Oregon Koto Kai Ensemble at the Corvallis Museum
Next Sunday, Music at the Museum will feature the Oregon Koto Kai Ensemble. What exactly is a koto? The koto, often called the national instrument of Japan, is one of many related stringed instruments in the zither category. The Benton County Historical Society’s collection does not have any koto but does contain several zithers, such […]
Labor Day Reflections
Labor Day was last Monday (September 4, 2023). These photographs from the museum’s collection show Benton County workers from different periods in our history. Carpentry work has employed many people, both in the past and today. In this 1939 photograph, the men are demolishing part of the Hout house to make way for a new […]
Willamette Grange 150th Anniversary
On August 19, 2023, the Willamette Grange #52 celebrated its 150th anniversary and the 100th birthday of its grange hall. In 1873, 30 people from 18 different families formed the Willamette Grange, making it the oldest Grange in Benton County, and the second oldest active chapter in the state of Oregon. The Grange is a […]
Corvallis Fire Department
The 2023 Water Works exhibition at the Benton County Historical Society’s Philomath Museum explores the many ways we use water. Extinguishing fires became an important civic use in an era when most commercial buildings in town were wooden. In July, 1872, a group of local men established the Corvallis Engine Company No. 1. Later that […]
Featured Artifacts: Spats
Holiday time has often meant events such as concerts, parties, and weddings. Until the late 1920s, a well-dressed man attending these events would need these items from the Benton County Historical Society’s collection. These spats cover the top of one’s shoes up over the ankle and fasten underneath the sole. “Spats” – short for spatter-dashes […]
Passing of the Umbrella
The current exhibition at the Benton County Historical Society’s Philomath Museum, Water Works, looks at the sources and uses of water in our lives. Rain provides much of our water. And rain, at least, hard rain, means umbrellas. When researching the historical society’s collection of umbrellas, I came across this beautiful one from Japan. This […]
Continued Reminiscenses of Therese Graff Tanalski
In this second installment of the reminiscences of Therese Graf Tanalski, she remembers construction of the family home. “Impressions of the house at 306 South 8th being built are vivid. I was nine when we moved in. The mansion, called by many “graf’s Barn” because the stark modern-Tudor 8th Street facade was unusual in a […]
Scratching Memory’s Surface: Reminiscences
One item in the Benton County Historical Society’s archives collection is an account entitled, “Scratching Memory’s Surface: Reminiscences” by Therese Graf Tanalski. Therese was born in 1922 and raised in Corvallis, the daughter of Samuel H. Graf, professor of engineering at what was then Oregon Agricultural College (now OSU). She wrote these reminiscences at age […]
Corvallis Soda Works
The first bottle was made in a mold and embossed with the words, “Corvallis Soda Works” and is thought to date from 1908. The second bottle, also from the Corvallis Soda Works, features an applied color label (ACL) in blue and white. This process, in which painted labels are baked onto the glass, came into […]
Theodolite
This object from the Benton County Historical Society’s Horner collection is a theodolite made by the Oertling Company of Berlin Germany. It was purchased by the U. S. government in 1865 for use in surveying the Great Lakes in order to produce nautical charts to aid navigation there. Theodolites consist of a telescope mounted above […]