Mountain Architecture: An Alternative Design Proposal
for the
Wy'East Day Lodge, Mount Hood Oregon
by Thomas P. Deering, Jr.

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

Publications

Newspaper Articles [Text versions to be published on-line in the near future]

• Labors with Wrought Iron To Make a Living and Sings at His Work - The Oregon Sunday Journal, Portland. 1938 [Scanned image 93K]
  
• Beauty in Iron, Stone and Wood - September 1975 [Scanned image 51K]
  
• Timberline artist: Metal forger, 79, keeps hand in - The Oregonian - December 3, 1975 [Scanned Image 74K]
  

Other Publications [Authorization to publish on-line pending]

• Oliver [Orion] B. Dawson - The Ironwork of Timberline - Oregon Historical Quarterly - Vol LXXVI, No. 3 - September 1975, Oregon Historical Society
  
• Rachel Force - Blacksmith: The Significance and Preservation of O.B. Dawson's Ironwork for the WPA - Thesis, M.S. Historic Preservation, Univeristy of Oregon, 2004
  Abstract: Orion Benjamin Dawson was a master blacksmith, working in Oregon, who produced numerous artworks in iron for the Federal Art Project under the Works Progress Administration during the Great Depression. The Art Project sponsored artists in a variety of mediums and set a precedent for federal support of the arts. Due to WPA support, Dawson produced ornamental ironwork for the public on a scale that would otherwise have been impossible. His work during this period was primarily focused on ironwork projects at the University of Oregon, Oregon State University and Timberline Lodge. No major study of Dawson's work has previously been undertaken. This thesis demonstrates the historical, cultural and artistic significance of this work. By presenting a survey of Dawson’s projects for the WPA from 1935 to 1941 the first step of a preservation plan is achieved, that of documenting the resources. Finally, the thesis provides recommendations for continued preservation.

Photos

Orion B. Dawson

Dawson 4/21/27

Dawson c. 1976

Dawson & Wife (1974)

Work

The 1930s Dawson Workshop Dawson is third from the right, pointing to the anvil. (Click on photo to enlarge.)

The Timberline Dining Room Gates (Click on photo to enlarge.)

On-Line Resources

• Knight Library History - University of Oregon
  
• The Motor Age: 1914 - 1940 - Eugene, Oregon
  
• ALUMNI & THESES - University of Oregon - Rachel Force Thesis Abstract (2004)
  
• Willamette National Cemetery Portland, Multnomah County, Oregon
  
  
• Timberline Lodge - Photos from UMSD (University of Michigan Slide Distribution). Several details of the iron work.

Sources

Most of the above was supplied to me by one of Orion's daughters.