Chester Lloyd "Chet" Orloff (born February 22, 1949) is a historian, writer and professor in

Portland, Oregon Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers, Portland is the county seat of Multnomah County, the most populous co ...

, called "one of regon'sfavorite history teachers" by ''

The Oregonian ''The Oregonian'' is a daily newspaper based in Portland, Oregon, United States, owned by Advance Publications. It is the oldest continuously published newspaper on the U.S. west coast, founded as a weekly by Thomas J. Dryer on December 4, 185 ...

''.

Early life

Orloff was born in

Bellingham, Washington Bellingham ( ) is the most populous city in, and county seat of Whatcom County in the U.S. state of Washington. It lies south of the U.S.–Canada border in between two major cities of the Pacific Northwest: Vancouver, British Columbia (locat ...

to business financier

Monford Orloff Monford Arthur Orloff (March 29, 1914 – February 13, 2000) was an American businessman, financier, lawyer and philanthropist. He was married to Janice Orloff and had three children Jon, Carole and Chester. Orloff was known as an aggressive ...

and Janice Diamond Orloff, and raised in Washington and Portland, Oregon. His brother is physicist

Jon Orloff Jonathan Harris Orloff (born 1942) is an American physicist, author and professor. Born in New York City, he is the eldest son of Monford Orloff and brother of pianist Carole Orloff and historian Chester Orloff. Orloff is known for his major fie ...

. Orloff attended Lincoln High School, went to

Boston University Boston University (BU) is a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. The university is nonsectarian, but has a historical affiliation with the United Methodist Church. It was founded in 1839 by Methodists with its original campu ...

to prepare for law school, then transferred to the

University of Oregon The University of Oregon (UO, U of O or Oregon) is a public research university in Eugene, Oregon. Founded in 1876, the institution is well known for its strong ties to the sports apparel and marketing firm Nike, Inc, and its co-founder, billion ...

where he ran under legendary track coach

Bill Bowerman William Jay Bowerman (February 19, 1911 – December 24, 1999) was an American track and field coach and co-founder of Nike, Inc. Over his career, he trained 31 Olympic athletes, 51 All-Americans, 12 American record-holders, 22 NCAA champio ...

. Orloff studied anthropology at University of Oregon, graduating in 1972 with a degree in

archaeology Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landscap ...

. Orloff later received a master's degree in history and historical agency administration from Portland State University.

Career

Orloff enlisted in the

Peace Corps The Peace Corps is an independent agency and program of the United States government that trains and deploys volunteers to provide international development assistance. It was established in March 1961 by an executive order of President John F. ...

and lived and taught in

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...

with his wife until 1975. They returned to Portland where he interned at the

Oregon Historical Society The Oregon Historical Society (OHS) is an organization that encourages and promotes the study and understanding of the history of the Oregon Country, within the broader context of U.S. history. Incorporated in 1898, the Society collects, preser ...

(OHS), then became assistant director from 1982 to 1986. In 1987 he left OHS and founded the Ninth Judicial Circuit Historical Society in

Pasadena, California Pasadena ( ) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, northeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is the most populous city and the primary cultural center of the San Gabriel Valley. Old Pasadena is the city's original commercial district. I ...

. In 1991, he returned to OHS as executive director, succeeding Bill Tramposch. He held this position for ten years, retiring at the end of 2000. Orloff was the founder and editor of the journal ''Western Legal History'' and was the Senior Editor of the ''

Oregon Historical Quarterly The ''Oregon Historical Quarterly'' is a peer-reviewed public history journal covering topics in the history of the U.S. state of Oregon, for both an academic and a general audience. It has been published continuously on a quarterly schedule by th ...

''. In 2001, Orloff assembled a

Columbia River The Columbia River (Upper Chinook: ' or '; Sahaptin: ''Nch’i-Wàna'' or ''Nchi wana''; Sinixt dialect'' '') is the largest river in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. The river rises in the Rocky Mountains of British Columbia, C ...

maritime museum in a concourse at the

Portland International Airport Portland International Airport is a joint civil–military airport and the largest airport in the U.S. state of Oregon, accounting for 90% of the state's passenger air travel and more than 95% of its air cargo. It is within Portland's city li ...

. It was "98 percent complete" as of the

September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercia ...

, which limited visitors to ticketed passengers. Orloff is an adjunct professor of Urban Studies and Planning at

Portland State University Portland State University (PSU) is a public research university in Portland, Oregon. It was founded in 1946 as a post-secondary educational institution for World War II veterans. It evolved into a four-year college over the following two decades ...

and an instructor at the

School of Architecture. He is also principal of Oregon History Works, a consulting firm for historical applications in design and development, president of

Museum of the City A museum ( ; plural museums or, rarely, musea) is a building or institution that cares for and displays a collection of artifacts and other objects of artistic, cultural, historical, or scientific importance. Many public museums make these i ...

and has served on the Portland Planning Commission, Portland Landmarks Commission, Regional Arts and Culture Counsel, Portland Parks Board, Center City 2035 Plan Committee, (co-chair), and other various assignments.

Selected publications

; Author/editor * ''Western Legal History Volume 2, Number 2'', Chet Orloff, editor, 1989, Ninth Judicial Circuit Historical Society * ''Portland's Public Art: A Guide and History'', Norma Catherine Gleason and Chet Orloff, 1986, * ''Willamette Heights: a history'', 1980 * ''Gifts that preserve Oregon's past for the future'', 1980 ; Chapter and article contributions *
Museums of Cities and the Future of Cities
', in Robert R. Macdonald's ''City Museums and City Development'', 2008, * ''If Zealously Promoted by All: The Push and Pull of Portland Parks History'', in ''The Portland Edge: Challenges and Successes In Growing Communities'', 2008, Connie Ozawa, editor, *

', in ''Yearbook of the Association of Pacific Coast Geographers 66'', 2004

Personal life

Orloff lives in the Willamette Heights area of Portland. He is vocal about Portland history and politics.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Orloff, Chester 1949 births 21st-century American historians 21st-century American male writers Boston University Terriers men's track and field athletes Lincoln High School (Portland, Oregon) alumni Living people Oregon Ducks men's track and field athletes Writers from Bellingham, Washington Writers from Portland, Oregon Portland State University faculty Historians from Washington (state) American male non-fiction writers