1. Online Archive of Black
History and Culture in
Portland, Or
Roberta Hunte, Black Studies Department
Joan Petit, PSU Library
Ethan Johnson, Black Studies
Patricia Schechter, History
2. Possibility Unbound:
A Preview of the Verdell and Otto Rutherford Collection
Portland State University students will
present their findings among the
treasures of the Rutherford papers
and discuss the state of the
collection as a resource for students,
teachers, and other researchers
interested in African American
history and the Oregon experience.
Questions? Contact schechp@pdx.edu
Sponsored by Library Special Collections,
the History Department, the Black
Studies Department and the
Diversity Action Council
THURSDAY MARCH 22nd 3:30 PM Rm 160 PSU LIBRARY
Editor's Notes
Verdell Burdine Rutherford (1913-2001) and Otto G. Rutherford (1911-2000) were leading members of the African American community in Portland for much of the twentieth century. Through the local NAACP chapter, the couple shepherded into law Oregon’s landmark public accommodations bill prohibiting racial discrimination in 1953. Throughout the 1950s and 60s, they coordinated efforts among numerous local organizations, including Bethel A.M.E. Church, the Culture Club, the Urban League, the YWCA, and the Oregon Association of Colored Women’s Clubs in order to advance the civil rights movement. The Rutherfords also served the community by establishing the NAACP Federal Credit union in their home at NE 9 th and Shaver; the home was landmarked in 1997. The Rutherford collection contains records of all these activities and more, as the home served as a repository for local history, largely the result of Verdell Rutherford’s documentary efforts. For decades, both Otto and Verdell provided background materials, photographs, and other information touching African American history to the media, at numerous community events, and to the Oregon Historical Society and Oregon Public Broadcasting.
