*** This Book Is Not for Sale at This Time ***

A revealing collection of historical magazine articles, newspaper stories, editorials, advertisements, essays, and other interesting facts, published between 1868 and 1925, presented for the edification of students of all ages, as well as all citizens of good will seeking good government, and showing how one William S. U’Ren fought to bring direct democracy, including the Initiative and Referendum, the Recall of Public Officials, the Direct Primary, Home Rule for Cities, and the Popular Election of U. S. Senators—to the people of Oregon and the United States.

All works have been recast into modern, easy-to-see, easy-to-read typefaces.

William Simon U’Ren (1859–1949) was known as the father of the Initiative and Referendum in Oregon and honored as the the originator of the ‘Oregon System’. This book explains how U’Ren brought ‘direct democracy’ and good government to the people of Oregon at the start of the 20th century.

You’ll read, in their own words, what reform-minded journalists called ‘muckrakers’, establishment newspaper reporters and editors, as well as two United States presidents, thought about U’Ren and the movement he led.

You’ll also hear from U’Ren himself, as well as his political opponents, and his personal enemies.

U’Ren also promoted in an economic ideology called the ‘single tax’ that he believed would end poverty and injustice. It became his political ‘north star’ and he steered by it for most of his public life. You’ll learn here how he worked for years to install the tools of ‘Direct Democracy’ in Oregon so that its citizens could implement this revolutionary taxing method in the state.

The book also reveals facts, some for the first time, about U’Ren’s time in Colorado, his legal career, and the important role of his family in the course of his life.

Discover how William S. U’Ren became one of the most respected leaders in Oregon’s history and changed the course of American democracy.

John F. Williams, Jr. (1928-2023) was born in Portland, Oregon was a graduate of Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois with a degree in Speech Communications (1950). Williams enlisted in the USMCR in 1948, retiring in 1973 with the rank of Colonel. He was veteran of the Korean War. His career includes employment in radio broadcasting and radio station management, public-relation business ownership, and other similar commercial businesses. From 1986 to 1990, he and his wife sailed a 47-foot trimaran across the North Pacific, through the South Pacific Islands, across the Indian ocean, and up the Red Sea into the Mediterranean. He held a pilot’s license and explored the Pacific Northwest in small planes. He served as Mayor of Oregon City, Oregon from 1998 to 2002.

J. F. Williams is a graduate of the University of Oregon in Eugene, Oregon with a degree in Business (1977). He’s a retired Information Technology manager and lives in Bend, Oregon.

***Not for Sale at This Time***