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Oliver Greeley Hughson papers, 1882-1959
Overview of the Collection
- Creator
- Hughson, Oliver Greeley, 1864-1959
- Title
- Oliver Greeley Hughson papers
- Dates
- 1882-1959 (inclusive)18821959
1933-1959 (bulk)19331959 - Quantity
- 9 cubic feet, (9 record cartons)
- Collection Number
- Mss 1712
- Summary
- Oliver Greeley Hughson, a retired building materials salesman, developed a successful program to teach young men construction skills. His Boy Builders clubs and "Minimalic Construction" method became a model for schools and colleges throughout the United States and British Columbia. The bulk of Hughson's papers chronicle the development of this training program from its inception in 1933 until his death in 1959. His personal papers include correspondence, his 1882 diary, day books, and family history.
- 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
Oliver Greeley Hughson (1864-1959) was born in Broome County, New York. He apprenticed as a blacksmith in Stockton, California, before enrolling in the University of Pacific, where he earned his bachelor's degree in liberal arts and classics in 1892. Hughson began his career selling building materials in Oregon in 1896, through which he gained familiarity with the construction and logging industries, which he later described in a piece published in Oregon Historical Quarterly in 1959. He also became a labor organizer under the employment of the Builders Exchange Board of Directors (circa 1913). He and his wife, Rose Hudson (died 1922) had one son, Robur S., who was born in 1893.
During the Depression era, Hughson became alarmed at the lack of opportunities for boys under age 16 to gain experience in building construction. In 1933, Hughson, then a 69-year-old retiree, developed the first Boy Builders Club to teach all aspects of the trade through the creation of accurately scaled minature buildings. He registered his business, the State Building Congress, with Multnomah County in 1937, and initially formed clubs via the state 4-H system. The program moved into the public school classroom and became a model for programs in schools and colleges throughout the United States as well as in British Columbia, reaching an estimated 50,000 young men. Hughson obtained waste lumber from various sources to be used in his "Minimalic Construction" projects, and set up a shop on the Lane County Fairgrounds to produce precision-cut dimension lumber to be distributed free of charge to schools. He worked doggedly at this voluntary labor of love for the remainder of his life.
Content DescriptionReturn to Top
This collection of Oliver Hughson Greeley's papers consists primarily of materials related to the development, operations, and promotion of the Boy Builders Clubs and Minimalic Construction, chronicled through correspondence, reports, publications, minutes, clippings, construction drawings, speeches, notes, scrapbooks and memorabilia. Correspondents include timber companies and organizations, educators, Oregon State College and the State College of Washington (now Oregon State University and Washington State University, respectively). The collection also includes personal papers, consisting of correspondence, Hughson's 1882 diary, day books, family history, and other items.
Use of the CollectionReturn to Top
Preferred Citation
Oliver Greeley Hughson papers, Mss 1712, 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 the two series:
- Series 1: Boy Builders Club materials
- Series 2: Personal papers
Acquisition Information
Gifts of O. G. Hughson, September 1959 (Lib. Acc. 8203) and the estate of Oliver Greeley Hughson, care of Helen Haroldson, October 1959 (Lib. Acc. 8227).
Separated Materials
Photographs were separated from the materials in this collection and cataloged as Org. Lot 81, the Oliver Greeley Hughson photographs collection, at the Oregon Historical Society Research Library.
Bibliography
Oliver Greeley (Oil and Grease) Hughson, "When We Logged the Columbia," Oregon Historical Quarterly, Volume 60, No. 2 (June 1959), pages 173-209.
Detailed Description of the CollectionReturn to Top
Series 1: Boy Builders Club materials, 1915-1959Return to Top
Correspondence, minutes, reports, memorabilia, construction drawings, and publications pertaining mostly to the Boy Builders Club business.
Container(s) | Description | Dates | |
---|---|---|---|
Subseries 1.1: Business correspondence
Arranged alphabetically by correspondent.
These correspondence files also contain minutes, reports, memorabilia, and publications, some of which are noted in the file descriptions below.
|
1927-1959; undated | ||
Box | Folder | ||
1 | 1-3 | A |
1935-1958; undated |
1 | 4-7 | B |
1927-1959; undated |
1 | 8 | William A. Bakanis, instructor |
1950-1959 |
1 | 9 | Booth Kelly Lumber Company |
1937-1959 |
1 | 10 | Brooks-Scanlon Lumber Company |
1950-1959 |
1 | 11 | Building Clubs
Also includes minutes, financial reports, by-laws, property list, and contest materials.
|
1937-1941; undated |
1 | 12-14 | C |
1935-1953 |
2 | 1-2 | C |
1954-1959; undated |
2 | 3 | Carpenters Apprenticeship
Also includes minutes.
|
1955-1957; undated |
2 | 4 | Conventions |
1941-1954 |
2 | 5 | Convention memorabilia |
|
2 | 6-7 | D |
1936-1957; undated |
2 | 8 | Defense |
1941 |
2 | 9-13 | Douglas Fir Plywood Association |
1940-1959; undated |
2 | 14 | E |
1936-1958; undated |
2 | 15 | Evans Product Company |
1942-1954 |
2 | 16-18 | F |
1936-1959; undated |
2 | 19 | Family Circle magazine |
1941 |
2 | 20 | Forest Park, Committee of Fifty
Also includes minutes and newsletter.
|
1949-1959 |
2 | 21 | Forestry Research Foundation
By-laws, articles of incorporation.
|
1945 |
2 | 22-23 | G |
1936-1959; undated |
3 | 1 | Inspector Walter M. Germain, Supervisor, Crime Prevention Division |
1936-1951 |
3 | 2 | S. L. Godard, Instructor |
1937-1957 |
3 | 3-4 | H |
1936-1959; undated |
3 | 5 | Senator Rufus Holman |
1936-1952; undated |
3 | 6 | Francis A. Hublou |
1946-1958 |
3 | 7 | I |
1937-1959; undated |
3 | 8 | J |
1935-1957; undated |
3 | 9 | Clifford C. Jenkins, 4-H Agent |
1936-1943 |
3 | 10-11 | K |
1936-1957; undated |
3 | 12-14 | L |
1937-1959; undated |
3 | 15 | Mc-Mac |
1935-1958 |
4 | 1-3 | M |
1936-1958; undated |
4 | 4 | Moore, George R. |
1943-1950 |
4 | 5-6 | N |
1936-1958; undated |
4 | 7-8 | O |
1937-1959 |
4 | 9 | Oregon-America Lumber Corporation |
1943-1950 |
4 | 10-15 | Oregon State College |
1937-1959; undated |
4 | 16-18 | P |
1930-1953 |
5 | 1 | P |
1954-1958; undated |
5 | 2 | Harold R. Phillips, Instructor
Also includes outline and dedication for Instructor's Guide.
|
1953-1958 |
5 | 3 | Popular Mechanics magazine |
1955-1956 |
5 | 4 | Q |
1947-1956 |
5 | 5 | Rex Putnam, Supervisor of Public Instruction, Oregon |
1938-1957; undated |
5 | 6-8 | R |
1936-1958; undated |
5 | 9 | M. M. Ronig |
1936-1958; undated |
5 | 10 | W. J. Rublin, Instructor |
1950-1957 |
5 | 11-19 | S |
1936-1959; undated |
6 | 1-4 | H. C. Seymour, State 4-H Leader |
1936-1953 |
6 | 5-6 | State College of Washington, Pullman, Washington |
1946-1951 |
6 | 7-11 | T |
1936-1958; undated |
6 | 12 | U |
1936-1958; undated |
6 | 13 | V |
1940-1956 |
6 | 14 | Harold H. Vikre |
1945-1949; undated |
6 | 15-19 | W |
1936-1959; undated |
7 | 1-5 | West Coast Lumberman's Association
Includes financial reports and minutes (Box 7, Folders 3-4); and booklets and reports (Box 7, Folder 5).
|
1937-1959; undated |
7 | 6 | West Coast Pine Association
Also includes newsletters.
|
1936-1959 |
7 | 7-9 | Weyerhauser Timber Company |
1937-1959 |
7 | 10 | Willamette Valley Lumberman's Association |
1937-1949 |
7 | 11 | W. W. Wheatly |
1940-1943 |
7 | 12 | X, Y, Z |
1936-1958; undated |
7 | 13 | Miscellaneous correspondence |
1937-1955; undated |
Subseries 1.2: Other materials |
1933-1959; undated | ||
Box | Folder | ||
8 | 1 | Monthly and annual financial and progress reports, State Building Congress |
1933-1939 |
8 | 2 | Monthly and annual financial and progress reports, State Building Congress |
1940-1957 |
8 | 3 | Minimalic Construction, Boy Builders Clubs of Oregon |
1933-1942 |
8 | 4 | Copies of papers, articles and letters bearing on Minimalic Construction |
undated |
8 | 5 | Organizational notes, constitution and by-laws for Minimalic Construction Clubs and Sunnyside |
undated |
8 | 6 | Clippings - Boy Builders Clubs |
1938-1958; undated |
8 | 7 | Speeches, reports, notes, and articles - personal and business |
1915-1958 |
8 | 8 | Speeches, outlines, reports, notes, songs, and articles |
undated |
8 | 9 | Quotations, speech outlines, and notes |
undated |
8 | 10 | Lists, sponsors, classes, mailing; schools, etc. |
1937-1947; undated |
8 | 11 | Blueprints, plans, specifications, and booklets |
undated |
8 | 12 | Scrapbook |
1947-1959 |
8 | 13 | Compiled writings and correspondence |
1915-1956 |
8 | 14 | John Bedynek, "Miniature Carpentry," unpublished report |
1946 |
8 | 15 | Wilma Morrison, "Public Schools: 'Pressure' Groups," Oregonian, May 21-23, 1951, and related materials |
1951 |
Series 2: Personal papers, 1882-1959Return to Top
Container(s) | Description | Dates | |
---|---|---|---|
Subseries 2.1: Correspondence |
1882-1959 | ||
Box | Folder | ||
9 | 1 | Personal correspondence - A-B |
1939-1958; undated |
9 | 2 | Personal correspondence - C |
1936-1959; undated |
9 | 3 | Personal correspondence - D-G |
1936-1959; undated |
9 | 4 | Personal correspondence - H |
1932-1949 |
9 | 5 | Personal correspondence - H |
1950-1959; undated |
9 | 6 | Personal correspondence - I |
1939 |
9 | 7 | Personal correspondence - K-L |
1937-1959; undated |
9 | 8 | Personal correspondence - Mc, M |
1938-1956; undated |
9 | 9 | Personal correspondence - N |
1938-1956 |
9 | 10 | Personal correspondence - O-R |
1938-1959; undated |
9 | 11 | Personal correspondence - S-T |
1937-1959; undated |
9 | 12 | Personal correspondence -W |
1942-1959; undated |
9 | 13 | Miscellaneous personal correspondence |
undated |
9 | 14 | Letters to the editor |
1918-1959 |
9 | 15 | Letters to the editor |
undated |
Subseries 2.2: Other personal and family papers |
1882-1956 | ||
Box | Folder | ||
9 | 16 | Family record and biographical notes |
1952; undated |
9 | 17 | Record of the California Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church, Pacific Grove and San Jose, California |
1956 |
9 | 18 | Personal legal papers |
1941-1942 |
9 | 19 | Diary |
1882 |
9 | 20 | Date books |
1917-1918 |
9 | 21 | Date books |
1919-1920 |
9 | 22 | Year book |
1930 |
Names and SubjectsReturn to Top
Subject Terms
- 4-H clubs--Oregon
- Boys--Oregon--Societies and clubs
- Miniature craft--United States
- Vocational education--Oregon
- Vocational education--Washington (State)
Personal Names
- Hughson, Oliver Greeley, 1864-1959
Corporate Names
- State Building Congress (Portland, Or.)--Records and correspondence
Family Names
- Hughson family
Geographical Names
- Models and modelmaking--United States
Form or Genre Terms
- correspondence
- diaries
- publications (documents)
- scrapbooks