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James Orin Oliphant Papers, 1914-1978

Overview of the Collection

Creator
Oliphant, J. Orin (James Orin), 1894-1979.
Title
James Orin Oliphant Papers
Dates
1914-1978 (inclusive)
Quantity
15 Linear feet of shelf space, (26 Boxes)
Collection Number
Cage 563 (collection)
Summary
The papers of J. Orin Oliphant are chiefly materials used in research into historical matters, and his general correspondence.
Repository
Washington State University Libraries' Manuscripts, Archives, and Special Collections (MASC)
Manuscripts, Archives, and Special Collections
Terrell Library Suite 12
Pullman, WA
99164-5610
Telephone: 509-335-6691
mascref@wsu.edu
Access Restrictions

This collection is open and available for research use.

Languages
English
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Biographical Note

James Orin Oliphant was born on March 23, 1894, in the Whitman County town of Elberton, Washington, not far from the Palouse River. In 1913 he graduated from the State Normal School in Cheney. Three years later he received his A.B. degree from the University of Washington in Seattle. He returned to Cheney for two years to teach high school, then joined the Normal School faculty in 1921. From 1921 to 1924 he taught as a member of the Department of History and Social Science and served as executive secretary to President Noah Showalter. During these years he used several leaves of absence to continue his work in history under the direction of Edward Meaney at the University of Washington. In 1923- 1924 he was a Denny fellow and in 1924 he received his A.M. He then returned to teaching history and social science at Cheney Normal School. In 1929 he took a leave of absence and went east to Harvard University as an Austin Scholar and in 1930 received his Ph.D from Harvard. His dissertation was on The Range-Cattle Industry in the Oregon Country to 1890. Rather than returning to the Washington State Normal School at Cheney, Oliphant joined the faculty of Antioch College in Ohio as an associate professor of history. In 1933 he moved to Bucknell University in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania, where he progressed through the ranks of the professoriate and in 1964 retired as professor emeritus of history. From 1936 to 1944 and again from 1957 to 1962 he served as chairman of the department of history. From 1949 until 1954 he edited Bucknell University Studies. His professional memberships included the American Historical Association and the Agricultural History Society. Upon his retirement Oliphant and his wife May returned to the Pacific Northwest and lived in Salem, Oregon, until his death in 1979.

Biographical sketch of J. Orin Oliphant from the Ye Galleon Press reprint of William Emsley Jackson's Diary of a Cattle Drive from LaGrande, Oregon, to Cheyenne, Wyoming, published in 1983.

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Content Description

The papers are comprised of correspondence (Series 1), and research notes, drafts, and related materials of historian J. Orin Oliphant. Topics include various aspects of the history of the Pacific Northwest (Series 2); the teacher and missionary Jonathan Going (Series 3); history of cattle ranching in the Oregon Territories (Series 4); and 19th century religious missionaries in the Pacific Northwest (Series 5).

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Use of the Collection

Restrictions on Use

Copyright restrictions may apply.

Preferred Citation

[Item description]

James Orin Oliphant Papers, 1914-1978 (Cage 563)

Manuscripts, Archives, and Special Collections, Washington State University Libraries, Pullman, WA.

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Administrative Information

Arrangement

The papers are arranged in 5 series. Within each, they are, in general, either arranged roughly alphabetically by subject or chronologically, as appropriate. The arrangement of the papers is an effort to reconstruct the original order that was disrupted when the papers were put in storage for several years after Oliphant's death.

Custodial History

The papers were held for four years after the death of Mr. Oliphant by members of his family, Mr. and Mrs. Robert Purdy of Salem, Oregon, at whose home Oliphant had resided in his later years.

Acquisition Information

These papers were received by the Washington State University Libraries in April, 1982, following an arrangement made by Mr. Oliphant some years before his death.

Processing Note

This collection was processed by Eddy Sue Judy, working in early 1988, with the project completed by Harvey Young in March-April, 1989.

Separated Materials

The papers of Jonathan Going were removed and processed as the distinct collection, Jonathan Going Papers, 1805-1841 (Cage 586)

Related Materials

James Orin Oliphant Papers, 1894-1979 (Cage 232)

The Oregon Historical Society owns a small collection of James Orin Oliphant Papers.

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Detailed Description of the Collection

Names and SubjectsReturn to Top

Subject Terms

  • Cattle -- Northwest, Pacific -- History.
  • Missionaries -- Northwest, Pacific -- History.
  • Ranches -- Northwest, Pacific -- History.

Personal Names

  • Going, Jonathan, 1786-1844
  • Oliphant, J. Orin (James Orin), 1894-1979 -- Archives.

Geographical Names

  • Northwest, Pacific -- History -- Research.

Finding aid prepared by Eddy Sue Judy and Harvey Young
2022

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

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