The Willamette University Football Team with Gov. Douglas McKay (seated, center) in Hawaii, December 1941. Ted Ogdahl stands third from right. [Photo: Willamette University Archives] March 5, 2020 Episode.
Folks of my generation vividly remember where they were when they learned of the assassination of President John F. Kennedy in 1963, or watching on TV in July 1969 as Neil Armstrong took that first step onto the surface of the Moon. Children in the next generation recall their exact feelings when they heard in September 2001 about "9/11," the terrorist attacks that struck the World Trade Center towers in New York, the Pentagon, and a field in Pennsylvania. And many of our Yesterday's Voices guests have shared with us how the bombing at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, in December 1941 changed their lives. Locally, there was great concern for the young men on the Willamette University football team who were in Honolulu to play a game against the University of Hawaii. One of these young men was Tillman Theodore "Ted" Ogdahl, who would go on to become a renowned coach in Oregon, and the father-in-law of today's guest.
Folks of my generation vividly remember where they were when they learned of the assassination of President John F. Kennedy in 1963, or watching on TV in July 1969 as Neil Armstrong took that first step onto the surface of the Moon. Children in the next generation recall their exact feelings when they heard in September 2001 about "9/11," the terrorist attacks that struck the World Trade Center towers in New York, the Pentagon, and a field in Pennsylvania. And many of our Yesterday's Voices guests have shared with us how the bombing at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, in December 1941 changed their lives. Locally, there was great concern for the young men on the Willamette University football team who were in Honolulu to play a game against the University of Hawaii. One of these young men was Tillman Theodore "Ted" Ogdahl, who would go on to become a renowned coach in Oregon, and the father-in-law of today's guest.
Janet Ogdahl at KMUZ Studio, 2019 [Photo: SHM] Janet Field Ogdahl joined us again to tell the story of her own family and that of her husband, Wally Ogdahl. You may recall from our November 2019 episode that Janet is the current owner of the 1860/1926 Pomeroy-Keene Building on State Street where her daughter Katy, son Toby and daughter-in-law Elisha operate three businesses: Gatsby's boutique, W. Wallace Restaurant & Bar, and the Havana Salon. The building was purchased by Janet and her late husband Wally Ogdahl in 1995, and her family has been lovingly refurbishing, restoring and bringing it back to its original glory since then.
 Janet's great-grandfather Robert M. Cox and his wife Sarah Bryte are pictured here in 1900. Robert Cox served in the Civil War and was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor when he was just 21 years of age. He died not long after these photos were taken. |  |
Lorraine & Richard Field, c1942 [Photo: Field Family] Janet's parents, Richard & Lorraine Field, resided in Portland, Oregon where they worked at the wartime shipyards as key punch operators, precursors to electronic data entry for the "computers" of that time. They were both very musical from early on, with Richard playing several instruments including the xylophone, marimbas and drums and Lorraine playing the piano and organ. Richard often played for events at the Meier & Frank Department Store, and owner Aaron Frank gifted him with an instrument of his choice from their music department. He chose the marimba shown in the photo below.
 Richard Field, age 9, on drums c1927 [Photo: Field Family] |  Richard Field, age 11 on marimba gifted to him by Aaron Frank, c1929 [Photo: Field Family] |
The Field family went on to own and operate Field's County Club on SE Powell in Portland where they showcased area bands on Friday and Saturday nights. The Trinity Christian Church is on this site now.
The Ogdahl chapter of this story begins in Minnesota, where Thor Thorson immigrated with his family in the early 1900s, continuing to dairy farm, as they had done in Norway. As there were so many Thorsons in that area, the family changed their name to Ogdahl in memory of the Og Valley of their homeland. Thor's son Tillman Marcellus and his wife Irene (seen at right in a photograph supplied by the Ogdahl family), along with their six children, relocated to Portland, Oregon during the Great Depression, but no longer worked in farming. They did, however, continue with the tradition of naming a son "Tillman," which carried over for several generations.
 1941 Willamette University Football Team. Ted Ogdahl is #14, fourth from left in second row [Photo: WU Archives]  WU Football team on cruise liner heading to Hawaii, December 1941 [Photo: WU Archives]
| Tillman Theodore "Ted" Ogdahl was one of those six children in Portland, all of whom went to Franklin High School where Ted excelled in track and field and football. It was football that took Ted to Willamette University and ultimately to Honolulu, Hawaii on December 7, 1941. The Willamette team was there to play in the Shrine Bowl with the University of Hawaii and San Jose State University. They lost the first game of the series to Hawaii the day before, and were to start off Sunday the 7th with some sightseeing. Soon the 27 players would be handed WWI-issue metal helmets and Springfield rifles and directed to defend Waikiki Beach, digging trenches and stringing barb wire. Later they would be part of the force guarding the Army engineers stationed at a local school. The women in the party worked as nurses' aids at Fort Shaffer, and the San Jose University students were assigned to the Honolulu Police Department. They returned home December 26, 1941, via a cruiseliner commandeered to transport wounded servicemen. Most of the team immediately enlisted in the military. Upon his discharge from the Marine Corps, Ted Ogdahl completed his senior year and became an award-winning coach, first at Grant High School in Portland and then for many years at Willamette University. |
Greg, Katy, Janet & Toby Ogdahl, 1982 [Photo: Ogdahl Family] Ted & Jean Donaldson had three children: sons William Wallace and James Gregory and daughter Tracey Jean. With a coach for a father, sports were always a part of their family life. Wally played football for South Salem High School, enlisted in the Marines during the Viet Nam war, serving as a 1st Lieutenant, and ultimately became a well-respected Salem attorney with a family of his own. Sadly, he died of cancer at age 70 in 2015.
We also had the chance to talk with Greg Ogdahl who provided us with some special family photographs. Greg, just 18 months younger than Wally, also enlisted during the Viet Nam war and was a Staff Sergeant working in the Army's intelligence section. He later worked in the restaurant and bar management field for many years, finalizing his career as the president of the Western Culinary Institute in Portland. He is married to Toni Simpson, also with long-time family roots in Salem, and they reside in Toni's childhood home up the hill from McKinley School.
We also had the chance to talk with Greg Ogdahl who provided us with some special family photographs. Greg, just 18 months younger than Wally, also enlisted during the Viet Nam war and was a Staff Sergeant working in the Army's intelligence section. He later worked in the restaurant and bar management field for many years, finalizing his career as the president of the Western Culinary Institute in Portland. He is married to Toni Simpson, also with long-time family roots in Salem, and they reside in Toni's childhood home up the hill from McKinley School.
 Above: Greg & Wally on trikes 1948; upper right: Wally, left, and Greg in football helmets, Mom Jeane holding Tracey, 1955; lower right: Greg and Wally Ogdahl, 1966 [Photos: Ogdahl Family] |   |
It is obvious after talking with both Janet and Greg that their families are entrenched in Oregon's heritage fabric, both historically and in current times. They have served their families and their communities from one generation to the next, nurtured their connections with one another, and memorialized their memories in stories and photographs--to our delight--so much more than we could include here. Their family get-togethers must have been something over the years!
As a transplant myself, I find myself remarking yet again that the Salem area must be unique in the number of its residents who are born, grow up, matriculate, marry, raise and support families, and are later buried, all the while staying within 30 miles of their hometown. Perhaps it's the water?
~~Posted by Deb Meaghers
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