William Rosen oral history interview

William Rosen oral history interview, 1974

Overview of the Collection

Creator: Rosen, William, 1907-1990
Title: William Rosen oral history interview
Dates: 1974 (inclusive)
19741974
Quantity: 2 sound cassettes (ca. 1 hr. 20 min.); transcript: 18 pages
Collection Number: 2284 (Accession No. 2284-001)
Summary: Interview of a businessman describing his father's activities and businesses
Repository: University of Washington Libraries, Special Collections
Special Collections
University of Washington Libraries
Box 352900
Seattle, WA
98195-2900
Telephone: 2065431929
Fax: 2065431931
speccoll@uw.edu
Access Restrictions: Access restricted: For terms of access, contact Special Collections.
Languages: English

Biographical NoteReturn to Top

Born Oct. 28, 1907, in Philadelphia, Mr. Rosen was educated in the Seattle Public Schools system. He graduated from Broadway High School and earned a degree in business administration from the University of Washington. He was an avid fisherman and yachtsman. He served in the Coast Guard Auxiliary during World War II with his yacht ``Hellabella'' and was a longtime member of the Seattle Yacht Club. He also enjoyed golf and tennis and rowed on the UW crew team while a student there. Mr. Rosen, his father and his late brother, Kermit, established the Alaskan Copper and Brass Co., now a nationally prominent company that employs about 450 people and posts sales of $90 million to $100 million a year. He died August 12, 1990.

Content DescriptionReturn to Top

Tape-recorded interview covers the period of 1906-1955 and is accompanied by duplicate and partial transcripts.

William Rosen tells of his father Morris' training as a coppersmith in his native Lithuania, his immigration to Philadelphia at about the age of 10 after the turn of the century, and marriage there to Rebecca Miller in 1906. After working on the Panama Canal from 1906 to 1913, Morris Rosen extablished himself as a coppersmith in Seattle. With the outbreak of World War I and the growth of shipbuilding in Seattle, Rosen's Alaskan Copper Works boomed. The business lull at war's end was broken for Alaskan Copper in about 1924 with the advent of pulp mills around Puget Sound. Rebecca Miller Rosen's brothers followed the Rosens to Seattle in about 1915 and established the Seattle Quilt Company. The Rosens did not identify closely with the Jewish Community. Morris' cronies were Gentiles from his business world and Rebecca was not active in Jewish organizations. William Rosen recalls growing up in Seattle, living at 16th and Main, Alki, Capitol Hill and Montlake. He talks of the Alaska Copper Company and its diversified activities.

Use of the CollectionReturn to Top

Alternative Forms Available

Listen to the audio recording and view the transcript of this interview on the Libraries Digital Collections site.

Restrictions on Use

Creator's literary rights transferred to the University of Washington Libraries.

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