Biographical Note
Gerald W. Williams worked for the U.S. Forest Service from 1979 until
his retirement in 2005. From 1979 to 1993, he was a sociologist with the
Umpqua and Willamette National Forests in Oregon; in 1993-1998, he served
as the regional sociologist for the Pacific Northwest Regional Office in
Portland; and from 1998 until his retirement in 2005 he was the national
historian for the U.S. Forest Service in Washington, D.C. Williams
designed and implemented a regional and national history program for the
Forest Service which culminated in his appointment as national historian
and his authorship of the centennial history of the Forest Service,
The USDA Forest Service -- The First
Century, in 2000. He has published more than 75 books, chapters,
book reviews, and articles and conference papers exploring a variety of
historical topics such as the Native American use of fire to manage
environments, the Civilian Conservation Corps, and the U.S. Army's Spruce
Production Division during World War I.
Williams is a native of Oregon and earned degrees from Southern Oregon
University (B.A., Sociology; M.A. General Studies Social Science) and
Washington State University (Ph.D., Sociology).
Content Description
The Gerald W. Williams Collection consists of Williams' personal
papers; the historic photograph collection that he assembled; photographs
taken by Williams and his family; oral histories; maps; moving images and
sound recordings; and posters, ephemera, and artifacts pertaining to
forestry, environmental history, Native Americans, and geography of the
Pacific Northwest.
Williams' personal papers include 35 years of his research notes,
manuscripts, and final publications. Included in this component of the
collection are copies of more than 6000 documents from the papers of
Gifford Pinchot, the first chief of the U.S. Forest Service, which are
held at the Library of Congress. The papers also include materials
pertaining to Judge John B. Waldo, the first 100 years of the U.S. Forest
Service, the geography and place names of the McKenzie River region, the
Civilian Conservation Corps, and the U.S. Army Spruce Production
Division.
The historic photographs collected by Williams include thousands of
postcards from the 1900s through 1940s, documenting watersheds, forests,
and communities throughout the Pacific Northwest, with a focus on Oregon.
Other historic photographs include a large collection of Oregon and
California postcards made by photographer Frank Patterson, a Medford
photographer and northwest Oregon and southwest Washington logging scenes
taken by John Fletcher Ford (circa 1900-1915). There are also photographs
documenting the U.S. Army Spruce Production Division in Oregon and
Washington during World War I, large format prints of early 20th century
forestry scenes in Washington and Oregon made by renowned photographers
Darius and Clark Kinsey, and images depicting Native Americans. A variety
of formats are represented including photographic prints, postcards,
sterographic images, and glass lantern slides.
The photographs taken by Williams consist primarily of color slides,
photographic prints, and film negatives. These include images of national
parks and forests in Oregon and Washington, the McKenzie River region of
Oregon, and vacation photos. Of particular note are slides of Celilo Falls
taken by Williams' father, Jack Williams, in September 1956, a few months
before the falls were inundated by The Dalles Dam.
The oral histories include sound recordings and transcripts of
interviews of U.S. Forest Service employees in preparation for the Forest
Service centennial as well as with residents of the McKenzie River region.
Several publications of forestry-related oral histories are included.
The maps consist of items assembled by Williams for his research and
for their historic value. They include maps and brochures for national
forests throughout the United States; framed historic maps; topographic
maps; and maps of Civilian Conservation Corps structures.
The moving images include films, VHS videotapes, and DVDs commemorating
the centennial of the U.S. Forest Service and pertaining to the Civilian
Conservation Corps in Oregon and Washington, heritage resource management,
and national forest roads. The sound recordings include cassette tapes of
speeches, special events, and radio interviews. A CD of a production on
the sounds of the forest is also included.
The collection also includes political posters, a scrapbook documenting
the Smoky the Bear anniversary traveling exhibit, and ephemera and
artifacts of the Forest Service and the Civilian Conservation Corps.