Guide to the Austin Mires Papers 1872-1936
Cage 212

Summary Information

Repository
Washington State University Libraries, Manuscripts, Archives and Special Collections
Creator
Mires, Austin, 1852-1936
Title
Austin Mires Papers
ID
Cage 212
Date [inclusive]
1872-1936
Extent
17 Linear feet of shelf space, 24 Boxes
Language
Collection materials are in English.
Abstract
The papers of Austin Mires, lawyer, politician, and first mayor of Ellensburg, Washington.

Preferred Citation

[Item description]

Austin Mires Papers, 1872-1936 (Cage 212)

Manuscripts, Archives, and Special Collections, Washington State University Libraries, Pullman, WA.

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Biography/History

Austin Mires was born in Parrish, Iowa on February 11, 1852, the son of John H. and Anna (Deardorff) Mires. At the age of one his parents traveled westward overland and settled at Oakland, Oregon. In his youth he attended public common schools and later Umpqua Academy (Wilbur, Oregon) and Monmouth College. He taught for several years in Douglas County, Oregon and served briefly as a railway mail route agent between Portland and Roseburg, Oregon. In 1880, Mires attended law school at the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor. He graduated in 1882 and began practicing law in Roseburg. In the spring of 1883, he relocated to Ellensburg, Washington Territory to practice law. He married Mary Loretta Rowland, the stepdaughter of a prominent Kittitas County farmer, on March 5, 1884 Two years later he was elected the town's first mayor and 1889 was elected to serve as a delegate to the constitutional convention in Olympia. In 1890 Governor E. P. Ferry named him as a member of the state board of equalization and appeal, a position he held for three years. He was appointed as census supervisor in 1899 by President William McKinley for the 1900 census. The following year he was elected president of the Washington State Bar Association. In 1904, he was appointed Prosecuting Attorney of Kittitas County after the death of his former law partner who held the office. He did not run for election in 1907 but remained in the city prosecutor's office for next six years. He also served as School Director for the City of Ellensburg and one term as a state senator. In 1912 Mires was chosen as a Progressive presidential elector. Six years later he ran for the United States Congress as a Republican candidate but was defeated. During his twilight years he served as city police judge and justice of the peace. On March 4, 1936 Austin Mires died of pneumonia. His body is interred at the Order of Odd Fellows Cemetery in Ellensburg.

(Source: Austin Mires Papers, 1853-1936, Ellensburg Public Library Northwest History Archives, Ellensburg, WA.)

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Biography/History

A note about the expression “insane asylum”: Publicly funded psychiatric hospitals, then known as insane or lunatic asylums, emerged in the 19th century as part of a trend toward institutionalization of people with mental illnesses. Originally designed by reformers to provide a retreat from common society, asylums often perpetrated abuses against marginalized members of society. In addition, it merits noting that terms like “insane” and “crazy” have a problematic history in that they have often been used to stigmatize any person considered “unacceptable” to powerful members of society. For instance, asylums have at times been used to confine not only people with mental illnesses but also elderly individuals, assertive women, and conscientious objectors. These words often have the effect of excluding particular groups while perpetuating stereotypes about mental illness.

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Scope and Content

The papers of Austin Mires, lawyer, politician, and first mayor of Ellensburg, Washington. The papers fall naturally into three series: correspondence, diaries, and miscellaneous items.

Series 1: Correspondence, deals with all facets of Austin Mires' political, professional, and personal life. Office notes, invitations (some with penciled marginalia), bills, and receipts have been retained to provide examples of daily life in the latter period of territorial years and the early part of this century. These papers are valuable in presenting an accurate picture of the diverse activities of Austin Mires. Although Mires himself was not often in public office he was an active participant and candidate and was often called upon by his friends and associates to pass judgment on political situations, party plans, and to give his support to political ambitions.

Series 2: Diaries, have daily entries for over sixty years; personal and private comments on his activities, associates, friends and enemies, and the political situations at all levels of government. While he kept his diary private during his lifetime, he realized that they would someday be of value. In addition to his comments, he often kept a daily record of his income and expenditures, in these diaries. Some were recopied by Mires and these copies are placed with the originals.

Series 3: Miscellaneous, is subdivided into groupings of photographs, newspaper clippings, essays and his literary writings, documents, and scrapbooks. The scrapbooks contain correspondence, eulogies, essays, and miscellaneous items that were gleaned from the collection by Austin Mires. They mostly cover territorial, state, and national politics, chiefly Republican, for the years 1883-1936.

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Arrangement

The papers are arranged into three series: correspondence, diaries, and miscellaneous items.

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Administrative Information

Publication Information

Washington State University Libraries Manuscripts, Archives, and Special Collections  © 2022

https://libraries.wsu.edu/masc/

Terrell Library

P.O. Box 645610

Pullman, WA, 99164-5610 USA

509-335-6691

mascref@wsu.edu

Restrictions on Access

This collection is open and available for research use.

Restrictions on Use

Copyright restrictions apply. The literary rights in the unpublished writings of Mr. Mires in these papers are reserved by the Washington State University Library.

Acquisition Information

The papers of Austin Mires, Ellensburg Attorney, were purchased by the Washington State University Library in 1967 from a daughter, Mrs. Charles E. Phillips.

Processing Information

In 2022, in response to evolving standards regarding the language used to describe individuals and communities with disabilities, Talea Anderson added a Historical Note to this finding aid.

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Related Materials

Related Material

Austin Mires Papers, 1880-1935 (Cage 4835)

Preliminary Guide to the Austin Mires Glass Plate Negatives, 1904-1919 (UPC 0017)

Eve Helen Mires Cookbook, 1910 (Cage 5154)

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Names and Subjects

Corporate Name(s)

Subject(s) :
  • Ellensburg (Wash.). Mayor -- Archives

Personal Name(s)

Subject(s) :
  • Mires, Austin, 1852-1936 -- Archives

Subject(s)

  • Lawyers -- Washington (State) -- Ellensburg -- Archives
  • Politics, Practical -- Washington (State) -- History -- Sources
  • Constitutional conventions -- Washington (State) -- History -- 19th century -- Sources
  • Washington (State)
  • Politics and Politicians
  • Civil Procedure and Courts

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Bibliography

Abraham, Terry P. Austin Mires: An Indexed Register of His Papers, 1872-1936, in the Washington State University Library. Pullman, 1968.

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Detailed Description of Collection

Series 1: Correspondence 

Subseries 1.1: Loose Papers 

box folder

1888 

1 1

January-February, 1889 

1 2

June-July, 1889 

1 3

August, 1889 

1 4

September-October, 1889 

1 5

November, 1889 

1 6

December, 1889 

1 7

1890 

1 8

1891 

1 9

1892 

1 10

January, 1893 

1 11

February, 1893 

1 12

March, 1893 

1 13

April, 1893 

1 14

May, 1893 

1 15

June, 1893 

1 16

July-September, 1893 

1 17

October-December, 1893 

1 18

1894 

2 19

1895 

2 20

1896 

2 21

1897 

2 22

January-June, 1898 

2 23

July-September, 1898 

2 24

October, 1898 

2 25

October, 1898 

2 26

November, 1898 

2 27

November, 1898 

2 28

December, 1898 

2 29

January-February, 1899 

2 30

March-April, 1899 

2 31

May-June, 1899 

2 32

July-August, 1899 

2 33

September-October, 1899 

2 34

November-December, 1899 

2 35

January, 1900 

3 36-37

February, 1900 

3 38-39

March, 1900 

3 40-44

April, 1900 

4 45-47

May, 1900 

4 48-51

Census Maps, Papers, 1900 

4 52

June, 1900 

5 53-55

July, 1900 

5 56

August, 1900 

5 57

September, 1900 

5 58

October, 1900 

5 59

November, 1900 

5 60

December, 1900 

5 61

1901 

6 62-63

1902 

6 64

1903 

6 65

January-February, 1904 

6 66

March, 1904 

6 67

April, 1904 

6 68

May, 1904 

6 69

June, 1904 

6 70

July, 1904 

6 71

August, 1904 

6 72

September-December, 1904 

6 73

1905 

7 74

1906 

7 75

1907 

7 76

1908 

7 77

1909 

7 78

1910 

7 79-81

1911 

7 82-83

1912 

8 84-85

1913 

8 86

1914 

8 87

1915 

8 88

1916 

9 89

1917 

9 90

1918 

9 91

1919 

9 92-93

1920 

9 94-95

1921 

9 96-98

1922 

10 99

1923 

10 100

1924 

10 101

1925 

10 102-103

1926 

11 104-105

1927 

11 106-107

1928 

11 108-109

1929 

12 110-111

1930 

12 112-113

1931 

12 114-115

1932 

13 116-117

1933 

13 118

1934 

13 119-120

1935 

13 121

Undated Papers 

13 122

Subseries 1.2: Letterbooks 

box folder

1890-1891 

14 123

1891-1892 

14 124

1892-1893 

14 125

1891-1895 

15 126

1893-1894 

15 127

1893-1900 

15 128

1900-1901 

15 129

1902-1928 

15 130

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Series 2: Diaries 

box folder

1871 

16 131

1875 

16 132

1875 

16 133

1876 

16 134

1877 

16 135

1877 

16 136

1876-1877 

16 137

1878 

16 138

1879 

16 139

1878-1879 

16 140

1880 

16 141

1881 

16 142

1882 

16 143

1883 

16 144

1884 

16 145

1885 

16 146

1886 

16 147

1887-1900 

17 148-161

1901-1913 

18 162-174

1914-1925 

19 175-186

1926-1936 

20 187-197

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Series 3: Miscellaneous 

Subseries 3.1: Photographs 

box folder

Austin Mires, 20 years old 

21 198

Austin Mires as Supreme Court Judge, with negative 

21 199

Austin Mires, 84 years old, with negative 

21 200

Austin Mires' first home in Ellensburg 

21 201

Austin Mires fishing 

21 202

Mrs. Mary L. Mires, with negative 

21 203

University of Michigan Law Class of 1882  40 individual photographs, many autographed

21 204

U. S. Supreme Court  9 photographs

21 205

3 Group photographs, circa 1882 

21 206

Alpheus Felch 

21 207

House of Representatives, 1921 

21 208

Territorial Capitol (in oversize case) 

21 209

Graduation picture, Class of 1882 (in oversize case) 

21 210

Geddis Block, Mires' Office 

21 210a

Subseries 3.2: Newspaper Clippings 

box folder

Unidentified list 

21 211

Articles of deaths of Mr. and Mrs. Austin Mires 

box folder

Seattle Times, March 4, 1936 

21 212

Ellensburg Evening Record, March 4, 1936 

21 212

an unidentified clipping, 1940 

21 212
box folder

Picture of Mires as first mayor of Ellensburg, undated 

21 213

Subseries 3.3: Essays and Writings of Austin Mires 

box folder

Eloquence of Jesus Christ 

22 214

My first trip to Ruby City and the Okanogan Mines 

22 215

A trip to the head of Nigger Creek 

22 216

A hunting trip to Government Meadows 

22 217

A little trip across an Empire 

22 218

A trip to Lake Wapsus 

22 219

An auto trip from Ellensburg, Washington to Southern Oregon 

22 220

A short hunting trip to Crab Creek 

22 221

A trip to Oregon 

22 222

My first trip across the Cascade Mountains 

22 223

A trip to Upper Naches and Echo Lake 

22 224

A trip up the Chewawa River 

22 225

The Umpqua River 

22 226

The Calapooia River 

22 227

A short hunting trip in my early youth 

22 228

Some old Umpqua and Oregon history 

22 229

Some recollections gold. Umpqua Academy. OHQ Reprint. Vol 19, 1918, p. 38-48 

22 229a

A. W. Purdy 

22 230

The Roslyn Bank Robbery 

22 231

Tribute to my law partner, C. V. Warner 

22 232

An address, George Washington, 1922 

22 233

The Republican Party 

22 234

Candidacy for State Representative, 1918 

22 235a

Patriotism, Ms; Marriage, Ms, 1895 

22 236a

The Nanum Mystery 

22 237a

Swauk, Umpqua Academy address, June 6, 1920 

22 238a

Subseries 3.4: Documents and Diplomas 

box folder

Washington State Bar Association Proceedings, 1897 

23 235

Proceedings of the Washington Irrigation Institute, November 18-19, 1937 

23 236

Judicial articles - Constitutional Convention, Ms., 1889 

23 237

Vote by precincts for members of the Constitutional Convention, 1889 

23 238

Committee on Water Rights - Constitutional Convention, Ms., July, 1889 

23 239

Address of Austin Mires - President, Washington State Bar Association 

23 240

Names contributing to testimonial presented to Austin Mires, December 15, 1898 

23 241

Appointment of Austin Mires as 12th Census Supervisor for Washington's Second District, by President McKinley., December 12, 1899 

23 242

Bachelor of Law Degree, University of Michigan, 1882 

23 243

Certificate of Law of the Supreme Court of Michigan, 1881 

23 244

Certificate from Umpqua Academy, 1876 

23 245

Articles of Constitutional Convention, 1889 

23 246

Subseries 3.5: Scrapbooks 

box folder

Scrapbook No. 4 

24 247

Political scrapbook (1935), 1888-1900 

24 248

Eulogies 

24 249

Letters related to U. S. Census (1930), 1900 

24 250

Old Letters (1935), 1880-1900 

24 251

Letters (birthday), 1918-1923 

24 252

Related to the 70th and 80th birthdays of Austin Mires, 1922-1935 

24 253

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