This collection of 175 voices from Union County contains memories related to both World Wars, the Great Depression, the timber industry, farming, railroading, sales and mercantile work in the rural communities, education, and personal recollections of family life. Included in this exhibit are photographs, transcripts of oral histories, the sound files for the oral histories, and other ephemera related to the Union County, Oregon History Project.

The Union County, Oregon History Project was sponsored by the Meyer Memorial Trust to collect oral history and related items from nearly 180 citizens in the Grande Ronde Valley. The director, Dr. Eugene Smith, donated the collection to the Eastern Oregon University in March 2007 for the purpose of creating an online database to share with those interested in the rich heritage of rural eastern Oregon. Additional funding and financial support came from EOU Library at Eastern Oregon University, the Eastern Oregon Foundation, and the Union County Cultural Coalition.

For more information about the Union County Oral Histories project please click here.

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PROJECT COMPLETION

This project was completed during Summer 2013 because of the invaluable work, aid, and advice of the following people in the EOU Library, Eastern Oregon University: Library Director, Karen Clay; Shirley Roberts; Katie Townsend; and Paula Helten. Also, special acknowledgement and appreciation goes out to Noel Peden for making this available online.

COPYRIGHT STATEMENT

Copyright Restrictions: PLEASE NOTE these interviews and related materials are provided for research purposes only. All uses of these interviews and related materials are covered by copyright agreement between the narrators and Eastern Oregon University. All the literary rights in these manuscripts, including the right to publish, are reserved to Easter Oregon University, La Grande, unless otherwise noted. No part of these materials may be quoted or duplicated for publication without the permission of the Library Director at Eastern Oregon University.