | |
Box | Folder | ||
2 | 33 | Blueprint of specifications for contracts for Public Works Bureau of Yards and Docks, Navy Department |
1931 August 1 |
Folder | |||
Oversize 5 | Blueprint plans for repairs to bulkhead and piers, Puget Sound Navy Yard, Submarine and Destroyer Base |
1934 | |
Oversize 7 | Blueprint plan for Astoria-area slough from Willamette River to Lower Dam at Burlington, for Spokane, Portland, & Seattle Railway |
1912-1913 | |
Oversize 6 | Blueprint plans for reconstruction of dock in Willbridge, Oregon, for Standard Oil Company |
1925 | |
Box | Folder | ||
2 | 34 | Specifications for Star Sand Company dock at St. Johns |
undated |
Folder | |||
Oversize 7 | Design blueprint for dock at Mt. Coffin for Star Sand Company |
1911 March | |
Oversize 6 | Blueprint plans for Star Sand Company dock, Mt. Coffin, Washington |
undated | |
Box | Folder | ||
2 | 35 | Specifications for McCormick Terminal Dock, Unit No. 2, Union Pacific System |
undated |
2 | 36 | Correspondence and notes from project with Willamette Iron and Steel Works |
1921 |
Folder | |||
Oversize 6 | Blueprints of price and equipment lists for dock at Willamette Iron and Steel Works |
1921 | |
Oversize 2 | Plans for dolphins and walks, Willamette Iron and Steel Company and Durkee Famous Foods, Inc. |
1939 | |
Oversize 5 | Blueprints for University Pharmacy, Portland |
1925 | |
Oversize 8 | Plan of repairs to University Drug Company garage |
undated | |
Oversize 2 | Plans for unidentified project |
undated | |
Oversize 8 | Plans and schematics for unidentified projects |
undated |
Series 2: Property records, 1871-1960Return to Top
Container(s) | Description | Dates | |
---|---|---|---|
Box | Folder | ||
4 | 3 | Records relating to property owned by Jacobsen |
1929 |
4 | 4 | Abstract of title for addition to Nelscott Beach, Lincoln County, Oregon |
1910-1928 |
4 | 5 | Abstract of title for Lots 1 and 2, Block 72, University Park, Portland |
1873-1920 |
4 | 6 | Abstract of title for Lots 5, 6, and 7, Block 266, Holladay's Addition, East Portland |
1871-1912 |
4 | 7 | Abstract of title for Lots 6, 7, and 8, Block 211, Couch's Addition, Portland |
1871-1925 |
5 | 1 | Multnomah County assessments |
1940-1960 |
5 | 2 | Property taxes |
1957-1959 |
Folder | |||
Oversize 1 | Blueprint of tract map of St. Joe |
undated | |
Oversize 6 | Blueprint for W. E. Morris Gerlinger building |
undated | |
Oversize 7 | Blueprint plan for Jacobsen's garage on NE Hancock Street, Portland |
undated |
Series 3: Personal and family papers, 1866-1948Return to Top
Container(s) | Description | Dates | |
---|---|---|---|
Box | Folder | ||
5 | 3 | Unsorted papers and ephemera of Louis A. Jacobsen |
1916-1942 |
5 | 4 | Frederick R. Jacobsen - patents for automatic valves |
1907 |
Folder | |||
Oversize 3 | Draft drawing examples by L. F. Jacobsen |
undated | |
Box | Folder | ||
5 | 5 | Mary P. Jacobsen papers and memorabilia (includes materials in Danish) |
1869-1912 |
5 | 6 | Mary P. Jacobsen - ephemera, funeral program, and condolence cards |
1948 |
5 | 7 | William Jacobsen papers and memorabilia |
1889-1917 |
5 | 8 | Hans J. Larsen papers compiled by Mary Jacobsen Ste. Marie (includes materials in Danish) |
1877-1933 |
5 | 9 | Pauline Jacobsen Ste. Marie - book of stitch models done for school |
circa 1907-1908 |
5 | 10 | Guy Roger Ste. Marie and Pauline Jacobsen Ste. Marie memorabilia |
circa 1891-1893; 1913-1942 |
5 | 11 | Fuel rationing records and ephemera |
1942-1944 |
5 | 12 | Lions banquet and Lang Syne Society dinner programs; well-wishes card |
1943-1948; undated |
5 | 13 | Family photographs |
circa 1880-1920 |
5 | 14 | Al Kader photographs, including Louis A. Jacobsen |
1939; undated |
10 | 1 | Group photograph of 18th Cathedral Class, 32nd Degree, including Louis A. Jacobsen |
1912 January 20 |
5 | 15 | Photographs of Coquille River lighthouse construction, done by William Jacobsen Construction Company |
1895 |
10 | 2 | Class photographs of St. Johns Military Academy, Sing Sing, New York, including Guy Roger Ste. Marie |
circa 1893 |
6 | 1 | Photographs of Jacobsen Construction Company facilities |
circa 1910-1930 |
6 | 2 | Portland Fire Department photographs |
circa 1890 |
Folder | |||
Oversize 4 | Photograph of USS Tantuck and crew; photograph of USS Wallowa crew |
1927 April; circa 1930 | |
Box | Folder | ||
6 | 3 | Unsorted or unidentified photographs |
circa 1890-1940 |
10 | 3 | Unsorted or unidentified photographs |
circa 1890-1930 |
6 | 4 | Souvenir photograph book of San Francisco |
circa 1900 |
6 | 5-6 | Unsorted memorabilia, ephemera, and publications |
1866-1944 |
Names and SubjectsReturn to Top
Subject Terms
- Building--Northwest, Pacific
- Building--Oregon--Portland
- Business enterprises--Oregon--Portland
- Drugstores--Oregon--Portland
Personal Names
- Jacobsen, Louis A. (Louis Andrew), 1871-1965
Corporate Names
- Jacobsen Construction Co. (Portland, Or.)
- University Drug Co. (Portland, Or.)
Family Names
- Jacobsen family
Form or Genre Terms
- administrative records
- blueprints (reprographic copies)
- correspondence
- financial records