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Joseph L. Miller Papers, 1909-1995

Overview of the Collection

Creator
Miller, Joseph L., 1910-
Title
Joseph L. Miller Papers
Dates
1909-1995 (inclusive)
1971-1995 (bulk)
Quantity
29 linear ft.:
51 document cases
2 card file boxes
7 oversize map folders
Collection Number
Mss 6022
Summary
Papers include in-depth material on Joseph L. Miller's crusade to collect and organize information on the Bull Run Reserve and watershed and to expand public awareness of threats to its famed pristine water through formation of the Bull Run Interest Group (BRIG) and lawsuits he initiated against the U.S. Forest Service. Bull Run is the main source of water for Portland, Or., and other smaller communities in the area.
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.

Additional Reference Guides

A card index to Miller's version of the BRIG Open Files, including authors, titles, and subjects, is included in the collection (Boxes 23 and 24).

Languages
English
Sponsor
Funding for encoding this finding aid was provided through a grant awarded by the National Endowment for the Humanities. Funding for preparing this finding aid was provided through a grant awarded by the National Historical Publications and Records Commission.
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Biographical Note

Joseph L. Miller (1910- ), a native of Chicago, trained as a medical doctor. He moved to Oregon in 1940 with his wife, Amy, and opened a medical practice in Portland. In 1948, the family bought 94 acres near the Bull Run Reserve, in the vicinity of Marmot, Clackamas County, Oregon. There they built a small cabin, mostly for summer camping, and in 1975 established a permanent home on three acres. They donated the remaining 91 acres to the Portland Audubon Society in 1977.

In 1971, Miller discovered that the United States Forest Service (USFS) had, since 1958, allowed commercial logging in the Bull Run Watershed and planned to open a 30,000-acre area for recreational purposes in spite of a 1904 Trespass Act which prohibited these activities. Miller attended a public meeting that drew so much opposition that the USFS and the Portland Water Bureau withdrew the recreation development plan. After that meeting, Miller began a systematic effort to collect and disseminate information on the Bull Run Reserve to focus public attention on the need for watershed protection. In 1974, he organized the Bull Run Citizens' Advisory Committee, which evolved into the Bull Run Interest Group (BRIG) by 1975. BRIG was active at varying levels until about 1993. Miller was most concerned about the secrecy and lack of public information and input that he believed characterized the activities of the USFS and Portland Water Bureau, which managed the Bull Run Watershed.

In 1973, Miller and two co-plaintiffs initiated a class-action lawsuit against the USFS for allowing public access and logging in violation of the Trespass Act and won their case. However, in 1977 Congress nullified the act, and new legislation, introduced by Rep. Robert Duncan and Sen. Mark Hatfield of Oregon, specified that the Bull Run Reserve could be managed by the Forest Service according to prevailing multiple-use principles. Use of the watershed need not be confined to water production, though that use was supposed to be primary.

Miller's crusade to restore the protections of the Trespass Act continued after 1977, and, with the public scrutiny that he inspired, serious degradation of the watershed diminished. His efforts included further litigation to stop what he considered to be dubious timber sales after “blowdowns.”

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Content Description

Papers include in-depth material on Joseph Miller's crusade to collect and organize information on the Bull Run Reserve and watershed and to expand public awareness of the threat to its famed pristine water through formation of the Bull Run Interest Group (BRIG). Also included is documentation of the lawsuits he initiated against the U.S. Forest Service (USFS). Because he collected correspondence, reports, and other materials from practically every agency and person involved with the Bull Run Watershed, the collection represents many different perspectives on the issues involved.

Included in the collection are Miller's personal version of the BRIG Open File that was established and continues to be available to the public in the Government Documents section at the Multnomah County Library's Central Branch (Portland, Or.), plus copies of lawsuits and correspondence generated in attempts to change USFS timber sale and logging practices. Subject files cover these issues and contain research materials from many sources, including USFS and Portland Water Bureau information and correspondence, Miller's correspondence and explanatory notes, environmental impact statements, newspaper clippings, and reports.

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Use of the Collection

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 before any reproduction use. The Society does not necessarily hold copyright to all of the materials in the collections. In some cases, permission for use may require seeking additional authorization from the copyright owners.

Preferred Citation

Joseph L. Miller Papers, Mss 6022, Oregon Historical Society Research Library

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Administrative Information

Arrangement

The papers are organized into the following series and subseries based on their original order:

  • Series A: Bull Run Interest Group (BRIG), 1909-1993
    • Subseries 1: Bull Run Interest Group (BRIG) Records, 1974-1991
    • Subseries 2: BRIG Open Files, 1909-1993
  • Series B: Joseph L. Miller's Litigation and Subject Files, 1931-1990
    • Subseries 1: Lawsuit, Miller vs. Mallory, 1931-1978
    • Subseries 2: Lawsuit: Miller vs. Robertson, 1976-1979
    • Subseries 3: Appeal of Forest Service Bull Run Watershed management plan, 1979
    • Subseries 4: Bull Run Watershed Management Research Materials, 1929-1995
  • Series C: Bull Run Advisory Committee (BRAC) and successor, Water Quality Advisory Committee, 1978-1995
  • Series D: Forest Service Management Issues on Bull Run Watershed, 1983-1992
  • Series E: Little Sandy River Watershed Issues, 1973-1992
  • Series F: Water Quality Issues, 1986-1994
  • Series G: Newsletters, Other Published Pieces, City Club of Portland Materials, Correspondence, and Newspaper Clipping File,1940-1995
    • Subseries 1: Bull Run Open Newsletter, 1977-1987
    • Subseries 2: Free Speech Out of the Closet, 1986-1988
    • Subseries 3: Portland City Club, 1972-1993
    • Subseries 4: Letters to the Editor and Opinion Pieces, 1973-1990
    • Subseries 5: Correspondence, 1971-1993
    • Subseries 6: Newspaper Clipping File, 1940-1995

Custodial History

Joseph L. Miller gave his papers to the Oregon Historical Society in two parts, 1997 and 1998, with annotations he added for clarification shortly before his final donation.

Acquisition Information

Gift of Joseph L. Miller, 1997-1998. Accession numbers 23189, 23563.

Separated Materials

Photographs and other visual materials were separated to the Joseph L. Miller Photographs Collection, Org. Lot 1021, in the Oregon Historical Society Research Library Photographs Collection. Copies of the Bull Run Open Newsletter are available in the Research Library Serials Collection.

Bibliography

Bull Run Interest Group and Miller, Joseph L., comp. Bull Run: A World Treasure.Portland: Bull Run Interest Group, 1998.

Harmon, Rick. "The Bull Run Watershed: Portland's Enduring Jewel." Oregon Historical Quarterly 96 (1995): 242-270.

Miller, Joseph L., Jr. How to Destroy God's Kingdom and Democracy at the Same Time: Case Study, Water Supply of Portland, Oregon. Portland: J.L. Miller, 1989.

Miller, Joseph L. and John Eliot Allen. What Good Is Free Speech in a Closet?: A Story of Cover-up in Planning for Our Grandchildren's Drinking Water. Porland, Or.: DRC Graphics Services, 1985.

Related Materials

The primary version of the BRIG Open File is available in the Government Documents section, Multnomah County Library Central Branch (Portland, Or.)

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Detailed Description of the Collection

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

Names and SubjectsReturn to Top

Subject Terms

  • Drinking water--Oregon--Portland
  • Public works--Oregon--Portland
  • Water supply--Oregon--Portland
  • Water quality--Oregon--Bull Run River Watershed
  • Watershed management--Oregon--Portland

Personal Names

  • Miller, Joseph L.--Papers

Corporate Names

  • Bull Run Interest Group
  • Bull Run Citizens' Advisory Committee
  • Portland (Or.). Water Bureau.
  • United States. Forest Service.

Geographical Names

  • Bull Run River Watershed (Or.)
  • Clackamas County (Or.)
  • Little Sandy River Watershed (Or.)
  • Mount Hood National Forest (Or.)
  • Multnomah County (Or.)

Form or Genre Terms

  • Clippings
  • Maps
  • Personal papers

Finding aid prepared by Erica Goodwin, 1999, and Sharon M. Howe, 2004
2001

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