Can you guess the artifact?
Can you guess what this object might be from our collection? It's palm-sized and shiny and, most importantly, connects to Lake Oswego history in a big way...
Stay tuned to the end of the newsletter to find out!
Thank you for helping us reach our end of year goal of collecting an additional $2,000! You DOUBLED our goal, with all proceeds going towards a joint project with the Lake Oswego Preservation Society, preservation consultants for some of our most fragile artifacts, new and expanded educational programs, house maintenance, and more opportunities for people to engage with local history.
In 2024, we grew the number of people the Oswego Heritage Council reached by 48.6%! That means over 2,000 people engaged with local history, and because of generous donations from community members like you, we're excited to grow that number even further in the new year.
So whether you gave monetarily, are a member of the museum, share our posts on social media, or connect with us in a different way, you're part of a growing effort to preserve the past and enrich the future of our community. Our work would not be possible without you.
THANK YOU FOR ALL YOUR SUPPORT!
Kathryn Sinor
Executive Director
Last month, our Board of Directors was invited on a special trolley ride with the Willamette Shore Trolley. If you haven't had the chance to take the trolley from Lake Oswego to Portland, we highly recommend it! The guides were filled with amazing historical information, and given how much we all love history, it was a perfect little expedition.
THANK YOU, WILLAMETTE SHORE TROLLEY, FOR THE RIDE!
COMING SOON...
We will also be presenting this annual report at our upcoming ANNUAL MEMBER MEETING, so make sure you mark your calendar for Saturday, February 15th, from 10:00 AM - 11:00 AM!
Recently, Archivist Mark Browne took one of his presentations out on the road. This presentation covered the topic of Edith Schryver and Elizabeth Lord, two landscape architects who were the first women in the Pacific Northwest to own and operate their own landscape architecture firm between 1929 and 1969.
Using research from the Lord & Schryver Conservancy in Salem, along with additional resources, Mark Browne highlighted several places in Lake Oswego designed by the pair, including some still in existence today.
Did you guess the artifact?
Here's a quote that will reveal all:
"At intervals and at the end of each casting the cinder, or slag, embracing the bulk of the impurities of the materials charged into the furnace, is drawn off and run out of doors. This is a product of no particular value, though it is sometimes crushed and used for paving streets, when not too hard and sharp."
-Iron Manufacture at Oswego, The West Shore, Nov. 2, 1889
Were you able to guess this is SLAG, a byproduct of Oswego's iron furnace? Many people think it's obsidian, which makes sense given its shiny appearance! Have you ever handled slag before?
