As of Friday, March 13, the collection of Oregon’s films, photos, trail diaries, propaganda posters, and transit maps that for decades anyone could use to research Oregon’s history is no longer open to the public.
The timing of the closure is ironic. In mid-February, state legislators celebrated Oregon’s 150th birthday at the capitol building in Salem by consuming a reported 423 pounds of cake and 3,100 hot dogs. In between mouthfuls, Senate President Peter Courtney, dressed in period costume, gave a speech emphasizing the importance of Oregon’s history.
Rachel Schoening, OHS spokeswoman, says the society has run up “a huge deficit” since the state cut its funding in 2001. “We basically ran ourselves into the ground,” says Schoening.
The Oregon Historical Society took steps Friday to reopen its shuttered research library, but the lack of a long-term solution to its budget crunch still worries regional historians.
Society officials announced that the library, which is popular with historians and researchers, will reopen by the end of this month with a skeleton staff.
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