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Spruce Production Division lantern slides, circa 1917-1919
Overview of the Collection
- Title
- Spruce Production Division lantern slides
- Dates
- circa 1917-1919 (inclusive)19171919
- Quantity
- 0.36 cubic feet, (1 letter document case) : 51 glass lantern slides
- Collection Number
- Org. Lot 1062
- Summary
- Lantern slides depicting activities of the Spruce Production Division in Oregon and Washington State during World War I.
- Repository
-
Oregon Historical Society Research Library
1200 SW Park Avenue
Portland, OR
97205
Telephone: 503-306-5240
Fax: 503-219-2040
libreference@ohs.org - Languages
- English
Historical NoteReturn to Top
The Spruce Production Division (1917-1919) was a unit of the United States Army established during World War I to protect strategic timber resources in the Pacific Northwest. The region was the primary supplier of Sitka spruce used in aircraft construction and Douglas fir, which was used for ship hulls. The Army established the Spruce Production Division in 1917 under the leadership of Brigadier General Brice P. Disque to counteract labor unrest and to prevent any foreign or domestic disruptions to the timber supply. In addition to the nearly 30,000 soldiers assigned to the division over the course of the war, General Disque recruited laborers to join the federal Loyal Legion of Loggers and Lumbermen (4L). The federal government created the 4L union in an attempt to calm ongoing regional labor unrest in the industry. Soldiers and union members were stationed in more than 230 division camps throughout the region during the war with assignments to oversee logging operations, aid in the construction of new roads and railway lines, fight forest fires, and protect sawmills from sabotage.
Content DescriptionReturn to Top
Fifty-one glass lantern slides depicting activities of the Spruce Production Division in Oregon and Washington State during World War I. The collection includes images of logging, railroad building, railroads, sawmills, camps, workers, and officers. The slides were probably collected by Colonel Reuben H. Hitchcock, who served in the division.
Use of the CollectionReturn to Top
Alternative Forms Available
Digitized versions of the lantern slides are viewable online in OHS Digital Collections.
Administrative InformationReturn to Top
Names and SubjectsReturn to Top
Subject Terms
- Logging--Oregon--Photographs
- Railroads--Oregon--Photographs
- Sitka spruce
- World War, 1914-1918--Oregon--Photographs
- World War, 1914-1918--Washington (State)--Photographs
Corporate Names
- United States. War Department. Spruce Production Division--Photographs
Form or Genre Terms
- lantern slides
Other Creators
-
Personal Names
- Hitchcock, Reuben H. (collector)
Corporate Names
- United States. War Department. Spruce Production Division (creator)