Charles Paul Keyser was born in 1878 in Elko, Nevada, and moved to Portland, Oregon, in 1906. In 1909, he began working for the Portland Parks Bureau. In 1917, he became superintendent of parks, and held that position until his retirement in 1949. During his tenure as superintendent of parks, Keyser drastically increased the amount of park lands in Portland from less than 200 acres to more than 5,000 acres, and established Forest Park and the International Rose Test Garden. Keyser also served as president of the American Institute of Park Executives.
Keyser married Aimee Sherman (1877-1948) in 1906; the couple had one son, Joseph E. Keyser (1909-2004). C. Paul Keyser died in 1976.
Sources: Articles in the Oregonian, 1917-1976; vital records on Ancestry.com.
The collection consists of the papers of C. Paul Keyser, who served as superintendent of parks in Portland, Oregon, from 1917 to 1949. A significant portion of this collection relates to the history of the Portland park system and the history of the establishment of Forest Park. These materials include a memo about Keyser and others surveying the land that would become Forest Park in 1944; a draft and a copy of "The History of Portland's Forest Park," written by Thornton T. Munger in collaboration with Keyser, and related papers; and Keyser's history of the park system, "The Park System of the City of Roses in Retrospect." The collection also contains records of the Portland Art Commission, and correspondence and papers relating to: the Forestry Building and Keyser's opposition to the World Forestry Center being its replacement; legislation concerning the Oregon Dunes; Save the Myrtle Woods, Inc.; and the Portland Rose Festival, the Royal Rosarians, and the International Rose Test Garden. Correspondents in the collection include Ormond Bean, Mark Hatfield, Thornton T. Munger, Maurine Neuberger, Fred L. Peterson, and Aubrey Watzek.
Other materials in this collection include handwritten notes and calculations by Keyser regarding potential street improvements, and a transcript of Keyser's radio interview on "Northwestern Neighbors."
Collection is open for research.
The Oregon Historical Society owns the materials in the Research Library and makes available reproductions for research, publication, and other uses. The Society does not necessarily hold copyright to all materials in the collections. In some cases, permission for use may require seeking additional authorization from copyright owners.
C. Paul Keyser papers, Mss 2383, Oregon Historical Society Research Library.
Gift of Joseph E. Keyser, April 1976 (Lib. Acc. 13647), with additional materials likely the gift or gifts of Joseph E. Keyser in the late 1970s or early 1980s (RL2022-112-RETRO). One copy of "The Park System of the City of Roses in Retrospect," gift of Lewis L. McArthur, March 1991 (Lib. Acc. 20269).
Other materials at the Oregon Historical Society Research Library of or relating to Keyser include: The Columbia Gorge Preservation Committee records, Mss 661; C. Paul Keyser letter to Roy Malo, Correspondence collection, Mss 1500; and a vertical file, Biography - Keyser, C. Paul.
Includes materials previously designated Mss 2383-1 and Mss 2383-2.