Archivist-in-Residence Program

The University Club of Portland’s Archivist-in-Residence program was established in 2018.  The Archivist-in-Residence program enriches the membership experience and allows for greater internal and external accessibility to our rich local history. The Archivist will act as resident Historian to the Club by collecting, arranging, describing, preserving and making available the Club's archival records. This exciting program will shed new light on our Club's collective memory and memories long forgotten, give us fresh context to our place the history of Downtown Portland, and strengthen the progress of the UC Foundation by maintaining our public records. 

Each year one UC Foundation-approved Archivist establishes a residency at the Club. They are offered one year of dues free Membership and have the opportunity to create programming for our Members.

If you are interested in a residency, please contact our Communications Director, Alexandra Sowerby at [email protected] or 503 223 6237.


  • 2018-2021 Archivist-in-Residence, Lori Shea Kuechler
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      Lori Shea Kuechler has a Master’s Degree in Oral History, is the Grant Manager of the Oregon Historical Society, and has worked as an archivist for Warner Pacific College, the Portland Police Historical Society, the Sandy Historical Society, and the Stanley Par Archives and Record Center for the City of Portland. She is the published author of the work, “The Portland Police Sunshine Division: An Early History”.  While writing the history of the Sunshine Division, Lori found herself immersed in the history of the unique persons who established Portland as a place where very unusual solutions were applied to very common problems. Established in 1917, the early Portland Police Sunshine Division began its service by having police officers deliver food to poor families in order to circumvent children shoplifting to stave off hunger. Many of the individuals Lori researched and interviewed were past University Club members and past leaders in the Portland business community. This experience began her growing curiosity and scholarship of the history of leaders and citizens of the Portland community.  She is excited to begin the preservation and cataloguing of University Club Archive documents and to bring to light the historic and extraordinary people and eras of the University Club; and to establish the UC Collection as an accessible resource for scholars and members.