William A. Langille (1869-1956) came with his family to Hood River, Oregon in 1882. The Langille family operated the
Cloud Cap Inn on Mt. Hood. Langille was a prospector in the Klondyke gold fields and Alaska state forester; eventually he was appointed forest manager for the Oregon State
Parks Department. This collection contains correspondence, short stories, articles and reports that focus on his time in Alaska, Sao Paulo, Brazil, and Oregon.
Repository:
University of Oregon Libraries
Special Collections & University Archives
Funding for encoding this finding aid was provided through
a grant awarded by the National Endowment for the Humanities.
Biographical Note
William A. Langille was born in 1869 in Nova Scotia. In 1882, he came to Hood
River, Oregon where the Langille family was associated with the construction and
operation of the Cloud Cap Inn. Construction began in 1889 and they operated the
inn from 1891 until 1906. William and his brother, Harold D. "Doug" Langille, were
early climbers and guides on the mountain. In 1897 William went prospecting in
the Klondyke gold fields. A few years later, in 1903, he was appointed
forester of Alaska. Many of the manuscripts and some of the diaries in this
collection reflect on his time spent in that area. Due to his association with
Alaskan lumber companies, he was hired in 1912 by the Paulista Lumber Company to
report on the Brazilian forest. After World War I, Langille worked for the forest
service and the Oregon State Parks Department.
Content Description
The William A. Langille papers consist of scattered diaries, letters, and
historical articles on Alaska and Oregon, and photographs (mainly of Brazil).
In Series I: Correspondence, the major correspondent is Samuel H. Boardman, the
first Oregon Parks superintendent. Among the manuscripts found in this collection
is a biography of Boardman. Langille and his younger brother, Harold D. Doug Langille
corresponded most of
their adult life. This collection includes correspondence received from
Doug and his correspondence to William. With the W.A. Langille papers
are the papers of Harold D. Langille (1874-1954), a forester and engineer. His
papers include letters to his brother, William, written between 1935 and 1953 from
mining areas in western Idaho and Sonora, Mexico. There are also 72 letters
written from France, 1917-1919, when Doug was a major in the 505th Engineer
Service Brigade.
Series II: Reports, Manuscripts, Publications, contains
two short stories about Alaska and numerous papers covering forestry topics
concerning Alaska and Oregon. The diaries in this collection focus mainly on
Langille's life in Oregon but also include a diary from his four months spent
in Sao Paulo, Brazil. During his stay in Brazil, Langille was an avid
photographer and this collection includes a large portion of photographs and
2.5x5 black and white negatives of this area. These photographs document
Brazilian native life and natural environment. Other subjects include Alaska
and Oregon. The final series includes Langille mementos, awards, citations, and
photographs.
Use of the Collection
Restrictions on Access :
Collection is open to the public.
Collection must be used in Special Collections & University Archives Reading Room.
Restrictions on Use :
Property rights reside with Special Collections & University Archives, University of Oregon Libraries.
Copyright resides with the creators of the documents or their heirs.
All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted to the
Manuscripts Librarian in Special Collections & University Archives. The
reader must also obtain permission of the copyright holder.
Preferred Citation :
[Identification of item], William A. Langille Papers, Ax 635, Special Collections & University Archives, University of Oregon Libraries, Eugene, Oregon.
Administrative Information
Arrangement :
Collection is organized into the following series:
Series I. Correspondence
Series II. Reports, manuscripts, publications
Series III. Langille diaries
Series IV. Photographs
Series V. Langille mementos and family photographs
Detailed Description of the Collection
The following section contains a detailed listing of the materials in
the collection.
Series I: Correspondence, 1893-1953
Container(s)
Description
Dates
Langille Letters Sent
138 letters
Box
Folder
1
1
Alaska letters
6 letters
1897-1900
1
2
Brazil letters
29 letters
Filed here is manuscript
"Report on the timber holdings of the Paulista Lumber Company, Sao Paulo,
Brazil, June 14, 1912," and manuscript "Lumbering in the state of Sao
Paulo, Brazil, Dec. 23, 1912". Also 3 pamphlets on Brazil.
1911-1913
1
3
Miscellaneous
103 letters
Mostly written to Harold D. Langille.
1904, 1935-1955
Langille Letters Received
88 letters
1938-1954
Box
Folder
1
4
Abrams, D.C.
1
4
Aluminum Company of America
1
4
Baldwin, L.M.
10 letters
Hood River history
1951-1954
1
4
Bartmess, Earl K.
1
4
Bartsch, Grace Graham
5 letters
1950-1953
1
4
Boardman, Samuel H.
7 letters
1949-1952
1
4
Calder, W.C.
1
4
Chamberlain, Gertrude
1
4
Cook, Arthur F.
1
4
Cooper, John P.
4 letters
Hood River history
1952-1953
1
4
Dimmick, George W.
3 letters
Hood River history
1952-1953
1
4
Dimmick, J.B.
1
4
Ferguson, Anna
1
4
First National Bank
Hood River
1
4
French, Boyd
1
4
Freshwater, Caroline
1
4
Freshwater, Margaret
1
4
Graham, Will
1
4
Greeley, A.W.
1
4
Heintzleman, B. Frank
1
4
Hood River County Historical Society
1
4
Jackson, A.G.
2 photos of Langille in redwoods
1926
1
4
Lacey, James D. and Co.
1
4
Lang, Anne
12 letters
Cloud Cap Inn
1938, 1940-1943, 1948
1
4
McIntyre, Justin
1
4
McKeown, Martha Ferguson
1
4
McNeil, Fred H.
1
4
McRae, Clyde
1
4
Marsh, Eugene
1
4
Montana Assay Office
1
4
Mt. Hood Irrigation District
1
4
Munger, Thornton
1
4
Old Oregon Trail, Inc.
1
4
Oregon State Dept. of Geology
1
4
Oregon State Highway Department
1
4
Oregon State Parks Department
1
4
Pinchot, Gifford
1
4
Pond, Irving K.
1
4
Riddell, H.H.
1
4
Rumbaugh, Ann
1
4
Smith, Warren D.
1
4
U.S. Forest Service
1
4
U.S. General Land Office
1
4
U.S. Geological Survey
1
4
U.S. Interior Department
1
4
Wilson, Fred
1
4
Winans, Ephraim
6 letters
Hood River history
1943-1946
1
4
Wood, Erskine
1
5
Lang, Anne
Harold D. Langille Letters Sent
256 letters
1910; 1912; 1917-1919; 1935-1953
Box
Folder
1
6
World War I letters from Camp Lee, Virginia and France
H.D. Langille was a major in the 505th
Engineer Service Brigade. The letters, with a few exceptions, are to his mother.
1917-1919
1
7
Miscellaneous
175 letters
Most sent to W.A. Langille. The 1910 letters are
from Chili. Others from mining country in western Idaho and Sonora.
Series III: William A. Langille Diaries, 1893-1935
12 volumes
Container(s)
Description
Dates
Box
Folder
1
13
Mt. Hood, Mines and Cloud Cap Inn
Jackson-Josephine County mines; minor entries
1893-1896
1
13
Brazil
2 volumes
Includes numbered lists of photographs.
March 1928-July 1928
1
13
U.S. Forest Service
Building Legion Camp, Mt. Hood; Mitchell Point fire; High Road construction;
August 2, 1926: "The cook has boils and running sores. Time to get rid of him."
June 21, 1926-August 5, 1926
1
13
Oregon State Highway Department
Construction; rights-of-way.
March 23, 1927-April 14, 1927
1
13
Oregon State Highway Department
January 1, 1932-September 23, 1932
1
13
Oregon State Parks Department
2 volumes
July 3, 1933-December 31, 1933
1
13
Oregon State Parks Department
CCC Camp, Cape San Sebastian; May 1, 1934: "Mr. Boardman
advised me 5 new foremen to come who are Walter Pierce's appointees. Our first political members."
January 1, 1934-February 28, 1934; April 1, 1934-May 11, 1934; May 12, 1934-December 31, 1934; May 1, 1934
Negatives and some prints. Subjects
include: Alaska; Cape Lookout, and Cape San Sebastian, Oregon; CCC Camp 1652;
Columbia River Highway construction near Biggs, Oregon; Curry County coast line,
Mitchell vicinity, Oregon; Silver Creek Falls and vicinity, 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.
Personal Names :
Boardman, Samuel Herbert, 1874-1953
Langille, Harold D., 1874-1954
Langille, William A. (William Alexander), b. 1869--Archives
Corporate Names :
Cloud Cap Inn (Parkdale, Or.)
Oregon. State Parks and Recreation Division
Geographical Names :
Alaska--Photographs
Brazil--Photographs
Oregon--Photographs
Säao Paulo (Brazil)
Subject Terms :
Foresters--Alaska
Forests and forestry--Alaska
Forests and forestry--Brazil
Forests and forestry--Oregon
Forests and forestry--Oregon
Prospecting--Yukon Territory--Klondike River Valley
