Oral History Collections

Audio and/or transcripts of oral history interviews held by Portland State University Library Special Collections and University Archives:

  • Black United Front Oral History Project
    Transcripts of interviews with African American activists in Portland who led or supported the work of the Black United Front. The interviews were conducted by PSU public history students during 2008 and 2010.
  • Carole Pope Legacy Project
    Interviews feature individuals directly impacted by Pope and her program, Our New Beginnings (1980-1992), a Portland-based sentencing alternative for women embroiled in the criminal justice system. This collection complements the Carole Pope Papers collection.
  • Portland State University Oral Histories
    Interviews with faculty, staff and administrators capturing the first-person insight of those instrumental to the development and success of Portland State.
  • Sustainability History Project
    Interviews conducted by Portland State University senior capstone students with area businesses and institutions that are implementing sustainability strategies. The range of topics includes education, agriculture, food supply, housing, green building, reuse, recycling, landscaping, forestry, reclamation, green burial, transportation, and policy making.
  • Vanport Mosaic
    PSU Library Special Collections has partnered with Vanport Mosaic to preserve and share the interviews and documentaries facilitated by Vanport Mosaic’s ongoing participatory oral history project. These short documentaries draw upon archival footage, historic photographs, and first-person narratives to tell the stories of the community that made up the city of Vanport.