Keith Chamberlin
In our modern world there is an inclination to be widely traveled. The more of the world we get to see, the richer we think our lives are. But this is not always the case. Keith Chamberlain (1914- 1998) spent his life in the Columbia River Gorge.
He attended school in Mosier, Oregon, when there was a single school housing grades one through twelve. He grew up running free in this finest of scenic places. He learned the local names of the wildflowers that have always been outstanding in their showiness and diversity. He learned Native American lore firsthand, from Indian friends who lived in the community. He walked the trails, paddled the river, and hunted the hillsides.
After graduating from high school, he attended Oregon State University in Corvallis, where he majored in horticulture. Under the guidance of some of our finest instructors he was able to put official names to the plants he had known since childhood. He learned about soils, pollinators, temperature, rainfall, and how they affected the growth of plants. He brought that considerable knowledge home to Mosier, where he lived and worked, and married Mary Gould. Keith and Mary together enjoyed more than forty springtimes in the Columbia Gorge, searching out the wildflowers they had grown to love.
For many years Keith worked for Luhr Jensen, fishing equipment manufacturer, in Hood River. Yet all the while he was teaching what he knew about the geology and botany of the gorge. For much of his life he worked with a local troop of The Boy Scouts of America.
In the mid-1960s he learned of a Native Plant Society being formed in Portland. He volunteered to lead them on wildflower field trips in the eastern Gorge for several years, until it became apparent that the Mid-Columbia Region could support a chapter of its own. He was instrumental in forming this chapter in 1977, and in organizing a wildflower show at the Mosier school in April. The chapter and the wildflower show have both continued to flourish. Many people have found Mosier in recent years.
By means of Keith’s knowledge and patience, and excellent photographs of our wildflowers, he has introduced many people to this valuable asset in our lives. He led field trips and told of his special plant places until he was past eighty years old. When his body finally surrendered to ravages of time, he was still wanting to sit in the sunshine and look at the wildflowers.
– Jerry Igo, Mid-Columbia Chapter