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Morgan S. Odell Personal Papers, 1912-1968

Overview of the Collection

Creator
Odell, Morgan S.
Title
Morgan S. Odell Personal Papers
Dates
1912-1968 (inclusive)
Quantity
8 cubic feet, (15 boxes)
Collection Number
OLPb023ODE
Summary
This collection is primarily composed of correspondence between Morgan Odell (Lewis & Clark College President, 1942-1960), his wife Ruth, and his parents, while Morgan served in the WWI European Ambulance Corps. The collection also includes scrapbooks, photographs, sermons, awards, and materials relating to Odell's life.
Repository
Lewis & Clark College, Special Collections and Archives

Aubrey R. Watzek Library
615 S. Palatine Hill Rd.
Portland, OR
97219
Telephone: 5037687758
Fax: 5037687282
archives@lclark.edu
Languages
English
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Biographical Note

Morgan Odell was born in Moline, Illinois, and raised in Pasadena California. Immediately after graduating from Occidental College in 1917, Odell was assigned to serve in the World War I U.S. Army Ambulance Corps in Italy. While overseas, Odell correspondended regularly with Ruth Sayre. After the war, Odell returned to Pasadena and married Ruth. He also attended seminary school at the University of Southern California and worked as a minister of Christian Education at the First Methodist Church of Pasadena. Odell went on to the University of Chicago and earned a doctorate in Divinity in 1931. From 1931 to 1941 Odell worked as a professor in religion and philosophy at Occidental College.

During the 1930s, Albany College of Albany, Oregon began looking to move its campus to Portland. After considering a number of different sites for the College, the Lloyd and Aaron Frank family, owners of the Meier and Frank department store, offered to sell its Fir Acres estate in the Dunthorpe neighborhood of Portland to Albany College for $46,000. Aaron Frank, who negotiated the sell for the Frank family insisted that the College hire Morgan Odell as its President. Odell accepted and helped raise the money necessary to move Albany College to Fir Acres in 1942. Under Odell's leadership, Lewis & Clark College raised its enrollment from 145 to 1,200 students, expanded its facilities, and established itself as a respected liberal arts college. Odell retired from Lewis & Clark in 1960, went on to serve as interim dean of the American University in Cairo and vice president for development at Beirut College for Women. Odell died in 1984 at the age of 90.

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Content Description

This collection includes outgoing and incoming correspondence between Morgan Odell, his parents, and his wife, Ruth (1912-1952). It also includes scrapbooks, photographs, sermons, awards, and materials relating to Odell's career at Lewis & Clark College (1942-1965).

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Use of the Collection

Alternative Forms Available

This collection has no restrictions and is open for research.

Restrictions on Use

Permission to publish, exhibit, broadcast, or quote from materials in the Watzek Library Archives & Special Collections requires written permission of the Head of Archives & Special Collections.

Preferred Citation

The Morgan S. Odell Personal Papers (OLPb023ODE), Lewis & Clark College Aubrey Watzek Library Archives & Special Collections, Portland, Oregon.

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Administrative Information

Arrangement

Arranged in a single series, chronological by correspondent.

Location of Collection

Special Collections

Acquisition Information

Donated to the Lewis & Clark College Special Collections in Fall of 2007 by Connie Sams, the grandaughter of Morgan Odell.

Processing Note

Processed in 2007. Rehoused in acid-free folders and boxes.

Separated Materials

The Lewis & Clark College archives also holds Morgan Odell's official correspondence as President of Lewis & Clark College.

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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

  • American Ambulance Field Service
  • Lewis & Clark College (Portland, Or.)
  • World War, 1914-1918

Personal Names

  • Odell, Morgan S.--Archives
  • Odell, Ruth
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