Photograph of ten railroad officials gathered around a desk during a meeting in Portland on Thursday, May 6, 1920. A cropped version of this photograph was published on the front page of the Oregon Journal city edition on Friday, May 7, 1920, under the headline “Morgan, Harriman, Rockefeller, Chiefs in Notable Conference.” The photograph had the following caption: “Photograph taken Thursday evening of heads of great transcontinental lines at the close of their three-day conference in Portland. These sessions were among the most important held by railroad officials in the West in recent years and brought together the controlling geniuses of the rival Hill and Harriman systems. The meetings were held in the offices of J. P. O’Brien in the Wells Fargo building. Shown in the photograph are: Seated, left to right—J. P. O’Brien, president North Pacific Terminal Company; William Sproule, president Southern Pacific; Carl R. Gray, president Union Pacific system; L. C. Gilman, president S., P & S. [Spokane, Portland and Seattle Railway]; Ralph Budd, president Great Northern; George T. Reid, assistant to president Northern Pacific. Standing, left to right—J. H. Dyer, general manager Southern Pacific; A. C. Spencer, general attorney O-W.R. & N. [Oregon Railroad and Navigation Company]; James H. O’Neill, general manager Great Northern; Ben C. Dey, legal counsel Southern Pacific.” The photograph accompanied a story headlined “Rival Roads Seek Closer Working Plan.” Image note: The text “Railroad president [sic] / 1920” is written on the negative sleeve.
