Forrest E. Rieke collection on the Oregon Shipbuilding Corporation (Kaiser Company)
Scope and Contents
The materials consist of papers and research notes created and compiled by Medical Director of the Oregon Shipbuilding Yards, Forrest E. Rieke, M.D.; inter-office memorandums from Rieke to staff members of the OSC regarding health in the workplace; several reprints of reports regarding industrial health created by members of the University of Oregon Medical School; and notes compiled for a presentation given by Rieke regarding nurse provision of healthcare to industrial workers.
Dates
- 1937-1945
- Majority of material found within 1944 - 1945
Creator
- University of Oregon. Medical School (Associated name, Organization)
Conditions Governing Access
There are no restrictions on access. The collection is open to the public.
Conditions Governing Use
OHSU Historical Collections & Archives (HC&A) is the owner of the original materials and digitized images in our collections, however, the collection may contain materials for which copyright is not held. Patrons are responsible for determining the appropriate use or reuse of materials. Consult with HC&A to determine if we can provide permission for use.
Biographical/Historical Note
Forrest E. Rieke, M.D., was born in 1913 in Seattle, Washington. Rieke attended Willamette University, Oregon State College, and the University of Oregon Medical School. He earned his medical degree from UOMS in 1945. After graduation, Rieke interned with the Multnomah County Hospital. Dr. Rieke married Mary Whitelaw Rieke, State Representative, R-Portland, in 1940. They gave birth to two sons and one daughter.
Dr. Rieke specialized in occupational and industrial health, serving during WWII as medical director of the Oregon Shipbuilding Corporation. The Oregon Shipbuilding Corporation, located in St. Johns, was among three Kaiser Shipyards established in Portland, Oregon. These shipyards were built in order to mass assemble war ships during WWII. The Oregon Shipbuilding Corporation was closed after the war ended in 1945 and became Schnitzer Steel Industries in 1946. There he worked in the 24-hour infirmary, seeing from 1,000 to 33,000 employees a day. During his time with the OSC, he also conducted research and presented papers addressing industrial workplace related health concerns. Rieke was also active in efforts to provide more adequate radioactive protection for industrial workers, even presenting in November 1972 at the Management of Radioactive Wastes from Fuel Reprocessing Symposium.
On January 26, 1978, while working in Costa Rica for the Oregon Partners of the Americas, both Mary and Forrest were tragically killed in a car accident.
Information obtained from the Oregon Shipbuilding Corporation Wikipedia page.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oregon_Shipbuilding_Corporation
Achievements and Memberships:
On the Board of Directors of the Portland Chamber of Commerce and the Comprehensive Health Planning Association of Portland
President of Oregon Partners of the Americas, providing assorted aid to Costa Rica.
Member of the Executive Committee of the National Association of Partners of the Americas
Oregon State Board of Health 1957-1967 - elected vice president in 1959 and president in 1962
Appointed Director of the Health Planning Committee by Governor McCall in 1967
Winner of the 1969 Multnomah County Medical Society Service Award
1973 Doctor-Citizen of the Year by Oregon Medical Association
Extent
1 Linear Feet
Language of Materials
English
Abstract
The materials consist of papers regarding industrial health and safety in the workplace, most of which were created and compiled by Medical Director of the Oregon Shipbuilding Corporation, Forrest E. Rieke, M.D. The Oregon Shipbuilding Corporation, located in St. Johns, was among three Kaiser Shipyards established in Portland, Oregon in order to mass assemble war ships during WWII.
Other Finding Aids
The following institutions contain archival materials related to the Oregon Shipbuilding Corporation or the Kaiser Company in Oregon:
Oregon Shipbuilding Corporation photographic collection, Oregon Historical Society
http://nwda.orbiscascade.org/ark:/80444/xv07415
Kaiser shipyard child care center collection, Oregon Historical Society
http://nwda.orbiscascade.org/ark:/80444/xv78421
Acquisition Information
Acquisition information was unknown at the time of processing. Because the majority of the papers were created by Medical Director of the Oregon Shipbuilding Corporation, Forrest E. Rieke, M.D., or are related to industrial workplace health, original ownership is suspected to be traced back to Rieke.
Creator
- University of Oregon. Medical School (Associated name, Organization)
- Rieke, Forrest E. (Writer of accompanying material, Person)
- Title
- Guide to the Forrest E. Rieke collection on the Oregon Shipbuilding Corporation (Kaiser Company)
- Status
- Completed
- Author
- Crystal Rodgers
- Date
- 2007
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
- Language of description note
- Finding aid written in English.
Repository Details
Part of the Oregon Health & Science University, Historical Collections & Archives Repository