BEARD LIFE: WHY ADDING OREGON HISTORY TO THE STORY MATTERS

In the middle of every February it’s always the same: Oregon’s birthday, Valentine’s Day, and a celebration of beard life all at the same time.

This year I brought some extra beard life to the chocolate and the lemon birthday cake. They both wore well.

Before you mistake this for another cake eating blog post, let’s agree on one thing: visiting a history museum any time is a key part of being a good citizen. (So does writing twenty six pages of Oregon history posts.)

I could say the Oregon History Museum at the Oregon Historical Society in downtown Portland is just another box to check now and then, like church attendance at Christmas and Easter.

How is an Oregon history fan any different than a Chreaster christian? Checking in at a familiar church confirms that all is good in the worship world; that never happens in a good history museum.

The biggest difference is the learning curve; there’s always something new in the museum. Did you know how to make a color woodblock print?

Now you do.

This comes from one of the old bosses:

In its unbroken continuity since 1898, OHS has maintained, through often parlous times, a commitment to the enduring value of the study of the state’s people and their history. In the words of Thomas Vaughan, the Oregon Historical Society and its members are the “stewards of our unfinished past.”

I added the bold to ‘stewards of our unfinished past’ to emphasis that the only time history is settled is when no one talks about it anymore. Once the stories, and interest in finding more, stops being a priority, history falls into a predictable rut.

In Oregon, that would be a wagon rut.

Serious History Needs Serious Beard Life

How many times have you been at an event, a lecture, a class, and thought, “Wouldn’t this be a lot better with a beard?”

If you have, then you’re right. If the beard doesn’t ‘t work out, get a bolo tie. You won’t find one like the silver and turquoise beauty my Grandpa gave me, but that’s not the point. If you don’t have a beard to pull on, go bolo.

The sweet message from OHS on Oregon’s 161st, besides the cake? The place looked in good shape for the work it does.

Did I heard someone ask, “What work?”

The society’s museum cares for an estimated 85,000 artifacts;and the Davies Family Research Library estimates that it holds more than 35,000 books and pamphlets, 3.5 million photographic images, 30,000 maps, 8.5 million feet of film and video, 16,000 rolls of microfilm, 1,000 periodical titles, 12,000 lineal shelf feet of manuscript materials, and oral history interviews with more than 6,000 Oregonians. The society’s collections are without doubt the largest and most comprehensive on the globe supporting research on Oregon history.

“Most comprehensive on the globe” is pretty catchy, don’t you agree? If not, I’ll interpret: World Class Institute Dedicated to Oregon History.

(And beard life in Portland, Oregon.)

In spite of this shameless attempt at sneaking some beard life into familiar symbols, the message isn’t new. If you feel like you know all there is to know about something, congratulations. Now you’ve reached the beginning of the real work.

Whether it’s Oregon, Illinois, or Virginia, these universal words printed large inside the Oregon History Museum serve as a needed reminder. I would add ‘different beards’ just to round things out.