Gus Frederick

Gus Frederick is a native Oregonian, born in Salem in 1954, 100 years after his hometown of Silverton was founded. He is by training a filmmaker and photographer, although he has broadened that term by necessity to multimedia artist. He works as a conceptual artist, photographer, filmmaker and animator. A long-time local history enthusiast, he continues to be fascinated with many of the incredible stories from the Silverton Country.

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About the SCHS

SCHS Buildings

Silverton Country Historical Society & Country Museum It all began at an old-timers picnic in the summer of 1974, when a small group of people, proud of their place in Silverton’s history dating back to its founding in 1854, decided that as much heritage as possible should be preserved for future generations and placed in …

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Abiqua Carbon

Coleman Bridge

Pioneer Petrochemical Activities In the Summer of 1972 when our family moved to Silverton, my parents purchased a bit over seven acres of land along the Abiqua Creek. As the largest lot in the El Romar sub-development—adjacent to what is now known as The Concrete Bridge—it was the only one to include creek frontage. My …

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Frank S. Bowers; Cartoonist

Frank S. Bowers

Every so often, an artifact saved for one purpose becomes a valued clue to another! Case in point, a birthday-gifted copy of the Silverton Appeal-Tribune from August 5, 1982. It was saved for it’s coverage of that year’s Homer Davenport Days, the second annual celebration under that name. That year, the International Cartoon Contest was …

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Silverton’s Power Women

Eva Coolidge

Announcing the Silverton Power Women collection! An initial series of six “collectors cards” highlighting notable females from of the Silverton Country. Featured are Silverton’s own Flora Davenport, Polly Coon-Price, Eva Coolidge, Flora Hoblitt, Zetta Schlador and Helen Kleeb. Each card features a photograph and brief biography. For now the cards are available at the Museum …

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Gallon House Bridge Turns 100

Portrait of a People

In 2016 the historic bridge turned 100!  Built in 1916, the Gallon House Bridge is the last covered bridge, as well as the oldest bridge, in Marion County, and one of the oldest bridges in Oregon. The 84 foot Howe truss bridge is located over Abiqua Creek a little more than a mile northwest of …

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Grant Funds Display System

With the acquisition in 2014 of an additional 14 original Homer Davenport cartoons, it soon became apparent that a means to display these incredible works of art, was problematic owing to their size, averaging 2 by 3 feet each. Enter SCHS volunteer craftsman Larry Thomas, who designed and later built an ingenious “sliding cabinet” system …

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Museum Closed for Cleaning

Our annual “Spruce-Up” of exhibits, file organizing, Website optimization and everything else that goes with a small town Historical Society, is set to commence after the Veteran’s Day holiday on November 11. As such, the museum will be closed until February. We are available for research by appointment though. Click on the CONTACT US link …

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Newsletter Archives Now Online!

HDCF Logo

As a service to the heritage of our community, we make all past editions of our monthly newsletter available free of charge here in our archives. The free Adobe Acrobat Reader is required to view them. Click on the Archives tab in the header to visit the Newsletter Archives page!

About Silverton

The town of Silverton was founded in 1854 in the Willamette Valley. The Molalla and Calapooia Tribes lived in the region prior to the pioneers’ arrival. The surrounding region became known by the settlers as the Silverton Country, a vast expanse which includes several other small communities, including Mt. Angel and Scotts Mills. Majestic landmarks …

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