397 Church St. 

350 Capitol St.  

425 N. Liberty St. 

340 N. Liberty St. 

495 N. Liberty St. 

Chauncey was born 25 October 1882 in Crawfordsville, OR to Charles Pleasant (C.P.) Bishop and Martha Ann (Fannie) Kay. His mother was the eldest daughter of Thomas Kay, founder of the Thomas Kay Woolen Mill in Salem, OR. His father, the oldest son of Rev. William R. Bishop, Cumberland Presbyterian minister and schoolteacher. Chauncey was the youngest of three boys born to the couple.  

In 1884, the Bishop family moved from the Brownsville area to McMinnville and opened a store in partnership with Fanny’s brother Thomas B. Kay. Then in 1889, the family moved to Salem for a joint business venture with Fannie’s family, the Thomas Kay Woolen Mill. 

Each Bishop and extended Kay family member brought their skills and labor to the wool business. C.P. focused his efforts on the marketing and sale of TKWM products such as fabric and blankets. When his first attempt at opening a wholesale store in Portland was short-lived, he found success closer to home, by purchasing the Salem Woolen Mill store in 1891. Fannie was her father’s assistant in the day-to-day management of the mill. The Bishop boys also worked, first as bobbin boys, then on rotation through each mill department as they learned the manufacturing process. 

Chauncey attended public schools in Salem and later Willamette University. Like his older brother Clarence, he was a natural athlete. He played for the Willamette football team and later the Columbia University team in New York, while it was ranked one of the top teams in the country. While at Columbia, he earned a spot on the All-American team one year. Then he attended the Philadelphia Textile Institute like his brothers before him. After graduation he returned to Salem, to help his father manage the Salem Woolen Mill store, where mill fabric, blankets and men’s clothing were sold. He was also prominent in local fraternal organizations such as the Y.M.C.A., Elks, and became a charter member of the Cherrians. 

He married Ruth Jean Gabrielson on 22 February 1907 in Salem, OR. Ruth was the only daughter of Charles D. and Minnie Gabrielson, a prominent local family. She had received her education at Willamette University and “was one of Salem’s most accomplished and popular young women.” according to the newspaper account of their marriage. The wedding was held in the Gabrielson home, the officiant Rev. William R. Bishop, the groom’s grandfather.  

The couple made their home in Salem at 340 N. Liberty St. Chauncey continued to manage the Salem Woolen Mills store for the family. Two children would be born to the couple: Robert Chauncey and Charles Kay.  

In 1908 the Bishop family began negotiations for the purchase of a wool mill in Pendleton. Once the transaction was complete in 1909, brothers Clarence (C.M.) and Roy were sent to Pendleton to oversee the project. Within three years the mill began to turn a profit and the Bishop family’s wool manufacturing empire had begun. Chauncey continued to manage the retail store in Salem, with the understanding that as the family business grew, so would his responsibilities, including a relocation to Pendleton if needed. 

In 1918 tragedy struck the family when Chauncey’s wife Ruth became one of Salem’s first victims of the influenza pandemic. She died 6 November 1918, at the age of 33. Her sons were 9 and 5 years old. She was buried in City View Cemetery. The same year, Chauncey left Salem for Pendleton, to manage the family mill. This freed brother Roy to return to the Portland area and oversee the purchase and renovation of the Oregon Worsted Company. Clarence (C.M.) by this point had already made the Portland area home base as he continued to oversee the business and manage future mill acquisitions such as Eureka. 

In Pendleton, Chauncey was as heavily involved in civic affairs as he had been in Salem. One prominent role he assumed from brother Roy was a directorship in the Pendleton Round-up. A member of the Bishop family had organized the Native American pageant and village portion of the Round-up since the early days of the organization. Chauncey also took over Roy’s sales route and traveled the entire western territory for the mills each year. 

Tragedy struck the Bishop family once again on 16 January 1927 when Chauncey died after a hunting accident. While on a duck hunting trip with friends outside Pendleton he slipped and fell; his gun discharged, and he was hit in the abdomen. His body was brought back to Salem for burial in City View Cemetery next to his wife Ruth.  

(unless otherwise noted) 

1905 Bishop Chauncey R, clk, bds 302 Church (parent’s home) 

1909 Bishop Robert C, mngr Salem Woolen mills Store, res 425 N Liberty (parent’s home) 

1911  Bishop Robert C, mngr Salem Woolen mills Store, res 495 N Liberty 

1913  Bishop Robert C (Ruth B), mngr Salem Woolen Mills Store, res 340 N Liberty 

1915  Bishop Robert C (Ruth G), mngr Salem Woolen Mills Store, res 340 N Liberty 

1917  Bishop R Chauncey (Ruth G), mngr Salem Woolen Mills Store, res 340 Liberty 

1921  Bishop R Chauncey, mgr Pendleton Woolen Mills, h 1101 Raley, Pendleton, OR 

1925  Bishop R Chauncey, mgr Pendleton Woolen Mills r Pendleton  Hotel, Pendleton, OR 

1905  Marion County, OR Census. Chauncey Bishop. Age: 22. Birthplace: Oregon. Residence: Salem, Marion, OR. Occupation: Clerk. Living in his father’s household. 

1900  Chauncy Bishop. Age: 17. Birth Date: Oct 1882 in Oregon. Single, son to HOH. Home in 1900: Capitol St., Salem Ward 2, Marion, OR. Occupation: Finisher Woolen Mill. Additional household members: Charles P. Bishop, age 45 (head), Fannie E. Bishop, age 42 (mother), Royal T. Bishop, age 19 (brother), Carrie Munson, age 20 (servant). 

1910  Robert C. Bishop. Age: 27. Birth Date: 1883 in Oregon. Married, HOH. Home in 1910: 495 N. Liberty, Salem Ward 2, Marion, OR. Occupation: Merchant. Industry: Clothing. Married: 3 years. Additional household members: Ruth Bishop, age 24 (wife), Robert C. Bishop Jr., age 0 (son). 

1920  Unable to locate 

Ruth Gabrielson Bishop. Birth: 1885. Death: 1918 (aged 32-33). Burial: City View Cemetery, Salem, Marion County, OR. Memorial ID: 51202263. 

Oregon Daily Journal 6 Nov 1918 p 7 – Obituary – Ruth Bishop Oregonian 17 Jan 1927 p 1 – Obituary – Chauncey Bishop 

Capital Journal 18 Jan 1927 p 7 – Funeral Services 

Oregon Statesman 24 May 1936 p 2 – Three Bishop Brothers Woolen Mill History 

M3 1989-027-0001     Photo 

0081.017.0003            Cherrians Banquet Scroll 

1983.036.0006            Cherrians Banquet Program 

1983.049.0001            Engraving Plate (personal card) – index card .0002 

2004.003.0031            Dance Programs 

2004.003.0032            Party Invitation 

2014.082.0181            YMCA Team Schedule 

X2013.026.0002          Pamphlet 

Later Woolen Mills in Oregon, Alfred L. Lomax, Portland, Binfords & Mort, 1974. P. 103-139, 273-301.