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Thomas Lawson McCall papers, 1944-1982

Overview of the Collection

Creator
McCall, Tom, 1913-1983
Title
Thomas Lawson McCall papers
Dates
1944-1982 (inclusive)
Quantity
50 cubic feet, (45 record cartons, 6 flat boxes, 13 volumes)
Collection Number
Mss 625 (collection)
Summary
Papers of Tom McCall, Oregon's progressive Republican governor from 1967 to 1975), who championed environmental and progressive political causes. The papers consist primarily of professional and political documents spanning McCall's journalistic and political careers. Some personal and family materials are also included.
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.
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Historical Note

Tom Lawson McCall was born March 22, 1913, in Egypt, Massachusetts, to Henry McCall and Dorothy Lawson McCall, who moved to Portland in 1909 and soon after to a ranch near Prineville on the Crooked River in central Oregon. McCall graduated from the University of Oregon with a degree in journalism in 1936. He started his career in journalism at the Moscow, Idaho, News Review and subsequently worked at The Oregonian and for KGW radio in Portland. McCall served in the U.S. Navy from 1944 to January 1946 as a war correspondent.

McCall was married to Audrey Owen in 1939, and they had two sons, Thomas Jr. (Tad), born in 1944, and Samuel, born in 1949. After his war service, McCall returned to Portland, where he hosted a nightly radio talk show on KEX. He continued to work in broadcasting until 1964, using his work as a way to keep in touch with public issues and as a forum for his own ideas. McCall started his political career by joining the Young Republicans. He came to the attention of Governor Douglas McKay, who hired him as an assistant in 1949, a position he held until 1952. McCall ran for a U.S. Senate seat in 1954, losing to Edith Green. He ran for Oregon Secretary of State and won, serving from 1965 to1967.

McCall then served two terms as Governor of Oregon (1967-1975). He was a popular governor, largely because of his attention to public concerns and his determination to preserve quality of life in Oregon for future generations. He was best known for passing the nation's first Bottle Bill, cleaning up rivers by controlling industrial pollution, promoting land use controls, and zoning beach areas to preserve public access. McCall also made famous the phrase "Visit, But Don't Stay," a catchphrase intended to keep Oregon's growth at a moderate pace. His words backfired, however, and Oregon population grew rapidly during his two terms.

After leaving the governor's office in January 1975, Tom McCall returned to KATU television in Portland as a news analyst and traveled around the nation supporting bottle bills in other states. In 1978, he tried once again for the governor's office but lost the Republican primary to Victor Atiyeh. McCall died in 1983.

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Content Description

The first series in the collection contains press releases and speeches made by Thomas Lawson McCall primarily as Oregon’s secretary of state and governor. This is followed by papers relating to McCall’s political career donated by Kenneth Underdahl, who worked on McCall’s campaigns for state office and in his gubernatorial administration. The remaining papers from McCall’s own files make up the bulk of the collection. These include information relating to McCall’s naval service during World War II aboard the USS St. Louis “Lucky Lou,” and personal correspondence to his wife Audrey. They cover his years as a broadcast journalist and political activist, and document campaigns for Congress (against Edith Green in 1954), Oregon secretary of state (1964), and governor (1966), and document his many public appearances and addresses. The manuscript of his autobiography, Maverick (1976), shows his skill with the written word.

Political issues prominent in these papers include environmental conservation, land use, power resources, criminal justice, youth, school finance, campus unrest, foreign affairs, international trade, and civil rights. McCall’s activity in the Republican Party, the State Sanitary Authority, and numerous governors’ conferences are also represented. His papers also include materials relating to the rock concert Vortex I, the Beach Bill (1967), and the landmark land use law, Senate Bill 100 (1973).

Correspondents include: Homer Angell, Victor Atiyeh, Les AuCoin, Walter S. Blake, Jean Dubos, Rene Dubos, Bob Duncan, Dwight D. Eisenhower, Daniel Evans, Dave Frohnmayer, Edith Green, Arthur Godfrey, Mark O. Hatfield, Henry M. Jackson, Edward Kennedy, John Lindsay, Wayne Morse, Clay Myers, Richard Neuberger, Richard Nixon, Bob Packwood, Norma Paulus, Arthur Pearl, Gene Peterson, Ronald Reagan, Elliot Richardson, Laurance Rockefeller, Nelson Rockefeller, George Romney, Robert Straub, Joyce Thompson, Kenneth Underdahl, Thomas Vaughan, George Wallace, and Ron Wyden. Family members include Thomas William Lawson, Audrey Owen McCall, Dorothy Lawson McCall, Henry McCall, and Samuel Walker McCall.

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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 prior to any use of reproductions. 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

Thomas Lawson McCall papers, Mss 625, Oregon Historical Society Research Library.

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Administrative Information

Arrangement

The collection is arranged in the following series:

  • Series A: Mss 625, Press releases and public addresses of Thomas Lawson McCall
    • Subseries 1: Press releases, Oregon, Secretary of State
    • Subseries 2: Press releases, Oregon, Governor
    • Subseries 3: Proclamations, addresses, and tributes
  • Series B: Mss 625-2, Kenneth T. Underdahl Accession
  • Series C: Mss 625-1, Personal and professional papers of Thomas Lawson McCall
    • Subseries 1: World War II, 1944-1945
    • Subseries 2: The Second Look, 1954-1957
    • Subseries 3: Interim Committee on Retirement and Compensation, 1954
    • Subseries 4: McCall for Congress, 1954
    • Subseries 5: Political interests and activities,1954-1964
    • Subseries 6: Tom McCall, Oregon Secretary of State, 1964-1966
    • Subseries 7: Campaign for Governor, 1966
    • Subseries 8: Governor Tom McCall, 1967-1976
    • Subseries 9: Political interests and activities, 1974-1982
    • Subseries 10: Tom McCall, Journalist, 1956-1981
    • Subseries 11: Speeches, 1975-1981
    • Subseries 12: Family papers, undated
    • Subseries 13: Miscellaneous notes and articles saved, undated
    • Subseries 14: Correspondence, undated

Location of Collection

Please contact research library reference staff in advance to arrange for use.

Acquisition Information

Lib. Acc. 14287, 16236, 16983, 17278, 17382, 18771 and others.

Separated Materials

Photographs of Thomas Lawson McCall's career and family life are contained in Org Lot 353, and oral histories, sound recordings, and moving images are also available in the Oregon Historical Society Research Library.

Related Materials

Official records of Tom McCall's service as Secretary of State and Governor are held by the Oregon State Archives in Salem. A guide to the records is available on the agency's website: http://arcweb.sos.state.or.us.

Related Materials

Additional unprocessed materials are designated Accession 24601 in the Oregon Historical Society Research Library.

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Detailed Description of the Collection

Contents List

Guide edited and prepared for encoding by Shawna Gandy, July 2003
2007

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