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Obituary
Oliver, 99, died April 6, 2014, in Albany, Oregon. He was born June 9, 1914 on a farm near Creswell, Oregon. Oliver graduated from Creswell HS in 1931 and worked for four years before enrolling in Eugene Biblbe College. After attending Eugene Bible College he graduated from Oregon State with a degree in forestry management in 1940. He was a conscientious objector during WWII and was in the first group of CO's to train as smokejumpers in 1943. After his seven training jumps he was stationed at Basin Creek and then at Big Prairie Ranger Station. His second and third years were spent at Nine Mile and was discharged on November 15, 1945. He jumped all three years of the CPS-103 program and finished with 39 jumps. Oliver was a beekeeper after the war and established Fairview Apiaries also known as Gibson Hill Honey Farm. He was ahead of his times in the field and was instrumental in convincing farmers to rent bees to improve their crop yields. Oliver was a member of the American Beekeepers Assoc. for over 60 years and extensively traveled abroad.
Identifier
Petty_Oliver-W_Missoula_1943
Publication Date
April 2014
Keywords
Smokejumping; Smokejumpers -- United States; National Smokejumper Association; Wildfire fighters; Obituaries
Disciplines
Forest Management
Recommended Citation
National Smokejumper Association, "Smokejumper Obituary: Petty, Oliver W. (Missoula 1943)" (2014). Smokejumper Obituaries. 841.
https://dc.ewu.edu/smokejumper_bios/841
