Collection is open for research.
Gift of Jurgen A. Hess, November 2023 (RL2023-077).
Jurgen A. Hess was born in 1941 in Germany. He earned a bachelor of science degree in landscape architecture from Iowa State University, and worked for 34 years as a landscape architect and planning director for the U.S. Forest Service, managing public lands in the Rogue River National Forest and the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area in Oregon and Washington. He also served on the Columbia River Gorge Commission. After retiring from the Forest Service, he continued to teach workshops and give presentations about landscape design and environmental topics.
Sources: Collection materials; article in the Oregonian, "Designing like nature," June 12, 2008; vital records via Ancestry.com.
Jurgen A. Hess collection on Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area Act implementation, Coll 1046, Oregon Historical Society Research Library.
The collection consists of materials produced or collected by landscape architect and U.S. Forest Service planning director Jurgen A. Hess relating to the implementation of the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area Act. The primary item in the collection is a volume of Hess' reminiscences, titled "Implementing Gorge Protection: A View From the Front Lines: True Stories of the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area Act Implementation," which documents his activities as a planning director for the U.S. Forest Service, support for and opposition to the act and its implementation, and activism by individuals and organizations such as Nancy Russell and Friends of the Columbia Gorge from the 1980s to the 2000s. Hess also discusses wildfires and other environmental challenges to the Columbia River Gorge in the 21st century. The reminiscences include many photographs, taken by Hess and others.
In addition to the reminiscences, the collection contains two items relating to opposition to public management of the Gorge. The first is a bumper sticker reading, "Save the Gorge from the Park Service," referring to discussion in the 1980s about whether the Gorge should become a national park. The other item is a 1991 document produced by Lex Loeb, titled "Supplemental Guide to Understanding the Implications of the Proposed Official Plans for the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area." The document's cover is designed to look as though it is an official document produced by the U.S. Forest Service or the Columbia River Gorge Commission. The collection also includes a clipping that briefly mentions Loeb's 1995 run for U.S. Senate.
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.