Bert Russell Oral History collection
Content Description
Research material for the book "Rock Burst." Cassette recordings of interview conducted by Bert Rusell. The Bert Russell Oral History Tapes span the year 1971-1979 and consist of twenty-four cassette tapes containing oral interviews of Idaho and Eastern Washington residents. Interviews tell of personal histories and local community and natural occurrences.
Dates
- Creation: 1971-1978
Conditions Governing Access
Collection is open for research
Biographical / Historical
Bert Russell was born on February 15, 1909 in Harrison, Idaho and was raised on his family’s sawmill. During World War II, he worked as an electrician at the Vancouver Shipyards in Washington. He also found work as a logger and timber cruiser, eventually owning his own lumber company (Russell Lumber Company) in Springston, Idaho. In 1946, he married his wife, Marie, with whom he had two children: Judy and Walter Russell. In addition to his career in lumber, Russell also worked as a land developer, rancher, and writer. He wrote five books: North Folk of the Coeur d’Alene River, Caulked Boots and Other Northwest Writings, The Sawdust Dream, Hardships and Happy Times, and Rock Burst. The writing of Russell’s final book, Rock Burst, was assisted by Marie, who completed transcribing his interviews of old miners from the Harrison area after he was moved to a nursing home in 1993 and unable to do so himself. In his final years, Russell was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease; he passed away on April 4, 1997 in Harrison, Idaho.
Extent
0.5 Cubic Feet
Language of Materials
English
Abstract
Research material for the book "Rock Burst." Cassette tapes containing oral interviews of Idaho and Eastern Washington residents.
Arrangement
Tapes are arranged alphabetically by first name. Interviews of the same interviewee are grouped generally together, though there a few discrepancies by nature of some tapes containing interviews of multiple individuals.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Found in collection in 1984, donor unknown.
Topical
- Title
- Guide to Russell (Bert) Papers
- Status
- Completed
- Author
- Finding Aid prepared by Trixie Zwolfer
- Date
- 2024
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Repository Details
Part of the University of Idaho Library, Special Collections and Archives Repository