 Do you have a Tom McCall story to share? Did you ever meet Tom, or has his life and work motivated and inspired you? We'd love to add it here and on our Facebook page. Please email your story to [email protected].
 Last night in Newport, Charles Johnson presented a talk on former Governor Bob Straub, Tom McCall's political rival and successor. Johnson is author of the biography of Straub, "Standing at the Water's Edge," published last year by OSU Press. Straub was State Treasurer during most of McCall's governorship. He lost the 1966 and 1970 races for governor to McCall before finally winning the job in 1974. The two men were frenemies before the term was coined. Although they were from different political parties, they shared many of the same goals and visions for Oregon, especially in the environmental arena. Each helped the other realize many of those goals.
“You and I shouldn’t claim we love Oregon more than anyone else, but that we love Oregon as much as anyone. Our thoughts today, and our deliberations to come, must spring from our determination to keep Oregon lovable and to make it even more livable."--Tom McCall, Address to the 1973 Legislature  Almost 40 years ago, the McCall family (Tad, Tom, Audrey and Sam) invited you to climb aboard the McCall Bandwagon as Tom launched his campaign for Secretary of State. Now a new McCall badwagon's about to launch. We invite you to get on board at www.tommccall.org
“There's been a lot of bad mouthing about 'visit but don't stay'. It served its purpose. We were saying 'visit but don't stay' because Oregon, queen bee though she is, is not yet ready for the swarm. I am simply saying that Oregon is demure and lovely, and it ought to play a little hard to get. And I think you'll all be just as sick as I am if you find it is nothing but a hungry hussy, throwing herself at every stinking smokestack that's offered.” Tom McCall, July 1982  Anyone who wants to know more about what shaped Tom McCall as a person needs to know about his remarkable mother, Dorothy Lawson McCall. She published two memoirs, "The Copper King's Daughter," which told about her growing up as the daughter of one of the richest men in America, and "Ranch Under the Rimrock," the tale of her early life on the central Oregon property where Tom McCall grew up. Her Oregon Encyclopedia entry is here: http://www.oregonencyclopedia.org/entry/view/mccall_dorothy_lawson/  By Bill Hall, Lincoln County Commissioner
Recently I had the chance to spend some time catching up with former Oregon Secretary of State Phil Keisling. We met in 1978 during the McCall campaign. Phil was a new graduate of Yale and was on the paid staff; I was a college freshman and a volunteer. How many young people have been inspired to public service by the McCall legacy? How many more will be when we make sure his story is told to a new generation? Get involved now! |
The Tom McCall Legacy Project
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