Henry Failing, his father Josiah, and younger brother John arrived in Portland in 1851 from New York. The Failings opened a small mercantile store, J. Failing & Co., on SW Front Street (now Naito Parkway) near Oak Street. In 1853 they were joined by Josiah's wife, Henrietta, and their three other children, including Edward (1840-1900). The business was a rapid success, and Josiah Failing was elected to serve as Portland's fourth mayor in 1853. Henry Failing later became majority owner of the business, focusing on hardware and iron supplies. In 1871, Henry Failing and Henry Winslow Corbett consolidated their hardware businesses, forming Corbett, Failing & Co. This business in turn would be consolidated in 1893 with Foster & Robertson to form Corbett, Failing, and Robertson. In 1858, Henry Failing married Emily Phelps, the sister of Henry Winslow Corbett. His younger brother, Edward Failing, married Olivia Burch Henderson in 1866.
William "Bill" Latimer Failing Jr. is a direct descendant of the Henderson, Holman and Failing families through through the marriage of his great-grandparents Edward Failing and Olivia (Henderson) Failing. Olivia was born in 1846 to Robert Henderson and Rhoda Carpenter Holman while they were en route to Oregon in a wagon train. She grew up on her family's farm in Yamhill County before moving to Portland in 1860. Bill Failing Jr. also maintained ties to Portland's Brewster family and extended relatives. His great-aunt, Elizabeth Ann "Lizzie" Failing, married John Conner of Albany, Oregon. Their daughter Elizabeth "Beth" Failing Conner was born in 1867, and married William Lewis Brewster in 1896. Bill is an active member of the Portland civic community, serving as president for the Oregon Historical Society Board of Trustees and chair of the capital campaign for the Oregon Rail Heritage Foundation, in addition to other organizations.
The collection includes correspondence, original photographs, diaries, and articles regarding specific family members and general family history. A majority of the materials are contemporary documents created or collected by Bill Failing, often in the form of correspondence and written histories. Also included is a small amount of materials created by past family members, including Mary Forbush Failing, the daughter of Henry Failing and Emily Phelps (Corbett) Failing. Of particular interest are the diaries of Edward Failing on his ship journey to Portland in 1853, original letters regarding Henry Failing, and photographs of Josiah Failing. Also of note are several family trees, that trace individual lines to their Oregon arrival.
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.
Bill Failing Jr. genealogical research collection, Coll 804, Oregon Historical Society Research Library.
Gift of William Latimer Failing Jr., February 2019 (Acc RL2019-029).
The collection has been arranged into three series representing family groups. Documents related to specific individuals or general family history have been placed into these series. As a genealogical collection, a majority of the materials are topical in nature, with the individual as the subject rather than the creator.
Many individuals were related to several families, but have been placed into a single family group for convenience.
Related materials held by the Oregon Historical Society include: Henry Failing Papers, Mss 650; Robertson and Corbett family correspondence, Coll 781; Cabell family papers, Coll 693; Robertson, Burns, and Failing families papers, Coll 784; Matthew P. Deady papers, Mss 48; Henry Failing family and residence photographs collection, Org. Lot 785; Henry Failing photographs, Org. Lot 1336; Henry Failing Cabell photographs collection, Org. Lot 66; Matthew P. Deady family photograph album, Album 109; Deady, Bush and Failing families photograph album, Album 177.