Lorenzo Lorain photographs, 1857-1860

Overview of the Collection

Creator
Lorain, Lorenzo
Title
Lorenzo Lorain photographs
Dates
1857-1860 (inclusive)
Quantity
0.36 cubic feet, (1 oversize flat box (13x16))  :  20 salt paper photographic prints mounted on 16 loose pages; 1 bound volume
Collection Number
Org. Lot 1416
Summary
Collection consists of photographs taken by or attributed to Lorenzo Lorain while stationed at Fort Umpqua in Douglas County, Oregon, between 1857 and 1861. They depict scenes around Fort Umpqua and the Coast Reservation, portraits of Native Americans and soldiers, and street scenes of Portland, Oregon City, and The Dalles.
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 salt paper photographic prints attributed to Lorenzo Lorain. About half the prints are in a bound album, and the other half are on loose pages. The photographs depict scenes around Fort Umpqua and Camp Day during the forced removal of Native peoples from the western region of the Oregon Territory onto the Coast Reservation between 1857 and 1861. The photographs of Fort Umpqua, in Douglas County, Oregon, include the block house, barracks, and support buildings as well as portraits of soldiers and their families. Also included are exterior photographs of plank houses and portraits of unidentified Native American people who were likely members of the Coos, Lower Umpqua, Siuslaw, or Siletz peoples housed near Fort Umpqua on the southern portion of the Coast Reservation. The collection also includes photographs taken by Lorain at Camp Day, a temporary military encampment established in the Klamath Basin in Southern Oregon during the summer and fall of 1860. These photographs depict the camp site, the troops stationed at the camp, and a group photograph of unidentified members of the Klamath and Modoc peoples at or near the camp. The collection also includes photographs of Portland, Oregon City, and The Dalles, Oregon, which are believed to have been taken by Lorain during his travel from Fort Walla Walla to Fort Umpqua in 1857.

Also included in the collection are two salt paper prints depicting Fort Crook in Shasta County, California, which are attributed to Dr. Edward Perry Vollum. Vollum was stationed at Fort Umpqua during a portion of Lorain's assignment at the fort.

Use of the CollectionReturn to Top

Alternative Forms Available

Selected images from the Lorenzo Lorain photographs are viewable online in OHS Digital Collections.

Preferred Citation

Lorenzo Lorain photographs, Org. Lot 1416, Oregon Historical Society Research Library.

Restrictions on Use

Materials in this collection are in the public domain.

Administrative InformationReturn to Top

Acquisition Information

Six 9x13 photographs, gift of S. H. Lorain in 1946 (RL2021-076-RETRO). The remainder of the collection was likely acquired prior to 1958 (RL2021-077-RETRO).

Preservation Note

Salt paper prints are fragile and sensitive to light. Researchers are asked to use digital copies of the prints available online. Contact staff to request access to originals.

Processing Note

Prior to 2021, the collection was designated Album 101 by the Oregon Historical Society Research Library.

Related Materials

Lorenzo Lorain letters, Mss 417, Oregon Historical Society Research Library.

Related Materials

An album of photographs collected by Edward Perry Vollum is held by the Eastman Museum. The album contains duplicates of selected images from the Lorain photographs, some of which are attributed to Vollum rather than Lorain in the Eastman's collection records.

A copy with clearer detail of one of the portraits on page 5 of the album is held in the collection of the American Antiquarian Society.

Names and SubjectsReturn to Top

Subject Terms

  • Cities and towns--Northwest, Pacific--Photographs
  • Frontier and pioneer life--Oregon--Photographs
  • Indians of North America--Portraits
  • Military bases--Oregon--Photographs

Geographical Names

  • Fort Umpqua (Or.)--Photographs

Form or Genre Terms

  • salted paper prints