PRSA PDX History: 1960s and 1970s
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PRSA PDX History: 1960s and 1970s

The History of PRSA’s Portland Metro Chapter

The national Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) was chartered in 1947.

On April 9, 1959, PRSA National received a petition to establish a chapter in Portland, Oregon. The petition had been signed by 11 members of the Public Relations Society of America. The proposed chapter would include Oregon and the southern Washington counties stretching from Vancouver to Longview-Kelso, Richland, Pasco and Walla Walla.

Correspondence in the PRSA National archives indicates that the national organization had already received a letter from the Pacific Northwest Chapter, based in Seattle, stating that they had no objection to releasing the Portland-area territory to the proposed chapter.

The petition was immediately scheduled for approval by the PRSA Board of Directors at a meeting in Toronto on April 22, 1959.

In a letter to Robert O. Lee, who would serve as the first chapter president, Lee was advised that the chapter could elect officers immediately following the board’s approval and could begin to function as a chapter. A May 1959 article from The Oregonian references Robert Lee as “president of the Columbia River Chapter of the Public Relations Society of America.”

The approval of the new chapter was formalized when Carroll West, national president of PRSA, presented the approved charter at a dinner at the Benson Hotel on Sept. 12, 1959. Local officers were formally installed.

They served through the end of 1960, which was the first full year of operations for a PRSA chapter in Portland.

The early years: 1960s and 1970s Chapter presidents

1960 – Robert O. Lee – A founder and first president of PRSA’s Columbia River Chapter, Robert Lee was director of public relations, advertising and sales promotion for Georgia-Pacific Corporation.

1961 – Harold M. Gowing – Harold Gowing, who worked for Esco Corporation, was the first professional to serve as vice president of the Pacific Northwest Chapter of PRSA. He also chaired as chair of the Oregon Council on Economic Education.

1962 – John S. Pihas – When John Pihas was elected president, he was the Portland public relations director for Botsford, Constantine & Gardner. He was later a founding member of Pihas, Schmidt and Westerdahl and left a deep mark on the public relations and advertising industry in Oregon.

1963 – William W. Marsh, APR – Known as the “dean of public relations,” Marsh served 28 years in the public relations profession then joined Marylhurst University, where he established a public relations certificate program and taught from 1986 to 1993.

1964 – Robert G. Swan – Robert G. Swan was a public relations executive, a newspaper editor and the owner-publisher of three newspapers. He worked for public relations for Richfield Oil/ARCO and Portland General Electric.

1965 – James Ferguson – James Ferguson was a long-time public relations director for Pacific Power and Light, now known as PacifiCorp.

1966 – Robert Franklin – Robert Franklin began his career as a broadcaster for KGW-TV. He then became PR director for U.S. Bank. After retirement, he was a freelance “voice” for many broadcast commercials.

1967 – Vernor M. Schenck, APR – Vernor Schenck was co-founder of the Pacific Northwest Chapter of the Public Relations Society of America, New York and served on its local and national committees. He was the 1990 recipient of the William W. Marsh Lifetime Achievement Award. In 2008, PRSA National notified him that it was establishing the Vernor M. Schenck Public Relations Achievement Award in his honor.

1968 – James F. Fowler – James Fowler reported for United Press and the Associated Press. He later served as managing editor of The Herald Tribune in Sarasota, Florida. He was the first business columnist for The Columbian newspaper in Vancouver, Washington. From there, he launched his public relations work. His diverse career also included banking and economic development.

1969 – Harry Turtledove, APR – Harry Turtledove partnered with Earl Heims Advertising to form the Heims and Turtledove Avency, which later became Turtledove Clements. He also served as president of the National Federation of Advertising Agencies.

1970 – Myron Jordan – Myron (Mike) Jordan was public relations supervisor for Pacific Northwest Bell Telephone Company. Prior to serving as chapter president, he was president of the Oregon Advertising Club and the Public Relations Round Table.

1972 – John R. Ulrich – John Ulrich was a newspaper man in Spokane before opening his own public relations consulting business there. In 1967, he became chief of the technical liaison office for the North Pacific Division of the Corps of Engineers in Portland. In the 1970s, he was an active member of the City Club of Portland. He ended his career as PR director for Bonneville Power. He was active in national PRSA activities, serving on the Silver Anvil Judging Committee for many years with 1981 president Rolf Glerum.

1973 – John H. Nellor – A former newspaper reporter, editor and teacher, John Nellor was director of public information for Portland Public Schools from 1963-1980 then served as assistant to the superintendent.

1974 – David Koonce, APR – Dave Koonce came to Portland from a large public relations firm in New York to handle the Omark account.

1975 – Tony Bacon, APR – Tony Bacon opened a PR office in Portland for Jay Rockey Public Relations, which later merged with Bill Marsh Public Relations to become the largest PR firm in Portland at that time. He was vice president at Rockey Marsh when he served as chapter president. He founded Bacon Public Relations in 1982 and was the founder, publisher and editor of The Daily Insider in Vancouver, Washington.

1976 – Barbara C. Peeples, APR – Barbara Peeples was a public relations counselor in Portland. She was the 1993 recipient of the William W. Marsh Lifetime Achievement Award.

1977 – Gerard R. (Jerry) Griffin, APR – Gerard Griffin was director of communications for Louisiana-Pacific Corp.

1978 – Charles Turner, APR – Charles Turner was a long-time public relations director for the Oregon office of Nationwide Insurance.

1979 – Steven Loy, APR – Steven Loy was director of public information at Portland General Electric Company.

News Archives/Dates of Significance

1947 – The national Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) was chartered.

Sept. 27, 1957 – The Pacific Northwest Chapter of PRSA – with 33 members from Seattle to Portland – was inaugurated during a dinner meeting at the Olympic Hotel in Seattle. Among the elected officers: Harold Gowing of Portland, who would become the second president of PRSA’s Columbia River Chapter. [Source: Article by Pacific Northwest public relations leader Jay Rockey who served as PRSA National President in 1976. PRSA’s Puget Sound Chapter presents a lifetime achievement award named in his honor.]

April 1959 – Eleven members of the Public Relations Society of America petition the national organization to create the Columbia River Chapter. [Document source: PRSA National Archives.] The members who signed the petition included future chapter presidents Robert L. Lee, Harold Gowing,

April 1959 – Portland members of the chapter petitioned and were authorized to form a separate chapter under the name Columbia River. [Source: Article by Jay Rockey.]

April 9, 1959 – A letter from PRSA National Executive Director Shirley Smith to Harold Gowing confirmed receipt of a petition to establish the Columbia River Chapter. Gowing served as chapter president in 1961. [Document source: PRSA National Archives.]

April 9, 1959 – PRSA National Executive Director Shirley Smith also sent a letter to Robert O. Lee, who would serve as the first president of the new chapter. The letter confirms that, immediately following the board’s approval, the chapter could elect officers and begin to function as a chapter. [Source: PRSA National Archives.]

April 9, 1959 – A letter from PRSA National Executive Director Shirley Smith to Fred Johnson also confirmed receipt of petition to establish the Columbia River Chapter. Johnson was president of the Los Angeles area chapter of the Public Relations Society of America and served on its national board of directors for two years. [Source: PRSA National Archives.]

April 22, 1959 – The petition was approved by the PRSA Board of Directors at a meeting in Toronto.

May 11, 1959 – Columbia River Chapter President Robert O. Lee was featured in The Oregonian as guest speaker at a meeting of the Oregon Advertising Club. [Copyrighted article courtesy of The Oregonian. All rights reserved.]

Sept. 10, 1959 – An article in The Oregonian notes that Public Relations Society of America President Carroll R. West will visit Portland to present a charter to PRSA’s newly formed Columbia River Chapter. [Copyrighted article courtesy of The Oregonian. All rights reserved.]

Sept. 12, 1959 – According to correspondence from PRSA National and newspaper accounts, members of the PRSA Executive Committee held a daytime session, which was the first national PRSA meeting held in Portland. That evening, PRSA’s Columbia River Chapter hosted a dinner for the PRSA Executive Committee. During the dinner, President Carroll West presented the charter to the new chapter and local officers were installed. [Copyrighted article courtesy of The Oregonian. All rights reserved.]

Sept. 18, 1962 – Columbia River Chapter hosted its annual Public Relations Recognition Banquet in the West Ballroom of the Sheraton-Portland Hotel. [Copyrighted article courtesy of The Oregonian. All rights reserved.]

Feb. 23, 1962 – PRSA National Executive Director Donald Lynch spoke in Portland on the development of PRSA chapter, professional growth (including years of membership before joining PRSA) and the organization’s code of ethics. [Copyrighted article courtesy of The Oregonian. All rights reserved.]