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Frank Patterson Photographic Postcards, circa 1920s - 1986

Overview of the Collection

Creator
Patterson, Frank, 1883-1961.
Title
Frank Patterson Photographic Postcards
Dates
circa 1920s - 1986 (inclusive)
circa 1920s-1930s (bulk)
Quantity
1.5 cubic feet, including 1550 photographs, (5 boxes)
Collection Number
P 312
Summary
The Frank Patterson Photographic Postcards consist of images of natural features, tourist sites, and highways in Oregon and northern California.  Of note are numerous images of the Oregon Caves, Crater Lake, the Oregon Coast, and the redwoods.  Frank Patterson was a prolific photographer who worked in studios in Medford, Oregon and Santa Rosa and San Francisco, California during the 1920s-1950s.
Repository
Oregon State University Libraries, Special Collections and Archives Research Center
Special Collections and Archives Research Center
121 The Valley Library
Oregon State University
Corvallis OR
97331-4501
Telephone: 5417372075
Fax: 5417378674
scarc@oregonstate.edu
Access Restrictions

This collection is open for research.

Languages
English
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Biographical Note

Frank Patterson, born December 20, 1883 in Klickitat, Washington, was a prolific photographer of the West Coast in the 1920s and 1930s, working at studios in Medford, Oregon and San Francisco, California. He married his first wife, Cora, on February 16, 1907, with whom he had three daughters. Frank and Cora divorced on September 7, 1921, after which Frank moved to Medford, Oregon where he opened a photography studio.  He created the majority of his photographic postcards while he was in Medford. He married his second wife Josephine Champie on June 28, 1922. In 1928 Frank moved to Santa Rosa, California. In 1940 he was sentenced to San Quentin for twelve years and served six, after which he worked for Bear Photo in San Francisco until 1959. He developed Alzheimer’s and was admitted to Napa State Hospital where he died in 1961.

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Content Description

The Frank Patterson Photographic Postcards consist of images made by Frank Patterson depicting natural features, tourist sites, and highways in Oregon and northern California.  The bulk of the images are photographic postcards which were produced en masse for purchase by travelers and tourists.  The collection includes a checklist of Patterson images prepared by Robert I. Wright in the mid-1980s.  This assemblage of Patterson images was collected by Gerald W. Williams.

The Patterson Photographic Postcards provide extensive documentation of natural features in southern Oregon and northern California including Crater Lake, the Oregon Caves, the Rogue River, Diamond Lake, the Oregon Coast, Mount Shasta, Mount Lassen, and the redwoods.   Numerous views of towns in Oregon (Medford, Ashland, Roseburg, Grants Pass, and Klamath Falls) and in California (Arcata, Crescent City, Eureka, Redding, Ukiah, and Santa Rosa) are part of the collection.  Photographs of tourist highways and bridges on the Oregon coast and through the redwoods of southern Oregon and northern California depict these structures near the time of their development and construction.

Most of the images are undated, but were likely taken by Patterson during the 1920s and 1930s when he was working from studios in Medford, Oregon, and Santa Rosa, California.  It is possible that some of the images dated in the 1940s were made by other photographers under Patterson's imprint.  The titles provided for each image are taken from the item or Wright's checklist.  The item numbers were assigned by Patterson.

While the bulk of the collection consists of photographic postcards, there are several photographic prints and ephemeral items in Series 2.  About 20% of the images and Wright's checklist are available online in the Frank Patterson Photographs digital collection.

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Use of the Collection

Preferred Citation

Frank Patterson Photographic Postcards (P 312), Oregon State University Special Collections and Archives Research Center, Corvallis, Oregon.

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Administrative Information

Arrangement

The Frank Patterson Photographic Postcards are arranged in 19 series:  1. Checklist and Workbook, 1986; 2. Album Pages, circa 1920s-1930s; 3. General Postcards, circa 1920s-1930s; 4.Oregon Caves, circa 1920s-1930s; 5. Crater Lake National Park, circa 1920s-1930s; 6. Rogue River and Diamond Lake, circa 1920s-1940s; 7. Pacific Highway, circa 1920s-1930s; 8. Roosevelt Highway and Oregon State Highway, circa 1920s-1930s; 9. Redwood Highway, circa 1920s-1940s; 10. Clear Lake, California, circa 1920s-1930s; 11. Mount Lassen, circa 1920s-1940s; 12. Pacific Highway, circa 1920s-1940s; 13. Oregon Coast Highway, circa 190s-1940s; 14. Redwood Highway, circa 1920s-1940s; 15. Color Postcards, circa 1920s-1940s; 16. Ashland, Oregon, circa 1920s-1940s; 17. Arcata, California; Brookings, Oregon; and Bandon, Oregon, circa 1920s - 1951; 18. Crescent City, California, circa 1920s-1940s; and 19. Sites in Oregon and Northern California, circa 1920s-1950s.  Within each series, the images are arranged by item number as assigned by Patterson.

Acquisition Information

These materials were received in 2007 as part of the Gerald W. Williams Collection.

Processing Note

These materials were received as part of the Gerald W. Williams Collection in 2007.  In 2016, they were separated from the Williams Collection to form this separate collection.

Related Materials

The Gerald W. Williams Regional Albums (P 303) include 1000s of postcards and other images assembled by Williams.  The Ralph I. Gifford Photographs (P 218-SG 2) include numerous images of Crater Lake and the Oregon coast, many taken during the same period as Patterson's images.  The Special Collections and Archives Research Center houses numerous collections with photographic postcards documenting the natural features and landmarks of Oregon and the Northwest.

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Detailed Description of the Collection

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Subject Terms

  • Bridges--Oregon.
  • Coasts--Oregon.
  • Photographers--Oregon.
  • Postcards--California--Catalogs.
  • Postcards--Collectors and collecting.
  • Postcards--Oregon--Catalogs.
  • Redwoods--California.
  • Redwoods--Oregon.
  • Rivers--Coast Ranges.
  • Roads--Oregon.
  • Scenic byways--Oregon.

Personal Names

  • Patterson, Frank, 1883-1961.
  • Wright, Robert I. (creator)

Corporate Names

  • Patterson Pictures (Firm : Medford, Or.)
  • Patterson Pictures (Firm : Santa Rosa, Calif.)

Geographical Names

  • Ashland (Or.)
  • Brookings (Or.)
  • Coast Ranges.
  • Coquille River (Or.)
  • Crater Lake (Or.)
  • Crater Lake National Park (Or.)
  • Grants Pass (Or.)
  • Klamath Falls (Or.)
  • Klamath Lake (Or.)
  • Klamath River Watershed (Or. and Calif.)
  • Lassen Peak (Calif.)
  • Medford (Or.)
  • Oregon Caves National Monument (Or.)
  • Pacific Coast (Or.)
  • Rogue River (Klamath County-Curry County, Or.)
  • Rogue River National Forest (Or. and Calif.)
  • Rogue River Watershed (Klamath County-Curry County, Or.)
  • Roseburg (Or.)
  • Shasta Dam (Calif.)
  • Shasta, Mount (Calif. : Mountain)

Form or Genre Terms

  • Photographic postcards.
  • Photographic prints.
  • Picture postcards.

Other Creators

  • Corporate Names

    • Patterson Pictures (Firm : Medford, Or.) (creator)
    • Patterson Pictures (Firm : Santa Rosa, Calif.) (creator)

Finding Aid Authors: Ryan Atwood and Elizabeth Nielsen.
2016

CC Attribution
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

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