Oregon Central Military Road Company records, 1864-1877

Overview of the Collection

Creator
Oregon Central Military Wagon Road Company, Eugene, Or.
Title
Oregon Central Military Road Company records
Dates
1864-1877 (inclusive)
Quantity
1.2 cubic feet, (5 document cases and 1 custom box)
Collection Number
Mss 993
Summary
Records of an Oregon company that constructed and ran a military road from Eugene to the Owyhee River. Records date from 1864 to 1877 and include correspondence, organizational records, legal records, road superintendents' reports, financial records, stock books, and certificates.
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

The collection is open to the public.

Languages
English
Sponsor
Funding for encoding this finding aid was provided through a grant awarded by the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Historical NoteReturn to Top

The Oregon Central Military Wagon Road Company was incorporated in Eugene, Oregon, in 1864. Among its stockholders were some of the leading citizens of Oregon, including Simeon G. Reed and William S. Ladd. The company constructed and maintained the road, which ran from Eugene to the Oregon border near the Owyhee river. One of its superintendents was Byron J. Pengra (1823-1903). The final dividend of the company was paid out on January 11, 1877.

Content DescriptionReturn to Top

The collection includes correspondence, financial records, organizational records, stock books and certificates, and legal documents. The organizational records include a bound journal, mintues, treasurer's reports, and committee reports. Also included are road superintendents' reports; field notes of a preliminary survey of the road route by B. J. Pengra, 1864; stockholder records; documents concerning the case of the company vs. H. C. Victor; letters of B. J. Pengra and Ben Simpson; and bills and receipts.

Use of the CollectionReturn to Top

Restrictions on Use

The Oregon Historical Society is the owner of the materials in the Research Library and makes available reproductions for research, publication, and other uses. Written permission must be obtained from the Research Library prior to any use of reproductions. The Society does not necessarily hold copyright to all the materials in the collections. In some cases, permission for use of reproductions may require seeking additional authorization from the copyright holders.

Preferred Citation

Oregon Central Military Road Company records, Mss 993, Oregon Historical Society Research Library

Administrative InformationReturn to Top

Arrangement

The collection is arranged in the following series

Acquisition Information

The collection was acquired in 1962

Bibliography

Beckham, Stephen Dow, The Oregon Central Military Wagon Road : a history and reconaissance ([Eugene, Or.] : Heritage Research Associates, 1981)

Related Materials

Related materials can be found at the Oregon Historical Society Research Library in the John Miller Drake papers, Mss 80; and the John Marshall McCall papers, Mss 911

Detailed Description of the CollectionReturn to Top

The following section contains a detailed listing of the materials in the collection.

Series A:  Correspondence, 1865-1873Return to Top

Container(s) Description Dates
General correspondence
Box/Folder
1/1
1865 January-May
1/2
1865 June-December
1/3
1866
1/4
1867-1869
1/5
1870
1/6
1871 January-June
1/7
1871 July-December
1/8
1872 January-May
1/9
1872 June-December
1/10
1873-1876
Box/Folder
1/11
Re: military escort
1865
1/12
Re: Oregon Central Military Road Company vs. Victor
1866-1868
1/13
Letters from Byron J. Pengra
1866-1875
1/14
Letters from Ben Simpson
1865-1873

Series B:  General files, 1864-1875Return to Top

Container(s) Description Dates
Box/Folder
1/15
Board of directors materials
1867-1875
1/16
Bonds for deeds
1865-1869
1/17
Committee reports
1864-1874
1/18
Incoporation papers
1867
1/19
Legal documents
1864-1876
6
Minutes (ledger book)
1867 May 24-1876 June 25
2/1
Oaths of officers
1865-1875
2/2
Organizational records, including by-laws and minutes
1864-1867
2/3
Promissory notes
1865-1874
2/4
Proxies
1864-1875
2/5
Report of the recent survey and progress of construction of the Oreogn Central Military Wagon Road, by B. J. Pengra (Salem : Statesman Job Office, photocopy)
1866
2/6
Road superintendents' reports by B. J. Pengra and W. H. Odell
1864-1870
2/7
Secretary's reports
1865-1875
2/8
Survey notes and report by B. J. Pengra
1864-1865
2/9
Treasurer's reports
1865-1875

Series C:  Financial records, 1864-1877Return to Top

Container(s) Description Dates
Box/Folder
2/10
Financial statements
1866-1874
2/11-14
Paid bills
1864-1875
3/1
Paid bills
1864-1875
3/2
Paid bills and cancelled checks
1864-1877
3/3
Receipts
1865-1875
3/4
Treasurer's book
1864-1867
3/5-7
Check books (6 books)
1865-1877
5/4
Journal (financial records)
1864 June 27-1877 January 11
5/5
Ledger
1864-1877

Series D:  Stock records, 1864-1877Return to Top

Container(s) Description Dates
Box/Folder
4/1
Lists of stockholders
1867-1874; undated
4/2-3
Stock certificates (filled in)
1865-1875
4/4
Cancelled stock certificates
1865-1876
4/5
Stock certificate book
1865-1875
4/6
Stock ledger
1865-1877
4/7
Stock ledger
1873-1874
4/8
"Stock book 'B'"
1864-1865
5/1
Stock book
1864-1870
5/2
Stock transfer records
1865-1875
5/3
Strock transfer journal
1865-1874

Names and SubjectsReturn to Top

Subject Terms

  • Military roads--Oregon--History
  • Roads--Oregon--History

Corporate Names

  • Oregon Central Military Wagon Road Company, Eugene, Or. (creator)

Geographical Names

  • Eugene (Or.)--History
  • Oregon Central Military Wagon Road

Form or Genre Terms

  • Accounts
  • Ledgers
  • Letters (correspondence)
  • Minutes
  • Stock certificates

Other Creators

  • Personal Names
    • Pengra, B. J. (Byron J.), 1823-1903 (creator)
    • Simpson, Benjamin, 1816-1910--Correspondence (creator)