John Wilson

Who was John Wilson?

John Wilson was an Irish-born pioneer of the American West who became a successful businessman in Portland, Oregon, United States, where he was a prominent civic leader and an avid collector of books. Today he is principally remembered as a great supporter of the Library Association of Portland, precursor of the Multnomah County Library, to which he donated his entire collection of over 8,000 volumes. Many of his more important volumes continue to form the core of the collection of The John Wilson Special Collection, named in his honor.