Archives West Finding Aid
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Lorenzo Lorain letters, 1855-1968
Overview of the Collection
- Creator
- Lorain, Lorenzo
- Title
- Lorenzo Lorain letters
- Dates
- 1855-1968 (inclusive)18551968
1855-1861 (bulk)18551861 - Quantity
- 0.1 cubic feet, (2 folders in shared box)
- Collection Number
- Mss 417
- Summary
- Collection consists of correspondence by Lorenzo Lorain dating from 1855 to 1861, as well as biographical information about Lorain collected between 1958 and 1968. The bulk of the letters concern his time stationed at Fort Walla Walla and Fort Umpqua between 1856 and 1861.
- 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
-
Collection is open for research.
- Languages
- English
Biographical NoteReturn to Top
Lorenzo Lorain was born in Phillipsburg, Pennsylvania on August 5, 1831. After graduating from West Point Military Academy in 1856, Lorain was commissioned as a second lieutenant with Company L, Third Artillery, based at Fort Walla Walla, Washington Territory. His company was reassigned to Fort Umpqua, in Douglas County, Oregon Territory, in August 1857. While at Fort Umpqua, Lorain and the other members of his unit were charged with overseeing and enforcing the forced removal of Native peoples from their homelands onto the Coast Reservation. Lorain was also one of the earliest photographers to work in Oregon and his photographs are the earliest known images of the region's tribal communities. Lorain was transferred to Virginia in March 1861, at the start of the Civil War. After being wounded during the battle of Blackburn's Ford in July 1861, Lorain transitioned into a series of teaching positions at West Point Academy, Lehigh University, and in the Department of Engineering at the U.S. Artillery School in Fort Monroe, Virginia. Lorain died on March 6, 1882 in Baltimore, Maryland.
Content DescriptionReturn to Top
Collection consists of twenty-one autographed letters written by Lorenzo Lorain between 1855 and 1861. The letters contain descriptions of Lorain's military service, including yellow fever epidemics, the forced removal of Native peoples from the western region of the Oregon Territory to the Coast Reservation, and his photography. The letters are addressed from West Point Academy, Aspinwall, Fort Dalles, San Francisco, Fort Walla Walla, Fort Umpqua, and Camp Day near the Klamath Basin. The correspondents include Lorain's father, Dr. Henry Tilden Lorain, and his sisters, Mary Jane Ashman and Martha (Merty) Eliza Lorain. Also included in the collection are biographical research notes and correspondence concerning Lorenzo Lorain and Edward Perry Vollum, collected by Nancy A. Hacker between 1958 and 1968.
Use of the CollectionReturn to Top
Alternative Forms Available
Original correspondence by Lorain is viewable online in OHS Digital Collections.
Preferred Citation
Lorenzo Lorain letters, Mss 417, Oregon Historical Society Research Library.
Restrictions on Use
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.
Administrative InformationReturn to Top
Names and SubjectsReturn to Top
Subject Terms
- Indian Removal, 1813-1903
- Indian reservations--Oregon
- Indians of North America--Relocation--Oregon
Personal Names
- Lorain, Lorenzo
- Vollum, Edward Perry, -1902
Geographical Names
- Fort Dalles (Dalles, Or.)--History--19th century
- Fort Umpqua (Or.)--History--19th century
- Fort Walla Walla (Wash.)--History--19th century
Form or Genre Terms
- correspondence
