Elva May Poole, the first black member of the Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps from Portland, being sworn in by D.K. MacDougall. Poole has her right arm raised, and the pair is standing in front of a partially obscured banner (negative 1 of 1).

African American war industry workers gathered in a room. Several men are sitting on bed. The workers photographed most likely relocated from New York to work in Kaiser shipyards in the Portland and Vancouver area? (negative 6 of 10). Possibly shot by Monner for the New York Daily News? Original sleeve title: War industry workers - for N.Y. Daily News - New Yorkers at home, negros at meeting.

Two African American war industry workers, wearing hats, sit side by side on a small bed, looking downward at an issue of the New York Daily News. The workers photographed most likely relocated from New York to work in Kaiser shipyards in the Portland and Vancouver area? (negative 7 of 10). Possibly shot by Monner for the New York Daily News? Original sleeve title: War industry workers - for N.Y. Daily News - New Yorkers at home, negros at meeting.

A black spiritual singer at Oregon Shipbuilding Corporation in Portland. He’s wearing a hard hat and carrying a lunch box with the initials B.T. written across the side (negative 1 of 3).

Seven month old Tigner quadruplets, in Portland. The siblings, wearing bonnets, are in a crib with a stuffed rabbit toy. From left to right: Dee Jerry, Carole Jessie, Beatrice Josephine, and August Joe. This photograph was published in the Oregon Journal on Sunday, April 6, 1947.

People using ham radios at the American Red Cross headquarters, at S.W. 15th Avenue and S.W. Alder Street in Portland, during a flooding event in Vanport. This photograph was published in the Oregon Journal on Monday, May 31, 1948 (negative 6 of 9).

Harold Miller at the Portland Armory, after being evacuated at a flood at the Portland Armory. He’s holding a sandwich and glass of milk. This photograph was published in the Oregon Journal on Monday, May 31, 1948 (negative 5 of 9).

Flood evacuees from Vanport City at the American Red Cross headquarters in Portland. The group is in front of a wood-clad wall, with some people sitting and others standing (negative 2 of 2).

A woman and child at Trinity Episcopal Church in Portland, after being evacuated from a flood in the Vanport City. The child is holding on to the woman and looking at the camera, while the woman, wearing a floral dress, looks downward (negative 1 of 2).

Children evacuated from Vanport during a flood, being housed at an American Legion Post in Portland. They’re sitting on the ground next to a woman, with emergency cots set up in the background. Photographs from this series were published in the Oregon Journal on Saturday, June 5, 1948 (negative 4 of 6).

Nurse Virginia Davidson, left, sits with a group of flood evacuees from Vanport, being housed at an American Legion Post in Portland. Several children are sitting with Davidson and other unidentified helpers. Jeanette Harris sits on Davidson’s lap. This photograph was published in the Oregon Journal on Saturday, June 5, 1948 (negative 2 of 6).

A man stirs a pot in a kitchen at an American Legion Post in Portland, being used as temporary housing for Vanport flood evacuees. Three other men stand behind him and smile. Photographs from this series were published in the Oregon Journal on Saturday, June 5, 1948 (negative 6 of 6).

Joe Boyington holds two children evacuated from Vanport during a flood, being housed at an American Legion Post in Portland. He’s smiling down at one of them, while both appear to be eating fruit. This photograph was published in the Oregon Journal on Saturday, June 5, 1948 (negative 5 of 6).

The Tigner quadruplets, born in Portland, holding a photograph (taken by Al Monner), of their mother and new twin siblings. In the photograph, Mrs. L.D. Tigner holds Donald (inside) and Daney (outside). Quadruplets are: Beatrice, Dee Jerry, Carol, and August, photographed at 30 months old. A similar photograph was published in the Oregon Journal on Sunday, March 27, 1949 (negative 1 of 6).

A runner crossing a finish line during a track meet between the University of Portland and the College of Puget Sound, most likely in Portland. The runner wears a University of Portland jersey as he runs into a string held over the track (negative 3 of 5).

A portrait of Tommy Felix, seated next to a dog, Fluff. Felix (9953 SE Ankeny Street), was awarded the metal after saving Fluff, who had fallen to the bottom of a well at S.E. 99th Avenue and Burnside Street. A similar photograph was published in the Oregon Journal on Thursday, April 23, 1953 (negative 2 of 3).

Three football players run towards the camera on a field at Jefferson High School in Portland, Oregon. The player on the left is wearing jersey #52. The player on the right is likely wearing jersey #21 (negative 5 of 6).

Sister Mary Dana, wearing a religious habit, stands beside an easel helping children paint at the Blessed Martin Interracial Day Nursery in Northeast Portland, Oregon. The children in the photograph are Black, Asian, and white. The day nursery was part of a program for interracial integration and cooperation (negative 1 of 9).

Henry Washington, a plumber trapped for 20 minutes at the base of a 20-foot deep collapsed trench, returning to work the next day. He wears a hard hat and is holding a shovel at the base of a trench (negative 1 of 4).

A group of Firefighters working to extinguish a structural fire at a hardware store on the corner of Vancouver Avenue and Russell Street. Several firefighters stand among smoking debris in the background of the photograph. In the foreground two Firefighters stand holding a fire hose. A young, African American boy stands beside them looking back at the camera (negative 2 of 2).

Four children stand side-by-side and smile behind a table in the social room of the Holy Rosary Church in Portland, Oregon. There are cakes, flowers, and a bowl of fruit punch on the table. They are the Tigner quadruplets, and they are celebrating their 12th birthday. Pictured left to right are Dee Jerry Tigner, Carole Tigner, Beatrice Tigner and August Tigner. Dee Jerry and August wear matching suits and Carole and Beatrice wear matching dresses. This photograph was published in the Oregon Journal on August 23, 1958 (negative 1 of 2).

View of a house on NE Winona Street in Portland. A woman on the front porch looks down at a baby in a stroller. The baby looks toward the camera. A white picket fence in front of the house displays a sign that reads, "Winona St." A garden is planted to the left of the house.

In the second interview session, conducted on September 11, 2020, Shepherd speaks further about her family background, focusing on her paternal family. She revisits the topic of her early life in the Eliot neighborhood, and talks about her Catholic upbringing and involvement with the Immaculate Heart Catholic Church. She discusses how the Black community changed after World War II, as well as changes in the way white people treated them. She then continues to discuss living in Vanport as a teenager during World War II, including her social life, recreational activities, and segregation. She also talks about her early education and about jobs she worked after dropping out. She shares her experiences during the 1948 flood, including living in Guild's Lake for a short time afterward.

Transcript. This oral history interview with Ida Mae Shepherd was conducted by Greta Smith Wisnewski from August 14 to October 26, 2020. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the interview was conducted using Zoom, a video conferencing software. Shepherd was nominated by Oregonians to be interviewed as part of a program by the Oregon Historical Society Research Library to enhance and expand the range of voices in the library's collections. Interviewees are selected from the pool of nominees by a staff committee appointed by the historical society's executive director. The interview was conducted in five sessions.

In the first interview session, conducted on August 14, 2020, Shepherd speaks at length about her family background, particularly focusing on the life of her maternal grandmother, Edith Goodell Lee. She discusses her early life in the Eliot neighborhood of Portland, Oregon, and talks about businesses in the area. She then briefly talks about living in Vanport during World War II. She discusses her research into her family history.

In the second interview session, conducted on September 11, 2020, Shepherd speaks further about her family background, focusing on her paternal family. She revisits the topic of her early life in the Eliot neighborhood, and talks about her Catholic upbringing and involvement with the Immaculate Heart Catholic Church. She discusses how the Black community changed after World War II, as well as changes in the way white people treated them. She then continues to discuss living in Vanport as a teenager during World War II, including her social life, recreational activities, and segregation. She also talks about her early education and about jobs she worked after dropping out. She shares her experiences during the 1948 flood, including living in Guild's Lake for a short time afterward.

In the third interview session, conducted on September 25, 2020, Shepherd discusses her marriage to Theodore Cassidy Powell. She then talks about living in the Albina neighborhood in the early 1950s. She also revisits the topic of how the Black community changed after World War II, as well as how the way white people treated them changed. She talks about working as a janitor at KGW, and about her brief marriage to Curley Massey. She speaks about her marriage to Emmett Edwin Shepherd, about buying a house in the Eliot neighborhood, and about the changes in the neighborhood since the 1960s. She talks about raising a family, about her career in housekeeping and janitorial services, and about her experiences during the civil rights movement, including meeting Coretta Scott King. She shares her thoughts about police treatment of Black residents, talks about the mass displacement of Black residents during the construction of I-5 in the 1960s, and discusses the Black community in the Albina area of Portland.

In the fourth interview session, conducted on October 9, 2020, Shepherd discusses her experiences picking hops in the 1930s. She shares a childhood drawing she created of a tavern on Union Avenue, as well as a photograph. She talks about the people who lived in the Eliot neighborhood, and discusses her children, their families, and their careers. She revisits the topic of her experiences during the civil rights movement, and the topic of the mass displacement of Black people during the construction of I-5 in the 1960s, as well as during the expansion of Emanuel Hospital in the 1970s. She speaks at length about her involvement with Albina Fair Share and about working to reduce the amount of abandoned houses in the neighborhood. She talks about her involvement with Immaculate Heart Catholic Church.

In the fifth and final interview session, conducted on October 26, 2020, Shepherd speaks at length about how the Albina area of Portland, particularly the Eliot neighborhood, changed over her life. She also shares her reasons for living nearly her entire life in the area. She discusses how the ways that white and Black Portlanders interact have changed over her life. She talks about the death of her husband, Emmett E. Shepherd, about her volunteer work since her retirement in the late 1980s, and how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected her activities. She discusses the political situation at the time of the interview in 2020, including protests in Portland and the presidential election. She closes the interview by talking about her recent stroke and recovery.

In the third interview session, conducted on September 25, 2020, Shepherd discusses her marriage to Theodore Cassidy Powell. She then talks about living in the Albina neighborhood in the early 1950s. She also revisits the topic of how the Black community changed after World War II, as well as how the way white people treated them changed. She talks about working as a janitor at KGW, and about her brief marriage to Curley Massey. She speaks about her marriage to Emmett Edwin Shepherd, about buying a house in the Eliot neighborhood, and about the changes in the neighborhood since the 1960s. She talks about raising a family, about her career in housekeeping and janitorial services, and about her experiences during the civil rights movement, including meeting Coretta Scott King. She shares her thoughts about police treatment of Black residents, talks about the mass displacement of Black residents during the construction of I-5 in the 1960s, and discusses the Black community in the Albina area of Portland.

In the first interview session, conducted on August 14, 2020, Shepherd speaks at length about her family background, particularly focusing on the life of her maternal grandmother, Edith Goodell Lee. She discusses her early life in the Eliot neighborhood of Portland, Oregon, and talks about businesses in the area. She then briefly talks about living in Vanport during World War II. She discusses her research into her family history.

In the fourth interview session, conducted on October 9, 2020, Shepherd discusses her experiences picking hops in the 1930s. She shares a childhood drawing she created of a tavern on Union Avenue, as well as a photograph. She talks about the people who lived in the Eliot neighborhood, and discusses her children, their families, and their careers. She revisits the topic of her experiences during the civil rights movement, and the topic of the mass displacement of Black people during the construction of I-5 in the 1960s, as well as during the expansion of Emanuel Hospital in the 1970s. She speaks at length about her involvement with Albina Fair Share and about working to reduce the amount of abandoned houses in the neighborhood. She talks about her involvement with Immaculate Heart Catholic Church.