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Reviews
THE JOURNAL OF THE SHAW HISTORICAL LIBRARY
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| A Publication of the Shaw Historical Library, Oregon Institute of Technology, Klamath Falls, Oregon. |
| Generally, one reviews a work that has recently been published or that has a particular relevance to a current event or historical commemoration. This review, however, addresses a journal that first appeared in 1986 and that published its twentieth volume in 2006. This noteworthy landmark makes for a fitting time to recognize an important but often overlooked contribution to the scholarly literature of the state of Oregon and the Pacific Northwest. |
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The Journal of the Shaw Historical Library is a publication of the Shaw Historical Library at the Oregon Institute of Technology in Klamath Falls. Founded in 1983 by Laurence L. and Dorothy Shaw, the library collects and provides access to resources on the region surrounding Klamath Falls known as the Land of Lakes, which also encompasses portions of northeastern California, northwestern Nevada, and south-central and southeastern Oregon. Reflecting the collecting interests of Laurence Shaw, who donated his collection to OIT, the Library includes materials on logging and the lumber industry, railroad, agriculture, Native American history, and western migration, particularly as it relates to the Klamath Basin. In 1986, the Library began to publish scholarly articles, reminiscences, and announcements related to the primary focus of its collection. The first four volumes appeared in two issues annually (Fall and Spring). Beginning with Volume Five (1991), the Journal was published annually in a single volume. |
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In the late 1990s, the format of the Journal changed and the editors adopted a more concentrated approach on themes such as: "We Can Take It: The Civilian Conservation Corps in the Land of the Lakes," vol. 20, 2006; "A Question of Loyalty: Internment at Tule Lake," 2005; "Sheep Trails: Sheep Ranching in the Land of the Lakes," 2004; "Service & Sacrifice: Klamath Basin Life Through Two World Wars," 2003; "And Then We Logged: The Timber Industry in the Klamath Basin," 2002; "The Mountain With A Hold In the Top: Reflections on Crater Lake," 2001; "The Devil's Homestead: Celebrating 75 Years at the Lava Beds National Monument," 2000; "A River Never the Same: A History of Water in the Klamath Basin," 1999; and "A Passion for Mountains: The Journals of Edward Stuhl," 1998. |
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As these theme issues suggest, the journal covers a wide range of topics of interest not only to readers in the geographic area of the Land of the Lakes but also to those throughout the Pacific Northwest and beyond. In addition to scholarly articles, interviews, and reminiscences, there is a valuable bibliographic essay on "Shaw Historical Library Resources" that are related to the theme of each volume. Scholarly articles are well documented and each volume is heavily illustrated with appropriate photographs, maps, charts, and other visual resources. The Journal is abstracted and indexed in Historical Abstracts and America: History and Life, providing broad access to the scholarship it publishes. |
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The most recent volume on the Civilian Conservation Corps offers a rich array of examinations of an important federal program of the 1930s that played a vital role in many aspects of the region's history. Twenty-four CCC camps in the Land of the Lakes region are explored in fourteen contributions, which range from reports of camp life through camp newspapers and contemporary histories written for visitors to the camps to photographic essays and post-CCC lives of some of the camps. The compilation provides a thorough and valuable contribution to the study of the Civilian Conservation Corps in the West. |
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The Journal of the Shaw Memorial Library is an important resource in the scholarship and documentation of the Land of the Lakes. As the Journal enters its third decade of existence, it is worthy to note its value and to hope for its long lasting publication. The Journal is available by subscription and through membership to the Shaw Library Association. Some back issues are available. |
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| James J. Kopp
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| Lewis & Clark College |
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