J. D. (Judson Dean) Howard is best known as the “father” of Lava Beds National Monument in northern California. Howard’s birth date is given in different sources as either 1875 or 1880. A millwright, miller, chemist, photographer, and explorer, he travelled the United States as a young man and eventually settled in Klamath Falls, Oregon where he lived until his death in 1961. He began his explorations of the lava beds in 1916 and continued until shortly before his death. His efforts to document and promote the geological and historical aspects of the lava beds are credited with spurring President Calvin Coolidge to establish Lava Beds National Monument in 1925.
The collection consists of correspondence to and from J. D. Howard written between 1920 and 1959 and a folder of notes and miscellany dated from 1917 to 1934. Topics include discussions of his exploration results including mineral assays, fossils, Indian artifacts and petroglyphs of the Klamath Basin, as well as Howard’s profession of flour milling, the Modoc War and preservation of Lava Beds National Monument.
Arranged in two series, I: Correspondence and II: Notes and Miscellany.
The collection is open for research use.
Before materials from the Shaw Historical Library may be quoted in print or otherwise reproduced in whole or in part in any publication, exhibit, broadcast or other manner, the user must obtain permission from the owner of the physical property and the holder of the copyright. Copyright status for collections in the Shaw Historical Library varies. Reproduction of any item must contain a complete citation to the original. Responsibility for any use rests exclusively with the user.
[item identification], J. D. Howard Papers, The Shaw Historical Library, Oregon Institute of Technology, Klamath Falls, Oregon.
This collection is indexed under the following headings in the online catalog. Researchers desiring materials about related topics, persons, or places should search the catalog using these headings.