Collection is open for research.
1914-1918 ledger gift of Hilde Schmoll, February 1985 (Lib. Acc. 17148); 1917-1920 ledger and exercise book gift of Julie J. Diornstad, October 1988 (Lib. Acc. 19022).
May E. Shogren and Anne H. Shogren (sometimes written as Anna or Ann) were born in 1861 and 1868, respectively, and grew up in Portland, Oregon; they were the daughters of Swedish immigrants to the United States. May Shogren was apprenticed to local tailor Henry Litt, where she advanced to the position of forelady. In 1889, she left Litt to found her own dressmaking business. Anne Shogren had joined her as a dressmaker by 1893, and later in the 1890s, city directories listed their business as M & A Shogren. The business was located in the Dekum Building until a fire led them to move to a store at Southwest 10th and Yamhill.
The Shogren sisters' business specialized in high fashion. They copied and modified designs that they saw in fashion plates, and also traveled to Paris and New York to find inspiration and source fabrics. Their clientele included prominent residents of Portland such as Emma Corbett and members of Henry Failing's family. May Shogren handled most of the designs and clients, while Anne Shogren dealt with business administration. Their shop hosted many elite figures from the West Coast for consultations and fittings, and was known for its elaborate custom dresses. The business declined around World War I as the fashion industry changed to favor simpler dresses and department stores began producing fashionable ready-to-wear dresses. By 1920, the Shogrens' business was no longer listed in the Portland city directory.
Neither sister married or had children. May E. Shogren died in 1928, and Anne H. Shogren died in 1934.
Sources: "M & A Shogren," by Helen Fedchak, Oregon Encyclopedia,
May E. Shogren and Anne H. Shogren papers, Mss 2701, Oregon Historical Society Research Library.
Collection was initially processed prior to 2003, most likely in the 1980s, and reprocessed in January 2025 by Jeffrey A. Hayes. Reprocessing consisted of rehousing materials for preservation needs. Collection includes materials previously designated Mss 2701-1. Collection was titled "Shogren Dressmakers and Ladies Tailoring" prior to 2025.
Additional materials relating to May E. Shogren and Anne H. Shogren at the Oregon Historical Society Research Library are in the vertical files Biography - Shogren Sisters and Portland - Business establishments - Retail stores - R-Z. The Shogrens' business is discussed in an oral history interview with Alice C. Rockey, SR 9574, which is available online in OHS Digital Collections at
Multiple clothing items produced by M & A Shogren are held in
Museum Collections, Oregon Historical Society, some of which are viewable
online in the museum portal,
The collection consists of two business ledgers kept by M & A Shogren, a dressmaking business owned by sisters May E. Shogren and Anne H. Shogren of Portland, Oregon, and personal papers of May E. Shogren. One of the business ledgers, which is arranged by client name, covers transactions made from 1914 to 1918. The other ledger, which is arranged by date, covers the years 1917 to 1920. May E. Shogren's personal papers consist of an exercise book she kept in 1899, which contains essays about literature, possibly written for a class; and three microfilm copies of a diary (the original is not part of the collection) that she kept from 1916 to 1920. The diary entries, most of which were written from 1916 to 1919, note her daily activities and the weather.
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.