ohy_mss1436.xml Guide to the Hirsch-Weis Manufacturing Company records Hirsch-Weis Manufacturing Company records Revised by Jeffrey A. Hayes Oregon Historical Society Research Library 2012; revised 2021
1200 SW Park Ave. Portland, OR 97205 libreference@ohs.org https://www.ohs.org/research-and-library/
This finding aid was produced using ArchivesSpace on 2022-01-31. Finding aid is written in English. Finding aid based on DACS (Describing Archives: A Content Standard), 2nd Edition. Oregon Historical Society Research Library Hirsch-Weis Manufacturing Company records Hirsch-Weis Manufacturing Company (Portland, Or.) Mss 1436 2 cubic feet 3 legal document cases; 1 flat box (11x14); 1 flat box (13x16) 1898-1962 Records of the Hirsch-Weis Manufacturing Company of Portland, Oregon, including materials from its predecessor firm, Willamette Tent & Awning. Hirsch-Weis Manufacturing Company was an apparel company named for brothers Max S. Hirsch (1871-1959) and Leopold Hirsch (1868-1961) and their business partner Henry Weis (1874-1940). It became famous for its White Stag line of skiwear, created by Max S. Hirsch's son Harold S. Hirsch (1907-1990). The firm was renamed White Stag Manufacturing Company in 1946. English

Ernest Henry Wemme (1861-1914) founded Willamette Tent & Awning Company in the 1880s in Portland, Oregon. In 1907, he sold the firm to brothers Max S. Hirsch (1871-1959) and Leopold Hirsch (1868-1961), who partnered with the firm's secretary, Henry Weis (1874-1940). By 1914, the company had renamed itself Hirsch-Weis Manufacturing Company. The company specialized in outdoor clothing and supplies.

In the 1930s, Max S. Hirsch's son, Harold S. Hirsch (1907-1990), began designing skiwear. He named this line of clothing White Stag, after the fact that the name "Weis" is similar to the German word for "white" (weiß), and the name "Hirsch" is the German word for "stag." The White Stag line became popular, and eventually expanded to other types of casual sportswear. In 1946, the company as a whole renamed itself White Stag Manufacturing Company.

The firm was purchased by Warner Brothers Company (later Warnaco) in 1966. Under Warnaco's management, White Stag was moved out of Portland. In 1986, financial difficulties led to a hostile takeover of Warnaco, and White Stag was spun off into part of a new company named Authentic Fitness Corporation. In 2003, Wal-Mart purchased the White Stag trademark.

Contains material previously designated Mss 1436-1.

The collection consists of records of the Portland, Oregon, apparel firm Hirsch-Weis Manufacturing Company, including records from after its rebranding as White Stag Manufacturing Company. Also included are records from its predecessor firm, Willamette Tent & Awning Company. Records include: account books; payroll books; fabric samples and design worksheets; sales catalogs; and correspondence. Other materials in the collection include a script and photographs from a Richfield Oil Company "Success Story" television special about White Stag; some personal account books of firm owner Max S. Hirsch; speeches by Hirsch's son and White Stag Manufacturing Company owner Harold S. Hirsch, and poems collected by Harold S. Hirsch.

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.

Hirsch-Weis Manufacturing Company records, Mss 1436, Oregon Historical Society Research Library.

Gift of Harold S. Hirsch, April 1972 (Lib. Acc. 12207); and materials acquired in the mid or late 20th century (Lib. Acc. 29014).

Photographs were separated to Photo Collections, Oregon Historical Society Research Library.

Related collections at the Oregon Historical Society Research Library include Mss 1819, Harold S. Hirsch papers; Mss 2871, White Stag Manufacturing Company records; Coll 850, Hirsch family papers, which includes some materials relating to the Hirsch-Weis Manufacturing Company; and Coll 817, Harry E. Bell and Faye Bell papers, which also includes some Hirsch-Weis Manufacturing Company and White Stag materials.

The collection is arranged in five series: Series 1. Willamette Tent & Awning Company records; Series 2. Administrative records; Series 3. Product designs; Series 4. Sales catalogs and promotional materials; Series 5. Personal papers of Max S. Hirsch and Harold S. Hirsch.

 Hirsch, Max S., 1871-1959 Hirsch, Harold S., 1907-1990 Hirsch-Weis Manufacturing Company (Portland, Or.) Willamette Tent & Awning (Portland, Or.) White Stag Manufacturing Company Business enterprises--Oregon--Portland Clothing trade--Oregon--Portland Businesses and Corporations financial records sales catalogs Willamette Tent & Awning Company records Series 1 1898-1912 English. Receipts and work orders 1905-1908 English. 1 1 Account book 1907-1912 English. 1 2 Correspondence about lawsuits against H. Felitz 1898-1900 English. 1 3 Manager's statements and president's reports 1908-1911 English. 1 4 Scrapbook of product illustrations circa 1900 English. 4 2 Administrative records Series 2 1911-1968 English. Receipts, work orders, and tent specifications 1915-1918 English. 1 5 H. Seller Building Fund account book 1911-1922 English. 1 6 Account book 1915-1922 English. 1 7 Account book 1921-1938 English. 1 8 Annual reports and statements 1957-1964 English. 1 9 Correspondence 1929; 1947 English. 1 10 Correspondence about sportswear 1952-1953 English. 1 11 Correspondence about 1958-1959 skiwear 1957 February-1958 March English. 1 12 Merchandise Committee records 1952 English. 1 13 Newsletters and memos 1962-1968 English. 1 14 Office of Price Administration document 1945 English. 1 15 Semi-monthly payroll book 1923-1932 English. 1 16 Monthly payroll book 1932-1938 English. 2 1 Wage schedules and policies 1941 English. 2 2 Product designs Series 3 1944-1967 English. Clippings of design ideas for skiwear circa 1955-1960 5 1 Clippings of design ideas for skiwear circa 1956-1967 English. 2 3 Fabric swatches 1951-1956 English. 2 4-5 Junior Division sweaters, finished measurements 1962 English. 2 6 Women's ski parka work pages 1944-1945 English. 2 7 Women's ski pants work pages, including fabric samples 1957-1958 English. 2 8 Women's 1958-1959 season ski parka work pages, including fabric samples 1958 English. 2 9 Women's 1958-1959 season ski parka discards, including fabric samples 1958 English. 2 10 Women's 1959-1960 season ski parka discards, including fabric samples 1959 English. 2 11 Men's 1958-1959 season ski parka work pages, including fabric samples 1959 English. 3 1 Men's 1958-1959 season ski parka discards, including fabric samples 1958 English. 3 2 Men's 1959-1960 season ski parka discards, including fabric samples 1959 English. 3 3 Sales catalogs and promotional materials Series 4 1935-1974 English. White Stag ski togs advertisement circa 1942 English. 5 2 Price lists 1947-1948 English. 4 1 Promotional cards for Olympic medalist and White Stag skiwear fashion counselor Penny Pitou 1960 English. 3 4 Sales catalogs 1935-1963 English. 3 5 Sales catalogs 1963-1964 English. 3 6 Sales catalogs 1974 English. 3 7 White Stag scrapbook for contributional advertising and dealer helps 1942 English. 5 3 Promotional fabric sample scrapbook, "About Basic Classic" 1944 English. 5 4 Skiwear guide, "Winter Wisdom," by Hirsch-Weis designer Hannah Little circa 1940 English. 3 8 Photographs from Richfield Oil Company "Success Story" television special about White Stag 1962 English. 3 9 Script for Richfield Oil Company "Success Story" television special about White Stag 1962 English. 3 10 Personal papers of Max S. Hirsch and Harold S. Hirsch Series 5 1906-1963 English. Personal account book of Max S. Hirsch 1906-1908 English. 3 11 Ledger for real estate partnership between Max S. Hirsch and Joseph Friedenthal 1910-1912 English. 3 12 Poems collected by Harold S. Hirsch circa 1946-1957 English. 3 13 Speeches by Harold S. Hirsch 1962-1963 English. 3 14