Pat Masterson

Patrick Masterson was an author, historian and photographer of note who owned and operated Pioneer Photo in Port Orford in the 1960s and 70s.

He was responsible for documenting many historic properties of Port Orford as evidenced in the National Register of Historic Places as well as putting together the 1984 “Port Orford Cultural Resource Catalog”. Needless to say, without his tireless efforts to record history, much of the information that we rely on today to tell the story of Port Orford would be lost.

His book, “Port Orford — A History” is often cited and recognized as the primer on the history of the formation of the city and the early settlers. As the great grandson of Patrick and Jane Hughes, he was able to learn about the history in a way very few people had an opportunity to do.

Since the enrollment of the Hughes House upon the National Register of Historic Places in the early 1980s, a great deal of interest has been generated concerning the development of the ranch and the people responsible. In the interest of keeping the story as close to the facts as possible, I decided to record and publish the information compiled and held by me as a fourth generation of the Hughes family.

My grandmother, Alice (Hughes) Masterson, was the eldest daughter born to Jane and Patrick Hughes at Port Orford in 1864. She resided on the ranch for nearly 50 years until her passing in 1929. My father, John Patrick Masterson, was closely associated with the ranch for nearly 36 years and moved there with his bride, Vernice, in 1921, residing in the main house for a year until their new home was completed. It was located where the Park Manager’s residence is now.”

PAT MASTERSON, “PORT ORFORD—A HISTORY”

John and Vernice increased their family with 3 children (Patrick, Jack and Martha) and eventually moved into the Victorian Masterson House in Port Orford. This home was also built by P.J. Lindberg who constructed the Hughes House.

Pat’s contribution to the record of the era is astonishing. His keen interest in documenting history in addition to restoring old photographs was well served by his artistic eye and curatorial sensibility. Many well-known early images of Port Orford passed through his studio when it was in operation and no doubt found a new audience thanks to the dedication of Patrick Masterson.

Here are a selection of photographs taken by Masterson:

Port Orford Historical Photos recently received this generous collection of negatives from Deborah Masterson that we are grateful to publish with her permission. Here are a few more from her family album:

Watch for more on this website and at the Hughes House and Ranch in 2025. Learn more in the Cape Blanco Heritage Society’s “News of Note”